Director of Communications Fahrettin Altun, in his speech at the opening of the "TRT International Documentary Awards" award ceremony held in Fişekhane, said, "The veterans of documentary filmmaking are fulfilling an extremely important responsibility by trying to bring the truth back into its orbit."
Fahrettin Altun further continued:
"Documentary film-making is the art of revealing what is covered up and hidden by focusing on geography, history, nature, and sometimes directly on human beings without breaking away from the truth. Rebuilding and strengthening the viewer's connection with the truth is at the very centre of documentary film-making as a goal. In this sense, the TRT International Documentary Awards have had a really special place for us since 2009, alongside TRT's many successful projects; they have an extremely exceptional position.
Today, perhaps more than ever before, telling the truth and being faithful to it is of paramount importance. Because the truth is what will primarily carry our world to a fairer, more livable, and more stable future, it is what we do based on the truth or what we do not do by avoiding it.
Unfortunately, the truth is also that racism, hate speech, Islamophobia, and xenophobia are still on the rise today, in the twenty-first century. The truth is that massacres are taking place in Gaza against Muslims and humanity at large; peace, stability, and fraternity, as well as tranquility and stability, are under attack not only in Palestine but throughout the globe. Regardless of perspective, the truth remains that Israel is committing a major war crime—genocide—by indiscriminately killing nearly 20,000 innocent civilians for over two months in full view of the entire world.
In spite of this, the truth is that certain individuals, using the influence of the media and the disinformation they fabricate, intend to drag humanity into a catastrophe by making the truth appear fake and the fake appear to be the truth. Reinforcing the truth and the connection between the truth and humanity is, therefore, of the utmost importance and critical for our future.
By promoting documentary film-making on an international scale, TRT, Türkiye's public broadcaster, is significantly contributing to the fulfilment of such a responsibility and the ongoing global struggle for the truth. It not only facilitates the growth and recognition of the documentary genre but also annually unites documentary enthusiasts with dozens of high-quality documentaries from various countries."
