Appropriate or Inappropriate? From Shoe Factory to Film Making Venue at the Beykoz Leather and Shoe Factory in Istanbul

Beykoz Leather and Shoe Factory is an important industrial heritage site in Istanbul because of its cultural, social, historical, and symbolic value. Reusing it as a filming location has created a long-running controversy about its suitability. Therefore, the purpose of this paper is to evaluate the compatibility of adaptive reuse of this industrial heritage site in the context of assigning an alternative use compared to its original function. This paper originally proposed a three-charter rubric system, which uses the three international heritage frameworks, turned into rubrics, to gauge how appropriately (or not) the transformation of this site is handled. The process identified a critical juncture and two phases of progressive transformation. The first stage of adaptive reuse limited the site primarily to filmmaking, successfully preventing abandonment through minimal intervention but offering restricted public access. After 2020, a second stage expanded public accessibility and introduced new functions, creating a more vibrant cultural and creative hub besides demonstrating a more effective adaptive reuse approach. The findings of this study suggest that reuse is an appropriate option for extending the lifespan of abandoned buildings. However, it should be highlighted that physical maintenance simply prevents demolition, whereas offering engaging activities promotes the vitality and longevity of the structures. In a complex industrial heritage site, quasi-public use is a short-term strategy. However, proposing public uses and activities helps prolong the life and vitality of industrial heritage sites that may no longer be used for production purposes. It has been revealed that a holistic strategy for reuse should involve the incorporation of various stakeholders in the process, while considering the sociocultural history and needs of the community, ultimately resulting in a positive impact on the vitality of this important industrial heritage site. The study concludes that the rubric-based application of the three heritage charters—the Burra Charter (BC), the Dublin Principles (DP), and the Nizhny Tagil Charter (NT)—provides an effective framework for assessing the appropriateness of new uses. This approach reveals the impacts of adaptive reuse by rating individual buildings according to their degree of compliance with heritage principles, thereby demonstrating how reuse decisions influence the long-term lifespan of industrial buildings on the site as well as their effects on community engagement.