WITHOUT BORDERS

Bir Tutam Baharat / Politiki Kouzina / A Touch of Spice

2003, 108 minutes
35mm, color; English, Greek and Turkish with English subtitles

October 24, Tuesday, 7:30 pm

Directed by Tassos Boulmetis
Screenplay by Tassos Boulmetis
Cinematography by Takis Zervoulakos
Edited by Yorgos Mavropsaridis
Music by Evanthia Reboutsika
Produced by Harry Antonopoulos, Robert Kirby, Lily Papadopoulos, Dionyssis Samiotis and Artemis Skouloudi
Featuring Georges Corraface, Ieroklis Michaelidis, Renia Louizidou, Stelios Mainas, Tamer Karadagli , Basak Köklükaya, Tassos Bandis

Contact Information

Neil Friedman
Menemsha Films
213 Rose Avenue, 2nd floor
Venice, CA 90291, USA
Tel: 310 452 1775
Fax: 310 277 6602
E-Mail: neilf@menemshafilms.com

"Tickets must be purchased at least 4 days before the screening in order to be mailed. Tickets purchased after this cut off date can be picked up at the theater."

Bir Tutam Baharat (A Touch of Spice) is a story about a young Greek boy, Fanis, growing up in his grandfather’s spice shop in Istanbul. His grandfather, an expert on the philosophy of cooking, teaches Fanis that, as food requires spices to be tasteful, life also needs to be spiced up a little bit to be enjoyable and worthwhile. While Fanis discovers the secrets of cooking, he falls in love with a girl who adds his life “a touch of spice.” When he is forced to move to Greece with his family, he loses touch with the girl and keeps little contact with his grandfather. Fanis grows up to become an excellent cook and uses his cooking skills to spice up the lives of those around him. However, his life loses its taste. Thirty-five years later, he leaves Athens and travels back to his birthplace of Istanbul to reunite with his grandfather and his first love, and to search for the “spice” that he’s been longing for.

Festivals and Awards

2003 Thessaloniki Film Festival (Greece): Best Film, Best Director, Best Cinematography, Best Editing, Best Music, Best Script, Best Set Design, Best Sound, The Audience Award