Opening Film of the Ayvalık International Film Festival: Sentimental Value

Organized by Seyir Association in collaboration with Ayvalık Municipality, the Ayvalık International Film Festival will welcome film lovers with an opening ceremony at Ayvalık Municipality Büyük Park Amphitheater on September 16. On the festival’s opening night, Sentimental Value, directed by Joachim Trier and awarded the Grand Prix at the Cannes Film Festival, will have its Turkey premiere. Tickets for the opening night, hosted by Kurukahveci Mehmet Efendi with complimentary coffee, will be on sale starting September 6.

Opening Film of the Festival: Sentimental Value

Joachim Trier, known for Oslo, August 31st and The Worst Person in the World, returns this year with his new film Sentimental Value, which premiered at Cannes and received the Grand Prix, to open the Ayvalık International Film Festival. Reuniting with his long-time collaborator screenwriter Eskil Vogt, Trier explores the fragile nature of family bonds as two sisters reconnect with their estranged father, while also highlighting the healing power of art.

As in The Worst Person in the World, Renate Reinsve stars in the lead role of Sentimental Value. Stellan Skarsgård, Inga Ibsdotter Lilleaas, and Elle Fanning are among the other prominent names in the cast. Trier designed the family home, chosen as the main setting, as a character in itself, woven with memories and vitality.

At the heart of the film are two sisters and their filmmaker father. After years of absence, the father reenters his daughters’ lives because of his new film, which carries traces of their mother. This story between the father and his two daughters deals with themes such as family traumas, clashes of artistic spirits, relationships between parents and children, and the complexities of sibling bonds.

Festival Tickets on Sale September 6

Following the opening night at Ayvalık Municipality Büyük Park Amphitheater, screenings will take place this year at Ayvalık Municipality Vural Cinema, Fabrika Ayvalık, Kırlangıç Ayvalık, and ASKEV Sera. Tickets for the Ayvalık International Film Festival will be available starting September 6 via Biletix, Biletinial, and at the box office opening at Fabrika Ayvalık. Ticket prices during the pre-sale period (September 6–15) will be 150 TL discounted, 200 TL full; from September 16 onwards, 170 TL discounted, 220 TL full. Opening night tickets will be on sale for 250 TL. All tickets for screenings at Kırlangıç Ayvalık will be available at 100 TL, and the screenings at ASKEV Sera will be free of charge.

The Ayvalık International Film Festival will take place with the valuable support of Balıkesir Metropolitan Municipality, Ayvalık Municipality, Kurukahveci Mehmet Efendi, Paribu, Spaces of Culture, Asteros Film, OGM Pictures, Kürşat Ayvalık, Macaron Kolonyaları, Macaron Muhallebicisi, Novavera, Consulate General of the Netherlands, Diageo Turkey, Goethe-Institut Turkey, French Embassy, Bilginer-Melin Ayvalık Art Culture Education Foundation, Ayvalık Chamber of Commerce, and Çöp(m)adam.