From Balkans to San Francisco.
Balkan music unites the world one beat at a time!
Director Tuğrul Sarıkaya
Creative Producer Duygu Gün
Director of Photography Özgen Göksoy
AWARDS
“It is amazing how much you think you know, and how little you actually know…
BALKANCISCO brings a lot to the table, and never loses its focus.”
– MVU Fest Team
STORY
Directed by Tugrul Sarikaya, Balkancisco is a documentary that explores the influential power of Balkan music in the San Francisco Bay Area. The film showcases how this music transcends borders and unites people. In "Balkancisco" we follow the story of a Turkish girl named Duygu, who moves to San Francisco in search of a feeling of home in her voluntary exile. While exploring the city, she stumbles upon the ever-growing Balkan music scene in San Francisco and is immediately drawn into this vibrant community. Fascinated by how Balkan music is appreciated in San Francisco, Duygu sets out on a quest to understand how this interest evolved over time. Along her journey, she interviews the old-school pioneers who brought Balkan music to the Bay Area and the new-generation bands like Balkan Bump and Beats Antique that have moved Balkan music to the national and international music festival scene. As she delves deeper into the world of Balkan music, Duygu discovers a vibrant community of musicians and fans who have made this music their own. She takes us to sold-out Balkan jam sessions and parties where a cosmopolitan group of San Francisco residents rave to the beats of Balkan music. Through her journey, Duygu discovers a sense of belonging and a new appreciation for the power of music to transcend cultural boundaries and create a sense of home, no matter where geographically we find ourselves in the world.
Featuring
Multi-instrumentalist and film music composer - Dan Cantrell; Emcee/Rapper, and co-founder/vocalist of Bang Data - Deuce Eclipse; founder of Balkan Camp - Mark Levy; clarinet master - Ismail Lumanovski; trumpeter and Balkan Bump band leader - Will Magid; belly dancer - Jill Parker; Inspector Gadje manager and drummer - Marco Peris; founder of Kafana Balkan - Zeljko Petkovic; cultural anthropologist, and folklorist - Carol Silverman; Roma music master - Rumen Sali Shopov; Balkan Sundays organizer and percussionist - Sean Tergis; Beats Antique - David Satori, Zoe Jakes, Sidecar Tommy
Contributors
Balkancisco documents the stories, musical performances, and masterclasses of our big Balkan Music family in the San Francisco Bay Area (admittedly not exhaustive due to time limitations and COVID restrictions), and wouldn’t have been possible without the voluntary dedication of all the musicians, dancers, ethnomusicologists, organizers, audiences, and production supporters!
Haley Baldwin | Shanti Bardot | Mik Bewsky | Hannah Mae Blair | Ryan Brett LeBlanc | Benji Bloom Rifati | Peter Bonos | Tano Brock | Dean Brown | Paul Brown | Amber Burke | Dan Cantrell | Danny Cao | Claudia Karina Castellanos-Hudgins | Diane Cheng | Eddie Cher | Shira Cion | Jackie Cohen | Lacey Jewel Cope | Shane Cox | Angel Dobrev | Nicholas Dudler | MC Deuce Eclipse | Claudia Escobar | Joey Friedman | Valerie Georgiyev | Jeff Giaquinto | Michael Ginsburg | Kate Goldstein | Adam Good | Christos Govetas | Eleni Rose Govetas | Bobby Govetas | Wade Gray | Bengü Gün | Merita Halili | Brittany Henry | Sandy Hollister (RIP) | Ruth Hunter | Raif Hyseni | Lidka Ilieva | Nina Ivanova | Zoe Jakes | Kent Kessinger | Jonathan Kipp | Stoyan Kostov | Ari Langer | Eric Lawrence Shenk | Joanna Lawrence Shenk | Maria Lentzou | Mark Levy | Kat Lopez-White | Ismail Lumanovski | Nicole Maria | Rachel MacFarlane | Will Magid | Michael Margulis | Ivan Marimezov | Nick Maroussis | Gregory Masaki Jenkins | Shireen Nalbatian | Morgan Nilsen | Jill Parker | Marco Peris | Zeljko Petkovic | Zina Pozen | Chris Reid | Joe Rosato Jr. | Sana Rosengren | Firat Saka | Hacer A. Sarıkaya | David Satori | Sean Sawyer | Melina Selverston-Scher | Arina Shames | Rumen Sali Shopov | Carol Silverman | Leah Sirkin | Andrew Snyder | David Solnit | Jef Stott | Elizabeth Strong | Evan Stuart | Corinne Sykes | Balder Ten Cate | Lars Tergis | Sean Tergis | Sidecar Tommy | Tzvetanka Varimezova | Ivan Velev | Tat Vervain | Juliano Wade | Saba Wind | Faisal Zedan
Special Thanks to...
Balkancisco is partially supported by San Francisco Arts Commission.
