Cold of Kalandar (Kalandar Soğuğu)

Cold of Kalandar (Kalandar Soğuğu) is a 2015 Hungarian-Turkish co-produced drama directed by Mustafa Kara, who co-wrote the screenplay with Bilal Sert. In a misty Black Sea mountain village, Mehmet supports his family with a few animals while obsessively searching for minerals in the mountains; as his hopes fade he turns to the bullfights of Artvin, and the disappearance of the family's beloved bull drives the story into an unexpected search.

Kara wanted the roles to feel lived rather than acted, so he cast mostly non-professionals: the leads were played by primary school teacher Haydar Şişman and Trabzon-based nurse Nuray Yeşilaraz. Filming began in 2012 and unfolded over four periods under harsh conditions in Şimşirli village, at 2000 meters altitude in Trabzon's Maçka district, and in Artvin's Murgul district, to capture the seasonal cycle. The film premiered at the Tokyo International Film Festival on 28 October 2015, opened in Turkish cinemas on 16 September 2016, and was selected as Türkiye's entry for Best Foreign Language Film at the 89th Academy Awards without reaching the shortlist.