Afloat
This independently produced Turkish drama didn't receive official funding because of its open exploration of politics and liberal depiction of erotic sexuality. A boldly uncensored sailing trip in the Aegean Sea briefly reunites an estranged family. Dissident journalist Yusuf wants to spend one last carefree week on holiday with his two daughters and divorced wife before his imprisonment. Western-educated Zeynep arrives from New York with her American husband. The young, free-spirited seductress Yasemin (played by one of the adult "Mustang" girls, Elit İşcan) unabashedly pursues her rebellious desires. Long-buried secrets and uninvited passengers will bring winds of change and startling twists to their one last voyage.
Aslihan Unaldi's stunning and personal directorial debut has already sailed to Sao Paulo, Valencia, Montreal, Buenos Aires, Sofia and Istanbul, and won Best Film and Best Director at New York's CineFest. She boldly introduces complex female characters (rarely seen in Turkish films) and asks her father (an amateur actor) to play the pivotal role of Yusuf, who is prosecuted and punished for investigative articles on corruption in Türkiye.