Erkan Tunç

Writing

Born: October 15, 1981 (age 45) · Erzurum, Türkiye

Director, screenwriter, and playwright. He graduated in 2005 from Dokuz Eylül University, Faculty of Fine Arts, Department of Performing Arts, with a major in Dramatic Writing and Dramaturgy. Rooted in literary and theatrical disciplines, Tunç has contributed stories and poems to various literary journals under the pen name “Osman Enes.”

His play “Dağınık Gazel” (Scattered Ghazal), which explores the legend of Yılmaz Güney through a tragic character focus, was published in 2008 by Mitos Boyut Publishing. Praised by renowned author Selim İleri as “the play of a young writer with exceptional emotional acuity,” the text was accepted into the State Theatres repertoire that same year.

Starting in 2005, Tunç gained extensive hands-on industry experience by serving as script supervisor, assistant director, and second director across television and cinema projects. During this period, he matured his directorial voice by sharing sets with master figures such as Atıf Yılmaz, Osman Sınav, Gülse Birsel, Onur Ünlü, Birol Güven, and Ercan Kesal.

Following his broad set experience, he made his directorial debut in 2013 with the acclaimed series “Leyla ile Mecnun.” He went on to serve as director and screenwriter for notable projects including “Ben de Özledim” (2014), “Beş Kardeş” (2015), “Dudullu Postası” (2018), “Vahşi Şeyler” (2020), “Bunu Bi Düşünün” (2021), “Hakim” (2022), and “Ben Bu Cihana Sığmazam” (2023–2024). His approach—blending popular television narratives with theater-rooted dramatic structures—infuses his work with a unique rhythm and layered character depth.

His debut feature film, “Martı” (The Seagull, 2018), made its world premiere at the Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival. It subsequently won Best Screenplay and Best Supporting Actress at the Ankara Film Festival, as well as Best Screenplay at the Frankfurt Turkish Film Festival.

Weaving the internal conflicts of the individual through themes of love, guilt, conscience, and belonging, Erkan Tunç builds a narrative universe centered on human confrontation with oneself and society. The director is currently in post-production and festival preparation for his second feature film, “My Happiest Day.”