The film "YURT," which made its world premiere at the Venice Film Festival and won the Golden Tulip Award for Best Film at the Istanbul Film Festival, has now been released in Turkey. Since April 3, it has been showing in 72 theaters across France. After its premiere at the Munich Film Festival at the end of June, the film will also be released in Germany. Its international festival journey continues.
The film "Yurt," written and directed by Nehir Tuna, and produced and acted in by Didem Ellialtı, a graduate of the Art Management Bachelor's Program '05, has won several awards. These include the Best Screenplay Award at the Bisato d’Oro Awards at the Venice Film Festival, the Best Director Award and the SFCC Film Critics Award at the Saint-Jean-de-Luz Film Festival, the Best Actor Award at the Marrakech Film Festival, and the Best Film Award at the Annonay First Films Festival. It also received the Golden Tulip for Best Film and Best Cinematography awards at the Istanbul Film Festival.
About Didem Ellialtı:
Born and raised in Istanbul, Didem Ellialtı is a graduate of Yeditepe University’s Art Management program and the Lee Strasberg Theatre and Film Institute in New York.
During her university studies, she interned at Radikal Sanat and Cnntürk, then worked for 6 years as the Publishing Editor of Fashiontv Magazine, prepared by Fashiontv and Harvey Nichols. She produced and hosted the program 'f People' on FashionTV, where she interviewed world stars in New York, Milan, Paris, and Istanbul. After acting in the films 'Melekler ve Kumarbazlar,' 'Signora Enrica,' and 'İtalyan Olmak,' she studied acting for 2 years at the New York Actor Studio Lee Strasberg Theatre Film Institute, where actors like Al Pacino, Marilyn Monroe, and Angelina Jolie trained.
She then took 6 months of advanced acting training at the Stella Adler Acting Studio, working on various acting techniques. She starred in Tennessee Williams' plays "The Owl and the Cat" and "Summer and Smoke" at the Marilyn Monroe Theatre in New York. She appeared in many original screenplays and short film adaptations of Broadway plays.
Currently residing between Istanbul and New York, Didem Ellialtı continues her studies at the Susan Batson Acting Studio in New York, working with Ivana Chubbuck's method and taking advanced scene work classes required by this technique.
She has made guest appearances in TV series such as 'İntikam,' 'Canım İçi,' and 'O Hayat Benim.' She played the main character Lucy in the Dracula play at the Akla Kara Theater. Recently, she has acted in films like Kumbara, Bir Güzel Hikaye, Karanlıkta Islık Çalanlar, Şüphe, Ben Bu Kalanlar Nasıl, and Kara. Lastly, she is also a co-producer and actor in 'Yurt,' which continues its world tour following its premiere at the Venice Film Festival.
Her mother, Ferda Ekberi, is a renowned fashion and industrial designer. Her father, Aydoğan Ellialtı, was a businessman with an excellent taste in fashion and had a very stylish, masculine approach. All her fashion inspiration comes from them. She has a younger brother, İhsan Ellialtı, who works as a purser at Turkish Airlines and is passionate about off-roading.
The actress also owns a fashion showroom called Di fashionbranding in Nişantaşı, where she provides styling and fashion consulting for celebrities. She is responsible for the costumes in 'Kara' and 'Yurt' films. Additionally, she is active in the fashion industry with her own design brand, Diproject, featuring leather and knitwear collections.
