THE STOLEN FATHER Meriç's father is abducted by the secret police. Traumatised by this event, Meriç searches for possible explanations and comes to believe that his father has been stolen by thieves. In his imagination he brings his father back and hides him in the cellar... Meriç, a five-year-old boy, lives with his family in a suburb of Istanbul. He witnesses how his father is being abducted by the secret police. His father has been reported «missing» ever since. The little boy cannot cope with this traumatic experience and begins to search desperately for his father. Yet nobody can answer his burning questions. More and more, Meriç isolates himself. In his imagination, his father escaped from the abductors and hides in the cellar. Meriç must keep his secret. For his family, life without their father becomes increasingly difficult and they decide to return to Kurdistan. For Meriç, moving away means leaving the cellar and his beloved father. His whole world collapses about him.		Drama, 2000 24min, 35mm Original version: Turkish Written & directed by: Esen Isik Photography: Pierre Mennel Editor: Thomas Isler Sound: Yakup Yilmaz Music: Cihat Askin Cast: Alican Altun, Füsun Demirel, Nurettin Sen Premiere: Januar 1999 Festivals: (selection) Locarno International Film Festival; Festival Internazionale Cinema delle Donne, Turin; Ankara International Film Festival; Tamere International Short Film Festival; Mostra Curta Cinema, Rio de Janeiro; Siena Short Film Festival; Pusan International Film Festival; Montevideo International Film Festival; Internationale Kurzfilmtage Oberhausen; Corto Imola Festival; Festival International de Films de Femmes de Créteil; Hongkong International Film Festival; Festival International du Court Métrage, Clermont-Ferrand Awards: (selection) Swiss Film Prize; Grand Prix, Clermon-Ferrand; Special Jury Award, Ankara; Pardino dOro, Léopards de demain, Locarno; 2nd prize, Imola Production: Dschoint Ventschr Filmproduktion Co-production: SF Schweizer Fernsehen Producer: Karin Koch Commissioning editors: Susann Wach Rózsa (SF) World rights: Dschoint Ventschr Filmproduktion