IztokK

Initiated by storyteller
Handan Tufan, the project was interpreted and produced by a collective of makers.

As cinematographer,

I visually developed, shot and edited the short film.

Shown at

2026

OBA Imagine IC, Amsterdam

Upcoming in 2026

De Balie, Amsterdam

The exhibition Lasting Things is a

conversation piece, meant for exchange of experiences of all of us who live in migration society here and now.

The film corresponds to the exhibited items and texts. While it can be shown on its own, it stirs an active response as people walk along the path of the installation.

When Handan arrived in the Netherlands, something struck her: almost everyone who has fled carried an object with them.

A photo, a key, a scarf, a notebook. Such an object seemed to encompass an entire world.

She collected numerous stories of refugees.

We now made a film and an exhibition around the first object, the backpack.

I found it important to have conversations with Handan about the refugees' stories.

I listened in, and asked questions in detail. What did they do? How did they do it? What was the situation? What were the surroundings? How did they feel?

I carried these conversations further with Nasma Al–Shutfa who developed the miniatures and the set design.

Soon enough, I made rudimentary sketches that served as a storyboard.

While Nasma was designing the miniatures, I worked on the spatial ratios of the sets, lighting, camerawork and optics, as well as materials to create landscapes with.

Online images of boat refugees are in abundance. With Handan and people who went through this experience, we pinpointed the photographic reports that closely corresponded to the story we were depicting.

These are the final miniatures, with the key moments depicted in different gestures and frozen movements.

I imagined the filming through this very analogue camera plan...

...and together with the script merged it into a shot list which encompassed the staging, the camerawork, the optics and mood through diegetic lighting.

I photographed dramatic skies which Nasma then painted on canvas.

This set the emotional tone of each scene.

Ready to roll.

The scale model could be moved, adapted and even pulled apart very easily.

In that way, we were able to adapt the set per shot and create various scenes:

• Turkish beach at daytime and in the evening
• Perilous boat ride on the open sea at night
• Arrival at night on a Greek island
• And finally the morning scene, in which the character is marching towards his new life.

Through mindful editing and colour grading I made sure that the film can be shown well on various projections and TV screens, as the exhibition will visit all sorts of public spaces, from a library to a cultural venue and exhibition spaces.

Concept and direction: Handan Tufan

Miniatures and set design: Nasma Al-Shutfa

Cinematographer and editor: Iztokk

Sound design: Suzan van Eck

Voice–over: Habib Rezai–De Keizer

Translation: Ainaz Moghaddam, Habib Rezai–De Keizer

Producer: Milena Mulders

Advisor: Vincent Fitz–Jim

Exhibition design and production: Diana Guzijan, Hans Kalliwoda, Sjoerd Vocking

Texts: Diana Guzijan, Milena Mulders,

with the contributions of Danielle Kuijten and Bibi de Vries (Imagine IC) and Esther Vonk (Stichting Bootvluchteling).

With special thanks to Haroon.

This story was made possible in part by a contribution from Fonds ZOZ in collaboration with Imagine IC and Stichting Bootvluchteling. Imagine IC is funded over several years by the Amsterdam Fund for the Arts.