Crossing Istanbul

Lia, a retired teacher living in Georgia, promised to find out what happened to her long lost niece Tekla. When Lia learns from a neighbor that Tekla might be living in Turkey, they set off to find her. In Istanbul they discover a beautiful city full of connections and possibilities—but looking for someone who never intended to be found is harder than they thought. Until they meet Evrim, a lawyer fighting for trans rights. As Lia and Achi weave their way through the city’s backstreets, Tekla starts feeling closer than ever.

With Crossing Istanbul, Swedish filmmaker of Gregorian descent Levan Akin set out to make a film about solidarity and finding the small gestures of kindness and understanding between strangers and family alike. The film is based on a true story about a grandmother traveling from Georgia to Turkey in search of her trans granddaughter, and is intended to question people’s prejudices about generation gaps in views on LGBTQIA+ people.

As an introduction, film enthusiast and screenwriting student Linn Berkvens will deliver a brief spoken word performance inspired by the film.