Slowness and Diverging Aesthetics: Nuri Bilge Ceylan and Zeki Demirkubuz in New Turkish Cinema

New Turkish Cinema embraces minimalist audio-visual elements, with long takes, contemplative narratives, and a mediated film experience that invites slow engagement and introspection. Through a focused comparison of Nuri Bilge Ceylan and Zeki Demirkubuz, two of the most influential and internationally recognized figures in this movement, this article examines how their distinct directorial styles articulate the aesthetics of slowness. Both emerged in the 1990s as central figures in the post-Yeşilçam cinematic landscape, yet their approaches differ markedly. Ceylan’s films employ rural landscapes, subdued rhythms, and interior stillness, while Demirkubuz crafts existential narratives in confined urban settings through stark realism and elliptical storytelling. Despite their stylistic differences, both directors adopt techniques associated with global slow cinema. This article argues that slowness in New Turkish Cinema functions not merely as a matter of pacing, but as a cinematic strategy for expressing cultural unease, offering a lens to reflect on memory and identity.