abstract: This article investigates how the Turkish Cinematheque Association (1965–80) fostered an idea of cinematic internationalization that resulted in a fierce criticism of the Yeşilçam period, the golden age of domestic film production in Turkey from the 1950s to the 1980s. Drawing on archival sources like journals and magazines, the article discusses how this criticism led to a heated debate in which different actors, groups, and institutions offered conflicting proposals for how a Turkish national cinema should be formed. I examine how this debate transformed into a conflict over cultural imperialism and Westernization, which deepened the rift within the Turkish intelligentsia.
Ecem Nur Yildirim (Wed,) studied this question.