Vedat Türkali

Real name Abdülkadir Pirhasan, Türkali was born in Samsun in 1919. After graduating from İstanbul University, Department of Turkology, he served as a literature teacher at Maltepe and Kuleli Military High Schools. He was arrested in 1951 on being accused of conducting political activities. He was sentenced to nine years in prison by the military court and was paroled seven years later. He embarked on working on cinema in 1958 following his release from the prison. He wrote over 40 screenplays and directed three films. He wrote his screenplays under the pen name of Vedat Türkali. His efforts in filmmaking have a distinguished place in today’s Turkish cinema. It widely acknowledged that these works of him, which appalled to an extensive mass of audience, have an effectual role in the establishment and development of early Turkish cinema. Vedat Türkali won many national and international awards with his plays, screenplays and novels. The year from May 1, 2004 to May 1, 2005 was declared the “Year of Vedat Türkali” with support of intellectuals, artists, cultural and artistic institutions and human rights activists.