Abstract

This article appears in the Oxford Handbook of New Audiovisual Aesthetics edited by John Richardson, Claudia Gorbman, and Carol Vernallis. This chapter examines the changing relationships of sounds, places, and their cultural meanings in Turkish films located in Istanbul. Starting with a brief review of the historical context of Turkish film sound and sonic representations of Istanbul, the chapter then analyzes two recent films set in middle-class apartment homes, 11’e 10 kala and Uzak, which represent the auteur vein of new Turkish cinema. Both feature subtle and delicate sound design and evidence a form of heightened realism that contrasts with traditional approaches, shifting the focus of Istanbul’s soundscapes from public to private. Although the locations and characters of both these films are remarkably similar, their soundtracks differ in rendering the experience of urbanity and strategies of acoustic privacy by the transcoding of soundmarks and the use of transphonia in scenes.