Turkish director Fuad Kavur who lives in England, has agreed with yugoslavian Branko Lusting with two Oscars, for the movie ‘Ataturk’ that he has been working on for the past 2 years. Branko Lustig (77) received Oscars for the ‘Best Motion Picture’ for the movies Schindler’s List and Gladiator. Kavur said that they will start the filming of the movie ‘Ataturk’ int he summer of 2011 in Hungary.

-You decided to film the movie ‘Ataturk’ in Hungary. And you take famous producer Branko Lusting along with you. Why Hungary?

-Hungary give 30% subvention to bring foreing movies into Hungary. In addition, they have all the means in terms of technology. The movie Evita was filmed entirely there. That’s why we decided to film it in Hungary. But there will be scenes that will be filmed in Turkey and in other places as well.

-For the role of Ataturk, Daniel Craig was one of the names that was mentioned. When I interviewed him he had said that he respected Ataturk and all that he accomplished. Is this still on the agenda?

– As you know, for an actor to accept a role in Hollywood, there are many phases. It would not be right to talk about before the signing. At the time the script wasn’t sufficient either. But we have been working on the script for the past 2 years. Script is the most important factor in cinema. A movie such as Ataturk could not be realized without a great script. Therefore, there is another person that I’ve been working with on the script.

-This is your second collaboration with Branko Lusting. He is a very well-known producer in Hollywood. How will it be like to work with him?

-I call this faith. Branko is a very serious producer who knows what is doing. He is also an Aushwitchz survivor. I don’t need to say more. He sees the movie ‘Ataturk’ as a second ‘Schindler’s List’ and gives all of his time to it. He wants to make a movie that many future generations can look back on.

-Who is the other person who is writing the script of ‘Ataturk’ with you?

-Famous writer Frederick Raphael. He is also an Oscar winner. He is the writer of Stanley Kubrick’s unforgettable movie ‘Eyes Wide Shut’. We wrote a serious script with Frederick. It has been worked on a lot.

-What will be the essential theme of the movie ‘Ataturk’ that you will be filming?

-The main theme will be secularity. The script explains how this idea has caused the falling out of Ataturk and his best friend. An Ataturk scenario that does not reflect the problems of Turkey and even the world would not be interesting for movie lovers, it would only be a history lesson. The story that movie lovers are interested in, is a story that has human drama in it.

Aysegul EKINCI/LONDON