Growing Pains

May 3 - 20, 2017

Growing up is difficult, especially if life has surprises in store for you... Pera Film’s new program Growing Pains features films that remind us of the considerable difficulties involved in evolving from childhood into youth and from youth into adulthood, lending an ear to the cries of children and youth of varying ages from around the world.

Growing pains are accompanied by rebellion. While Chiron in Miami does everything he can to refuse the role and the sexual identity dealt to him by society, Toni in another state tries to become part of two different groups at the same time, and Pai living in a tribe in New Zealand resists the patriarchal order all alone. Solitude at early ages may make growing up more difficult, but it may also necessitate it. Paul, who has lost both his parents, is waiting for a confrontation to grow up, while the Swedish girl, left behind by her family when they went on a vacation, or Akira from Tokyo, whose mother ran away leaving her in charge of her siblings, are both forced to grow up in order to stand on their own feet and survive.

Everyone copes differently with growing pains. Ali from Silifke tries to avoid the family secrets that emerge when his father is hospitalized for a whole summer, while Billie from Australia does his best to help her mother who, as he finds out, wants to go through sex change. Love complicates things even further. Living in an obscure Turkish village, Rauf goes on a journey to find the favorite color –a shade of pink- of his master’s daughter (who is older than him), while in France, Damien and Thomas are brought closer by the transformation they share, even though they have opposite characters and belong to different classes.

Running away does not mitigate the pain of growing up; acquiescence turns you into an adult. The 20-something Frances tries to stave off growing up with her colorful personality in a black-and-white movie, and realizes she can become an adult without having to give up her dreams.

Pera Film wants to remind you of your inner child with these touching, warm stories.


with the support of

May 3

17:00 Attila Marcel

19:00 Nobody Knows

May 5

20:30 Attila Marcel

May 6

14:00 Being 17

16:00 The Fits

19:00 Whale Rider

May 7

13:00 Whale Rider

15:00 The Girl

17:00 Nobody Knows

May 10

17:00 Being 17

19:00 Summer Book

May 11

19:00 The Fits

May 12

20:30 52 Tuesdays

May 13

14:00 Rauf

May 16

19:00 Frances Ha

May 18

17:00 Summer Book

19:00 The Girl

May 19

18:00 Rauf

20:00 Moonlight

May 20

14:00 52 Tuesdays

16:00 Moonlight

19:00 Frances Ha

Moonlight

Moonlight

Attila Marcel

Attila Marcel

Whale Rider

Whale Rider

Rauf

Rauf

The Fits

The Fits

52 Tuesdays

52 Tuesdays

The Girl

The Girl

Being 17

Being 17

Nobody Knows

Nobody Knows

Frances Ha

Frances Ha

Summer Book

Summer Book

Program Trailer

Growing Pains

Growing Pains features films that remind us of the considerable difficulties involved in evolving from childhood into youth and from youth into adulthood, lending an ear to the cries of children and youth of varying ages from around the world.

Seaside Leisure

Seaside Leisure

Istanbul’s Seaside Leisure: Nostalgia from Sea Baths to Beaches exhibition brought together photographs, magazines, comics, objects, and books from various private and institutional collections, and told a nostalgic story while also addressing the change and socialization of the norms of how Istanbulites used their free time. Istanbul’s Seaside Leisure was a documentary testament of the radical transformations in the Republic’s lifestyle. 

Venuses Throughout History

Venuses Throughout History

José Sancho does not conceal the voluptuousness of his female torsos; he highlights it. These torsos are symmetrical from front, but on the other hand, from the side, the juxtaposition of concave and convex forms creates dynamism.

Fluid Rego

Fluid Rego

While Paula Rego belatedly was recognised as one of the leading feminist pioneers of her age, little has been written about her exploration of fluid sexuality. Indeed the current of sado-masochism in her drawings and paintings, has tended to encourage an understanding as a classic clash between the patriarchy and exploited women.