Love, Spells and All That explained

Love, Spells and All That
Native Name:
Director:	Ümit Ünal
Producer:	Ümit Ünal
Starring:	Selen Uçer Ece Dizdar
Music:	Ümit Ünal
Cinematography:	Türksoy Gölebeyi
Editing:	Melike Kasaplar
Studio:	MTAFilm
Distributor:	TLA Releasing
Runtime:	96 minutes
Country:	Turkey
Language:	Turkish

Love, Spells and All That (Turkish: Aşk, Büyü vs.) is a Turkish drama film, written and directed by Ümit Ünal and released in 2019.^[1] The film stars Selen Uçer as Reyhan and Ece Dizdar as Eren, two women in a small Turkish town who had a love affair as teenagers but were separated when Eren went away to university in Paris; now, 20 years later, Eren returns wanting to rekindle their relationship, but Reyhan is uncertain even though she had once cast a love spell to make Eren love her forever.^[2]

The film's cast also includes Ayşenil Şamlıoğlu, Uygar Özçelik, Emrah Kolukisa, Damla Ersan, Tonguç Rador, Murat Toprak, Sirzat Bilallar, Melisa Demir, Gizem Katmer, Rohat Culum, Ramazan Alkan, Serhat Gonen, Eyüp Kelen, Onur Alkan, Alaattin Ekin, Muharrem Dursun, Kasim Arli, Yilmaz Arli, Melik Alkan, Kerim Ünal, Ilhan Alkan and Görkem Mertsöz.

The film premiered at the Antalya Golden Orange Film Festival in 2019.^[3] It was picked up for international distribution by TLA Releasing in 2021.^[4]

Awards

Award	Date of ceremony	Category	Recipient(s)	Result
Antalya Golden Orange Film Festival	2019	Best Film	Ümit Ünal		^[5]
		SIYAD Jury Award
		Dr. Avni Tolunay Jury Award
		Best Actress	Selen Uçer
Istanbul Film Festival	2020	Golden Tulip for Best Film	Ümit Ünal		^[6]
		Best Screenplay
		Best Actress	Selen Uçer
			Ece Dizdar
Inside Out Film and Video Festival	2021	Audience Award	Love, Spells and All That		^[7]
Outfest		Best International Screenplay	Ümit Ünal		^[8]
Turkish Film Critics Association	2022	Best Film	Love, Spells and All That		^[9]
		Best Director	Ümit Ünal
		Best Actress	Selen Uçer
			Ece Dizdar
		Best Screenplay	Ümit Ünal
		Best Cinematography	Türksoy Gölebeyi
		Best Music	Ümit Ünal

Notes and References

1. Paolo Kagaoan, "Inside Out 2021: Our Review of ‘Love, Spells, And All That’". In the Seats, 25 May 2021.
2. Drew Burnett Gregory, "Newfest 2021: 'Love, Spells and All That' is a Lesbian Romance Both Magical and Real". Autostraddle, 21 October 2021.
3. Vecdi Sayar, "56th Antalya Film Festival: Back to the origins". Hurriyet Daily News, 27 October 2019.
4. Melissa Kasule, "TLA Releasing acquire UK and North American rights to two Turkish LGBTQ+ focused films". Screen Daily, 11 August 2021.
5. Vecdi Sayar, "'Bozkır' sweeps prizes at Antalya film festival". Hurriyet Daily News, 4 November 2019.
6. https://www.hurriyetdailynews.com/istanbul-film-festival-presents-awards-156969 "Istanbul Film Festival presents awards"
7. Patrick Hipes, "Inside Out 2SLGBTQ+ Film Festival Winners Include Turkey’s ‘Love, Spells And All That’, UK’s ‘Sweetheart’". Deadline Hollywood, 7 June 2021.
8. Ethan Shanfeld, "‘Firstness,’ ‘Right to Try’ and ‘No Straight Lines: The Rise of Queer Comics’ Win Big at Outfest". Variety, 24 August 2021.
9. Kenan Kaldan, "SİYAD Ödülleri 2022 sahipleri açıklandı". 724 Kultursanat, 28 March 2022.