“Zhivkov’s forced name change campaign also represented symbolic destruction. We were first de-identified, then we had to construct a new identity.”

Salyangoz_trailer from laylafilm on Vimeo.

The film consists of my dialogues with my grandmother Halime, who passed away last year. It focuses on my grandmother's memories from the 1980s to the present. Taking home, belonging, family and identity at its centre, Salyangoz aims to shed light on the story of people who carry their homes on their backs and reflect the intergenerational effects of migration trauma. Seen as a symbol of rebirth and happiness, believing that the rotating shape of its shell represents the cycle of life, the snail symbolizes the rebirth of me and my extended family. Based on the shootings I have done for about 10 years, Salyangoz is also a coming-of-age story set in Benkovski district and villages of Kircaali and Bursa. Archival materials, family albums and current images accompany my 10-year shoot. The film, in which I am the main character of the film together with my grandmother, will be a participatory documentary with its biographical and auto-biographical features. The film includes with my voice-over narration on the trauma of identity, belonging and migration.