Golden Orange 2026: Two Juries to Pick Best Director Awards
Two juries will judge the Best Director awards at the 24-31 October festival in Antalya.
The 2026 Antalya Golden Orange Film Festival has named the members of two juries that will decide the Best Director awards. One panel is from the Short Film Directors’ Association and will judge the National Short Film Competition. The other is from FİLM-YÖN and will judge the National Feature Film Competition. The festival runs from 24 to 31 October 2026.
Both panels have three members each. Their backgrounds range from production and screenwriting to documentary and festival-winning feature films.
Who sits on the Golden Orange director juries
The Short Film Directors’ Association jury consists of Selvihan Eroğlu, Aziz Alaca and Simay Antep. They will assess the Best Director prize in the National Short Film Competition.
The FİLM-YÖN jury has Mehmet Eryılmaz, Murat Düzgünoğlu and Çiğdem Sezgin. This panel will decide the Best Director award in the National Feature Film Competition.
Short film jury: producer, director and translator
Selvihan Eroğlu is president of the Short Film Directors’ Association and founder of Personart Entertainment. She works in production, production coordination and casting. In 2026 she produced the short film Tavukkarası.
Aziz Alaca has directed many commercials and promotional films, as well as short films and documentaries. His short film Göl Kenarı won the FIPRESCI award at the Istanbul Film Festival in 2022. He is now preparing the release of his first feature, Tek Başına.
Simay Antep graduated in English language teaching from Istanbul University. She completed a playwriting programme at Istanbul City Theatres. She has worked as a film and TV translator since 2005 and still writes and produces.
Feature film jury: three directors with festival records
Mehmet Eryılmaz has directed short, experimental and documentary films, along with commercials and music videos. His feature Hazan Mevsimi appeared in 2008, followed by Misafir in 2015. According to the festival announcement, his films have won 25 awards, including a grand jury prize and a FIPRESCI award at the 2016 Montreal World Film Festival.
Murat Düzgünoğlu founded the production company Fikirtepe Film in 2007. He became widely known for Neden Tarkovski Olamıyorum? (2014). His third feature, Halef, premiered at the Moscow International Film Festival and won several awards.
Çiğdem Sezgin studied film design at Marmara University. She wrote, directed and produced Kasap Havası (2015) and Suna (2022). She is now preparing her third feature, Elveda Mona Lisa.
What these juries add to the festival
These panels are separate from the main competition juries. They are made up of film professionals and focus only on directing awards. Other outlets report that the festival’s national short film jury includes Hakkı Kurtuluş, Melike Kasaplar and Belkıs Bayrak, and that Derviş Zaim chairs the feature film jury.
The festival calls itself Türkiye’s longest-established film festival. This year’s edition is the 63rd. Winners are due to be announced at the closing ceremony on 31 October 2026.
Source: SonDakika, Evrensel, NTV
Featured image: Onur (talk) (Uploads) / Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 3.0
