Mustang

Five sisters growing up in rural Turkey band together to defend their autonomy, in Deniz Gamze Ergüven's deeply affecting feature film debut.

In a village in northern Turkey, Lale and her four older sisters celebrate the end of the school year with some male classmates but the perceived immodesty of their actions causes repercussions at home when the orphaned girls’ domineering uncle overreacts. Classes on domestic duties hastily replace academic studies and marriages are arranged for the older girls. As their home becomes a fortress, the bond between the girls emboldens the younger ones to rebel.

Curator's Note

The feature film debut of France-based Franco-Turkish director Deniz Gamze Ergüven's – nominated for the Best Foreign Language Film Academy Award – presents a deeply affecting portrait of sisterhood, solidarity and hard-won empowerment. Winner of the European Discovery of the Year Award at the European Film Awards, five French Césars – including the Best Original Music César for Warren Ellis – and the Europa Cinemas prize at the Cannes Film Festival, Deniz Gamze Ergüven's remarkably assured film is anchored by naturalistic performances from a largely unknown cast of talented newcomers.

– Roberta Ciabarra; Curator, Film