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Amid increasing global interest in films and TV series from Turkey, Berlin-based distribution and sales company Af-Media — which specializes in Turkish movies — is expanding beyond its core markets to new territories across Europe, Asia, the Middle East and possibly even South America.

Launched by Ali Fidan in 2011, Af-Media is a leading distributor of Turkish films in Germany — home to an estimated 3.5 million people of Turkish origin, the lion’s share of the approximately 5 million living in Europe — as well as in France, Austria, Belgium, the Netherlands, Denmark, Switzerland and the U.K.

The company is now moving to other European markets and key overseas territories in the Middle East and Asia, including Qatar, the United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia, which recently ended a 35-year ban on movie theaters. “I would be very honored to present our titles in Saudi Arabia, and I’m sure we would attract large audiences,...

The touching real-life tale of a Turkish sergeant who saves a small Korean girl becomes long, heart-tugging fiction in Ayla: The Daughter of War, directed by Can Ulkay. The story is well-known both in South Korea and in Turkey, and was told in the 2010 South Korean doc Kore Ayla, which inspired the present film. A documentary feeling still persists in Yigit Guralp’s screenplay, which struggles to stay focused while faithfully recounting a passel of real-life incidents.

Ismail Hacioglu headlines a professional Turkish cast as the patriotic, level-headed but warm-hearted young officer, with little Kim Seol (who made her bow as a...

“This is an international film first. The story is international – you can't find this kind of story anywhere,” director Can Ulkay said of Ayla: The Daughter of War, which will be the Turkish entry for Best Foreign Language Film this year. Based on a true story in 1950 during the Korean War, the film follows Sergeant Süleyman, who risks his own life to save a young, ill girl with no parents who is left freezing in the cold. If Ayla receives a nomination, it will be the…...

The final deadline for submitting each country’s film for consideration for the foreign-language Oscar was October 2. Last year 85 were finally deemed eligible by the Academy; this year the number is a record 92. Haiti, Honduras, Lao People’s Democratic Republic, Mozambique, Senegal and Syria are first-time entrants. These films are vying for the initial shortlist of 9, and final five nominations to be announced on January 23. See the final list below.

Read More:Oscar Announces Changes for Foreign-Film Voting: Now Simpler! (Sort Of.)

The frontrunners include Sweden selected Ruben Östlund’s hilarious Palme d’Or-winner “The Square” (October 27, Magnolia Pictures), an art-world satire shot in majority Swedish with some English from stars Claes Bang, Elisabeth Moss, and Dominic West, thus giving Östlund another shot after “Force Majeure” was a surprise 2015 Oscar omission.

Germany’s choice, Fatih Akin’s “In the Fade” (December 27, Magnolia Pictures), won Best Actress for Diane Kruger at Cannes.

The final deadline for submitting each country’s film for consideration for the foreign-language Oscar was October 2. Last year 85 were finally deemed eligible by the Academy; this year the number is a record 92. Haiti, Honduras, Lao People’s Democratic Republic, Mozambique, Senegal and Syria are first-time entrants. These films are vying for the initial shortlist of 9, and final five nominations to be announced on January 23. See the final list below.

Read More:Oscar Announces Changes for Foreign-Film Voting: Now Simpler! (Sort Of.)

The frontrunners include Sweden selected Ruben Östlund’s hilarious Palme d’Or-winner “The Square” (October 27, Magnolia Pictures), an art-world satire shot in majority Swedish with some English from stars Claes Bang, Elisabeth Moss, and Dominic West, thus giving Östlund another shot after “Force Majeure” was a surprise 2015 Oscar omission.

Germany’s choice, Fatih Akin’s “In the Fade” (December 27, Magnolia Pictures), won Best Actress for Diane Kruger at Cannes.

Turkey’s Official 2018 Oscar Selection ‘Ayla, The Daughter of War’ will open the Festival on October 25 and George Takei’s ‘Allegiance…The Broadway Musical on the Big Screen’ will close the festival November 2. The festival highlights films from 53 countries across Asia, spanning from the eastern shores of the Mediterranean to Japan, and more.Ayla: The Daughter of War

The Third Annual Asian World Film Festival (Awff) Opening NIght film, Ayla: The Daughter of War was filmed in South Korea and tells a touching story of an orphan girl and a Turkish soldier set during the Korean War.

‘Ayla: The Daughter of War’

The Festival runs Oct 25 — Nov 2, 2017. All films will be screened at the Arclight Cinema in Downtown Culver City (9500 Culver Blvd.) Both the opening and closing night screenings will be followed by a cocktail reception.

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Director Can Ulkay commented, “It is very important for us to...

Turkey has selected Can Ulkay's debut feature Ayla: The Daughter of War as its candidate in the race for best foreign-language film in the Oscars.

Set during the Korean war in 1950, the film tells the story of a Turkish soldier, Sgt. Suleyman (Cetin Tekindor) who comes across an abandoned 5-year old girl on a freezing cold night. The terrified, barely alive child melts Suleyman's heart who risks his own life to smuggle her back to his army base and out of harm's way.

With no common language, Suleyman names her Ayla, a reference to the moon that lit the ravaged landscape...