Kızılırmak

Muhsin Ertuğrul directed the black-and-white Turkish film Kızılırmak in 1946. The screenplay is by Nâzım Hikmet and the producer is Fuat Rutkay; Doğan Film and Halk Film made it together. A sentimental village film, it is also known as Kızılırmak Karakoyun.

It is set among nomads of Anatolia. Hatçe (Nevin Seval), daughter of the tribal chief Hüseyin Ağa, finds consolation from her stepmother Zehra's cruelty in the honest love of the shepherd Selim (Hadi Hün). Zehra desires Selim too, and when he refuses her she plots with Şaban to separate the young pair. When the village philosopher Ferhat intervenes, the marriage is tied to a hard condition: if Selim can lead sheep fed on salt for three days across the river without letting them drink, he may have Hatçe. With the tunes of his flute he leads the whole flock, stubborn Karakoyun included, across. Zehra and Şaban, anxious about Hatçe's inheritance, scheme further, pressing the indebted Hüseyin Ağa through Ali Ağa, and the story heads toward a dramatic wedding day at the river bridge.

The cast also includes Behzat Butak, Vasfi Rıza Zobu, Mahmut Moralı, Mümtaz Ener, Haluk Sarıcı, Cahide Sonku, İsmail Hakkı Dümbüllü, Muammer Karaca and Şaziye Moral. The cinematographer is Yoakim Filmerides, with songs by Mefharet Yıldırım and Necmi Rıza Ahıskan.