Film | Apollon by Day Athena by Night by Emine Yildirim

 Apollon by Day Athena by Night

Director: Emine Yildirim

Türkiye

Awards and nominations:

Official selection for Tiantan Award, 15th Beijing International Film Festival

Official selection for Seyfi Teoman Prize, 44th Istanbul Film Festival

Best Film award in the Asian Future section, 37th Tokyo International Film Festival

A film still from "Apollon by Day Athena by Night" /15th Beijing International Film Festival

In the hauntingly beautiful ancient Mediterranean city of Side, Defne begins a surreal journey to find the ghost of her long-lost mother. Plagued by spirits desperate for connection, Defne is soon swept into a dreamlike odyssey through past and present, guided by an unlikely trio: a revolutionary, a disillusioned lounge singer, and a priestess from antiquity. As she navigates the thin veil between the living and the dead, reason and madness, Defne is drawn into a world where grief, myth, and memory collide.

"Apollon by Day Athena by Night" is a bold and poetic debut that defies genre boundaries with a distinctly female perspective. Set against the evocative backdrop of Side's ancient ruins, the film explores memory and identity through the eyes of a reluctant psychic whose companions are as unforgettable as the ghosts she chases. With its richly layered storytelling, mythological symbolism, and a haunting sense of place, Emine Yildirim's film offers a fresh, daring voice in contemporary cinema—and a deeply resonant journey into the heart of the unseen.