Tell us a bit about yourself - all the basics! Where you’re from, where you grew up, interests, hobbies, siblings, causes you’re passionate about, anything else that comes to mind…

My name is Melis Birder. I was born in Istanbul and moved to New York in my 20s where I lived for about ten years. I worked many jobs, from bike messengering to part-time teaching; at the time, all was possible for a foreigner without a proper visa.

I became interested in documentary filmmaking through a class I took at the New School with Deirdre Boyle. After I finished my first feature-length documentary about prison visitors in New York, and screened the film in some of most notorious prisons in NY I felt like I was ready to move onto the next chapter.

Following three years in Northern Iraq, my return to Turkey coincided with a period of deep political crisis. In this climate, I feel the storyteller’s role is vital. Through grassroots and film work, we strive to keep the hope alive, doing whatever we can to ensure our shared heritage is not lost to the decay of the present.

How did you become interested in film?

I remember going to the Cinematek in Istanbul with my father and watching films before I was even old enough to read the subtitles. One scene in particular stayed with me: a shot of crisp white laundries flying away in the wind. The magic of the ordinary.

How did you arrive at the subject of your Close Up project?

I never thought I would make a personal film. In fact, I used to have a specific distaste for them. I did not grow up with social media and individualistic values. In the genre of personal films, the focus on the "I" was very western and in a sense foreign to me.

My family’s past is built on secrets and hidden identities, and I realized that as a documentary filmmaker, I had to face my own story . If I couldn't confront my own history, I felt like a hypocrite to ask others to share their lives in front of my camera. This is one of the reasons I decided to open this Pandora’s Box.

If you weren’t a filmmaker, what might you be? What did you want to do or be growing up?

I remember watching the clouds as a child, imagining a profession that could interpret their shifting forms. I wasn't looking for the science of meteorology; but more searching for a way to tell their stories.

If I weren't a filmmaker, I would want to be a DJ or a dancer—something that still allows for that sense collective expression and experience.

What advice would you give to your younger self?

Master a craft that requires your hands. Learn to fix your own stuff. Be your own handyman.

Other than documentaries of course, what’s your favorite film genre and why?

When I was younger, the Istanbul Film Festival was a major influence. We had these big, historic cinemas where our lives were altered by the works of Tarkovsky, Pasolini, Antonioni, Bergman etc. To us, they were like Gods. A film that changes the way you see the world; this is my favorite genre.

What has influenced your work as a filmmaker the most? A person, an educator, another filmmaker, a film itself, an experience, etc.?

What influenced me most about documentary filmmaking is the sense of adventure. We set out without knowing exactly where we will end up. The journey can lead to great encounters, glory, change but also misery, worries and even some kind of madness but the daring act of taking that journey is what excites me most. I value that unpredictability and the passion it requires more than anything else.