Water flows over the feet of the Afghan boy, "Ghelab Gul", as he washes one of his feet using the other, the beginning of ablution, while his uncle pours water for him in preparation for prayer.

The movements of the feet that replace the arms seem amazing as he washes his face with them, and gets up and sits without relying on his hands because he does not have arms.

After the prayer, the boy begins to review his lessons using his feet, which he writes with, while he is sitting on the ground in a remote village in the middle of the tall mountains of Afghanistan.

The boy tells how his father died 5 years ago, and that his uncle is the one who takes care of him, and without him he would not have been able to cross the river to its other bank in the Turkish short documentary film "Gulab Gul" by Turkish director Samih Sagman, produced in 2022, which was part of the festival's screenings. Mercy for the Worlds" International Film Festival for the short film in Istanbul during its session this year.

The film carries a number of values ​​in the symbolism of the journey of self-discovery and the culture of the other, and the value of discovering hope amidst the difficulties and despair represented by the high waves.

The film takes 11 minutes, which is an average length for this type of short film, which usually ranges between 4-20 minutes.

The film introspects the meanings of mercy in the boy's relationship with his uncle, and the touches of his help.

It also reflects the meanings of contentment in the boy's feeling of gratitude towards his uncle, and that he imagines how difficult it is to cross the river and face life without his uncle.

These are meanings that the festival is trying to convey, drawing inspiration from the values ​​of mercy in the biography of our master Muhammad, may God bless him and grant him peace, through short films from different countries around the world, such as Italy, Pakistan, Belgium, Russia, China and South Korea, in addition to Turkey.

They are films that varied between fictional, documentary and animated films.

These human meanings are also embodied in the Turkish documentary "Fuga" by American director Clint Davis, in the story of the Spanish young man "Kiba Steele", who loves surfing, and this hobby leads him to the village of "Fuga" in the far east of Turkey on the Black Sea coast, which is known for its high waves. For adventure and surfing high waves.

Young Steele meets another Turk who arrived in the same town to discover the opportunities available in this town.

The two young men's journeys intersect and they surf together, while immersing themselves in the local culture and captivated by the generosity of the local people.

While the villagers see the waves as harsh and negative, depriving them of tourism potential, the young men helped the villagers discover the advantages of the waves as a factor attracting tourism of another kind, which is surfing tourism.

"Fuga" carries a number of values ​​in the symbolism of the journey of self-discovery and the culture of the other, and the value of discovering hope, amid the difficulties and despair represented by the high waves.

The film was shown on the day dedicated to Turkish films, as the festival consisted of two parts, one local Turkish and the other international.

That is why this article will focus on the Turkish part, while we will deal with the international part next week, God willing.

Stop sponsoring Turkish cinema

What caught my eye about the festival is that the one in charge of sponsoring it is the Fidan Charitable Endowment, which is concerned with providing many cultural, artistic and cultural activities to introduce our master Muhammad, may God bless him and grant him peace, including this International Film Festival.

According to the organizers, the festival is the first of its kind as a film festival for the short film dedicated to this purpose, which presents the humanitarian principles presented by the Muhammadan message, and the Prophet, may God’s prayers and peace be upon him, did not compromise or change them throughout her life’s journey despite the difficulties and trials that surrounded her.

In essence, they are principles of mercy for all worlds, regardless of their affiliations and backgrounds.

Because of the linguistic barrier that prevents the acquisition of religious knowledge through heritage books or understanding the meanings of the Noble Qur’an, the spiritual relationship with the personality of the Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, represented the basis of Turkish religiosity.

Festival organizers stipulate that films should be about non-political topics or direct religious issues because their goal is not preaching as much as it is artistic and aesthetic.

The festival is also an opportunity for young people who are studying or graduated from the film academy of the endowment to participate in the organization, deal with directors from different countries, and display their films in the festival as a kind of training in dealing with the world of festivals in a practical way.

I had reservations about how such values ​​are reflected cinematically, and what they can present in terms of a different cinematic identity than what is prevalent and already existing in the world of the film industry from general human films.

When this reservation was raised to the festival management, they replied that they do not assert that they have clear answers about presenting a cinema with a specificity in terms of cinematic language in this field, but they confirm that what they guarantee is the embodiment of a set of values ​​preached by the Messenger, may God bless him and grant him peace, in the themes of the films shown. Participation in competitions, which are gratitude, humility, mercy, patience, submission, sympathy towards the family, forgiveness of guilt, and generosity not only towards humans but towards animals and plants as well.

In addition, they consider that linking the value of mercy to the Messenger, may God’s prayers and peace be upon him, is a valid link, and that it prompts many non-Muslim directors to research his biography to discover the extent to which their films conform to the festival’s standards, and thus know more about him, his life and his message.

This justification intersects with what Dr. Yassin Aktay mentioned - in two articles on Al-Jazeera Net during the past two months about the privacy of the Turks' relationship with our master Muhammad, may God bless him and grant him peace - and that it is because of the linguistic barrier that prevents religious knowledge from heritage books or understanding the meanings of the Holy Quran. The spiritual relationship with the personality of the Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, represented the basis of Turkish religiosity.

Hence, everything that is aesthetic or artistic, such as poetry, calligraphy, and arts, revolves around the personality of the Messenger, may God’s prayers and peace be upon him, who is the source of inspiration and the connection with the Islamic religion.

That is why this cinematic attempt to express love for the Muhammadan message seems understandable to the Turks as an artistic expression mechanism that is organized with other literary and artistic means of expression.