Ali Özgentürk

Ali Özgentürk — Biography

Born Ali Habib Özgentürk on 4 November 1945 in Adana, the filmmaker known as Ali Özgentürk built a decades-long career in Turkish cinema as a director, screenwriter, editor and producer before his death on 15 May 2025 in Istanbul. After studying sociology at Istanbul University he turned to theatre, founding one of Istanbul's first street-theatre troupes in 1968. He entered the film industry in the early 1970s as a camera assistant, then served as an assistant director and screenwriter to established filmmakers such as Atıf Yılmaz and Yılmaz Güney. He wrote the screenplay for Atıf Yılmaz's Selvi Boylum Al Yazmalım and made his own directorial debut with Hazal in 1979. In the following decades he directed At, Su Da Yanar, Bekçi, Seni Seviyorum Rosa, Mektup, Balalayka, Kalbin Zamanı and Yengeç Oyunu, establishing himself as one of Turkish cinema's leading auteur directors. Following his death he was laid to rest in his native Adana.