Born in Turkey but emigrated to Germany early on, writer/director Zetkin Yikilmis has steadily been growing in the local indie scene with a series of fine genre shorts and other features as she moves into doing feature-length films. Now, in honor of Women in Horror Month, I talk with her about her early filmmaking experiences, her upcoming film Some Smoke and a Red Locker and upcoming projects.
Me: Hello and thank you for taking the time to do this. First off, how did you get into the genre?
Zetkin Yikilmis: I'm a big horror fan myself. I watched them since I was a child. I think many of the classic horror movies are very progressive. In the Genre, there is a lot of space to give a social statement without the audience realizing you did so. That's fun.
Me: Were you always into genre films growing up? What films specifically got you into watching horror movies?
ZY: My first Horror movie was "It" I remember that pretty good: a couple of my girlfriends and I we did a sleepover at a girls house, who had a older brother... We were all about twelve years old. After I watched it I was afraid to use the bathroom like one month. Later on I got deeper into horror, I started watching Japanese and Korean movies and classic horror cinema like Wes Craven or Hitchcock.
Me: Coming from Turkey originally, what was the local scene like when you first started getting interested in filmmaking?
ZY: I have Turkish origins but I grew up in Germany as an immigrant. In Germany the scene itself is interesting I met a couple of very interesting and talented directors in the genre, but still the genre is treated like a stepchild by the German movie industry.
Me: Did that environment hinder your interest in the genre or force you to turn to the local cinema for inspiration?
ZY: Growing up with immigration background I was often told to do movies about my "ethnic background." In Germany there are still a lot of "prejudices" in society. In addition it's hard to find financing in Germany for genre movies. To get childcare is very important for women with children, here in Germany it is hard to find a kindergarten. While shooting my first full length "Some Smoke and a Red Locker" I had my son one year old by my side because we couldn't find a childcare for him.
Me: When you entered the university for your studies, did you originally intend to go for film studies?
ZY: No, not really. I think movies you study on set. I was forced into university and always wanted to go out to work on film. My father was a passionate photographer, but nevertheless my parents haven't been very happy about me getting involved in movies.
Me: When you finally decided to focus on creating film, was there any kind of push towards a specific style or format?
ZY: I made experimental stuff and tried to find jobs on independent film sets. My first serious job was on a LGBT film as assistant director. When I started movies it was easy to find jobs because with the digital filmmaking revolution everybody started shooting movies.
Me: Having worked on various aspects of film production, what tools and skills did you acquire working on those that transferred to future film-projects? Do you have any particular preference for working on any?
ZY: Next to directing, which I see as my main preference, I love production design. It's so much fun building sets and decorating them - as a production designer you have such a big influence on the end product, it's incredible and very creative.
Me: How would you describe your visual style?
ZY: Low Key, high contrast, with a lot of colors and moody lights, add a pinch of trash and there you go!
Me: Your first original short was Dr. Drayce. Where did the inspiration for the film come from?
ZY: I had a couple of movies before Dr. Drayce, but it was the first serious one working together with my cinematographer and husband Dominic Yikilmis. To this time I was very influenced by David Lynch and Takashi Miike - both have a couple of great unlinear films I love.
Me: Being the writer, director and star of the short, did it still challenge you to be involved in various capacities at once on a project like this? How do you balance those priorities during a shoot?
ZY: It is always a big challenge to do so much on set. I also do my own production design, costume and on the set of Dr Drayce I even got my son with me, he was just a few month old. To handle all that I do good preparation and my husband helps me out and is a great cinematographer, who exactly knows what I want. We are a good team.
Me: Your next shorts, The Date, Salmon Baits and Cat of Death, soon followed. Where did the inspiration for the films come from?
ZY: Salmon Baits is inspired by Hitchcock. The rest is just me trying to have fun using things I have in mind.
Me: You’ve also got several upcoming projects, first being The Knifeman. What can you tell us about that project?
ZY: "The Knifeman" is one of our my favorite projects, it was played on several international festivals. I just couldn't manage to set its IMDb page to "released". Soon I'm going to bring out a collection of all my shorts available on pantaflix "the witty, weird and vicious short film collection"
Me: As well, you also recently finished shooting Some Smoke and a Red Locker. What is the expected schedule to release that one?
ZY: Glen Reynolds is our producers representative we are trying to get a good distribution deal, but probably the end of 2020.
Me: Beyond these projects, what are you working on that you'd like to share with our readers?
ZY: I'm in the post production of my second full length movie "Planet Zee": It's my counter-punch against patriarchy. It deals with the female filmmaker Zee - living together with her Granny Sam - starting a crazy and brutal online game, with her insolent producer Serge. I think it's an entertaining one-room movie with a crazy twist that horror fans might be interested in.
Me: Lastly, being that this is Women in Horror Month, what special message do you have for any women out there looking to join in the industry in any capacity as you are one yourself? Thank you again for your time!
ZY: Just keep on going! Women are fighters, and do a great jobs in each and every section of society, and often work hard and fight hard against inequalities to do so. Don't let people or situations bother you, believe in yourself and do what you love. Keep fighting, you are wonderful!
This interview was part of our month-long Women in Horror Month celebrations. Click the banner below to check out all of our interviews and reviews we've conducted for the event:
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