Director Kazim Öz was arrested in Dersim in November 2018 and taken to Diyarbakır within the scope of an investigation launched by Diyarbakır Public Prosecutor’s Office. After two days, he was released on condition of ‘judicial control’.

The indictment Diyarbakır Public Prosecutor’s Office prepared against Öz was then approved by the 9th Heavy Penal Court. The indictment seeks a prison sentence of between seven and a half and fifteen years. The first hearing will take place at Dersim 2nd Heavy Penal Court on October 1st.

The Kurdish director is accused of involvement in the Political Academy of the BDP (Peace and Democracy Party) in 2010, the Gezi Uprising in Istanbul and some intercepted telephone conversations.

The best-known films by Kazim Öz, a prominent name in independent cinema in Turkey, are the internationally acclaimed feature films "Bahoz" and "Zer". "Zer" was even supported by the Turkish Ministry of Culture which, however, censored some parts of the film.

Today, the film "He Bu Tune Bu" (Once upon a time) will be screened in the 3001 Cinema in Hamburg in the presence of the director from Dersim.