Xalko (2018)

A small village in Turkish Anatolia slowly becomes a ghost town as families move abroad, leaving behind a group of dedicated women who keep things running, in this rare document of the hidden consequences of migratio Xalko is Director Sami Mermer’s birthplace, as he returns from his new home in Canada to reconnect with his relatives. Along with the help of Co-director Hind Benchekroun, the film is afforded an intimacy and honesty that doesn’t come easy as the women divulge the details of their private lives and frustrations. They eschew sentimentality for a grounded look at an increasingly unfamiliar way of life.