The common theme running through the Turkish films screened at this year’s festival is, for the most part, the plight of the middle classes. The middle classes—whom many of us regard as the backbone of society—are in crisis. The situation presents a worrying picture for both older and younger generations, just as it does in our films. Academic Polat Alpman, screenwriter and director Arda Ekşigil, Pınar Yorgancıoğlu, director of Those Who Whistle After Dark, featured in this section, and Enis Köstepen, one of the screenwriters and producers of Yellow Letters, will dissect this theme from multiple perspectives, with festival program adviser Fatih Özgüven as moderator.