Once Upon A Time

SYNOPSIS:  

In December 2019, hundreds of thousands of people were forced to leave their homes under Russian bombardment. A documentary crew set out for Syria following an image of an exodus that appeared in the media. The journey began in Istanbul and reached deep into the regions that were still under conflict and the crew found itself in the middle of the war. The documentary crew became part of the journey which was taken to witness the plight of people leaving their homes under deadly bombings.

Director's Bio:

Emre’s journey began on a cold winter night when he was in his mother’s womb and she was about to give birth on the road. Thankfully they arrived at the Cerrahpaşa Hospital at the last minute. Emre made his first international travel when he was 6 and began his formal education in Germany. He and his family moved to two different countries and changed 3 cities and 14 schools. It’s a surprise that he had finished his higher education at the same place. He started his tertiary education in Germany and then moved to and stayed in Vienna for six years. He was curious to experience studying in his own country due to the restrictions imposed by the 1997 military memorandum and continued his education in Istanbul University as an international student with the Erasmus Program. During his study, he volunteered to travel to Ethiopia with IHH Humanitarian Relief Foundation. That was a turning point for him, he couldn’t turn back his normal course of life and his love at first sight with Africa made him leave university and everything when there were just 6 courses left to graduate. He didn’t even pick up his things from his dormitory. Since then, he turned his face to the East to witness and made others witnesses to the true nature of the land. He had travelled to tens of countries many times. He graduated from Malatya Inonu University to please his mother. He is married with a son.