Update of mythology

Sumeyra GUMRAH TELTIK

Thousands of years old mythological narratives continue to live on in new forms ranging from oral culture to cinema and digital games. The 3rd International Mythology Films Festival, which will take place in Aydın, İzmir, Manisa, İstanbul and Çanakkale between September 22-30, is a current reflection of this transformation. The Digital Game Competition, added to the program this year, aims to transform mythology into an interactive narrative. Preliminary applications for projects that will bring the rich legends of Anatolia to digital platforms continue until May 30.

We talked with Gülşah Elikbank, the founding director of the festival, and Rahmi Aydemir, one of the creators of the digital game section, about the relationship between mythology and contemporary narrative forms, and how the ancient stories of these lands can be carried into the future.

Mythologies are carriers of collective memory. Do today's audiences watch these legends out of a knowledge of the past or a sense of nostalgia?

Gülşah Elikbank: It is more of a longing feeling at the conscious level. We all feel deep down that the world used to be simpler, more beautiful and more livable, a strange longing for a place we have never been to. But in our subconscious, we have a lot of information about the universe thanks to our ancestors, this transmission is in us. We have inherited certain fears, sorrows and instincts from them so that we can keep up with the times and survive. Humans are programmed to survive. All the information needed for this is in the collective memory. People remember and discover this information through mythologies and establish a deeper connection with the universe.

Does the geographic spread of the festival contain a narrative strategy regarding the relationship between mythology and space?

GE: Our festival originates from Izmir. Izmir is considered to be the land where Homer was born. Our festival journey is from where he was born to where he wrote his great work. Troy Ancient City is a place that tells a lot to the present day with its story. Each district of Izmir opens up to a different civilization. Therefore, it is a very productive city for mythology. Çanakkale is a very valuable city for our history in every way. We need to tell the stories of these places more loudly.

Cinema involves the viewer's eyes; a game involves the viewer's body and decisions. Can Anatolian mythology be conveyed more effectively through game aesthetics?

Rahmi Aydemir: Of course! Cinema stimulates the viewer's eyes and mind, but gaming goes a step further and turns the user into a part of the narrative. Layered, symbolic and multi-dimensional narratives such as Anatolian mythology can create a much deeper impact through the player's experience. Game aesthetics is not just a visual or auditory issue, but also a spatial and temporal construction of experience. A player's wandering through a sacred space in Ephesus, Sardis or Hattusa, facing the wrath of a god at a moment of decision or searching for meaning in the mysterious nature of Cybele can be much more visceral and transformative than classical narrative forms. Moreover, there is a big difference between the time we are exposed to a movie and the time we experience a game. This means that if the game's story is strongly constructed, the player can establish a much deeper connection with the narrative and feel the impact of this experience for a long time.

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OUR TARGET IS DISADVANTAGED CHILDREN

There are also experimental works inspired by mythological forms at the festival. What is the purpose of the 'Mythology and Legends School' prepared for children?

GE: Before the film screenings, we have talks that do symbolic and mythological readings of the films. Based on the question of what people used to listen to by the fire in the past, there are also fairy tales, legends and old music in our festival. We try to include all disciplines of art. It is not a festival where you only watch films, but a festival that invites you to be a part of an experience. Mythology and Legends School is a fun educational program where we convey mythology to children aged 7-14 using all disciplines of art and an experiential learning method. We have a dream to bring this education especially to children living in disadvantaged areas.