Making Turkish Star Wars

When the set fell apart for an ambitious cinematic space opera that was produced on a characteristically small Turkish budget, nationally famed director Çetin İnanç had to think fast to save his film.

What resulted was a domestic hit in 1982, originally called The Man Who Saves the World. Now known as Turkish Star Wars, it's a production regularly referenced as the worst movie ever made.

Louis Harnett O'Meara uses an archival interview with İnanç, originally recorded by Turkish movie historian Ali Murat Güven in 2018, to tell the story of a classic in Turkish Copy Cinema - a genre that has faded since copyright laws in Turkey have become more rigorously applied.

Presented by Louis Harnett O’Meara and produced by Hunter Charlton. An Ember production.

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(Photo: Turkish Star Wars movie poster. Credit: Graham Humphreys)