About

I am a filmmaker.

I created this blog as a personal archive, a self-promotion, a persona, and a space where I gather thoughts both for myself and anyone who cares to join. I like it here, it’s quiet, feels like no one is watching, so I can say what I want, and mean it.

Here is my official bio, which is carefully written to impress the all-powerful-decision-makers:

Mirac Atabey (1989, Rize, Turkey) is a director, screenwriter, and producer who graduated from the Doc Nomads Master’s Programme in documentary filmmaking, held in Lisbon, Budapest, and Brussels. He is the founder of Micmuss Film Entertainment, a film production and distribution company based in Pazar, Rize. His short film trilogy, consisting of Stove (2012), Downtown (2014), and Yard (2018), has received recognition on the film festival circuit, with the final installment premiering at the Rotterdam Film Festival. His debut feature film, A Hero of Our Time (2023), showcases a refined version of his observational visual style and interactive cinema language, characterized by uninterrupted scenes with lengthy acting performances, which won the Best First Film Award at the Bosphorus Film Festival. He was also a participant in Talents Sarajevo 2017 and WIP Europa 2021. Marriage A-la-Mode (2026) is his second feature film, and first industry-free film, perhaps even an anti-film.

And here is the unofficial and assertive one, just the way I want:

Funds, awards, and festivals mean well, but they create expectations. I have caught myself making what I think they want. I won’t do that anymore.

I collaborate horizontally, not up or down. No hierarchies. No gatekeepers. No networking just for the sake of networking. If we work together, it’s organic and side by side, with mutual curiosity, respect, and interest.

I am not after novelty, I am after evolution. I want to push an already existing cinematic language quietly and precisely.

I make space for the audience to feel, think, and create, not decode symbols or metaphors. I trust the viewer. I trust the experience.

I care about unpredictable popularity, but not populism. I would rather be an honest person or persona than a visible person or persona.

I don’t see value in labels. What used to be independent is now fashion. Politics became marketing tools. Identities got turned into content. I am not interested in that circuit.

I care about real and lived diversity, not curated or controlled versions.

I keep rolling.

Quick Links

Access my films on Patreon.

Watch trailers and excerpts on YouTube.

Find professional information on my company’s Website.

Learn about upcoming screenings in the Screening Calendar.

Don’t look for me on scrolling social media; I only use LinkedIn.

See the lists of films I mention in my posts on my Letterboxd page.

Send me your film to be included in the Micmuss Curation (work in progress).

Reach out to me via Email (or leave me alone with my mistakes).

Meet me on Google Meet (at your own risk).

Subscribe to my email list for post notifications:

Where I Write and Rewrite

I don’t write on a camel’s back in Turkey. Sorry for not fitting a stereotyped image of “a Third-World and Middle Eastern artist”. But my ceiling does leak sometimes. Does that still make me eligible for DEI opportunities?

How to Steal From Me

Everything here is copyrighted.

I link to external content that I don’t own instead of sharing it directly. I expect the same.

I don’t follow strict academic citation rules, but I credit the names and link to a related book, page, or whatever. I expect the same.

I use AI tools for proofreading texts and creating images and music. I make sure I have the rights to anything I create with them. I expect the same.

Beware

It is the oldest trap for artists: People deflect any sharp stance with the shield of, “He behaves like this because he failed.” This sends us a clear message: If you don’t want to appear as a “loser”, “stubborn”, “uncooperative”, “arrogant” or someone with an “inferiority complex”, smooth out your edges. I won’t.

I believe that acceptance is a direct threat to my creative world. So even if you like me or my work, I am going to disappoint you at some point. You will find me “too much” and you won’t like it when my critiques hit you. Eventually, I will take things you like about my work and destroy them with my own hands. That’s just how it works here: Disappointment is always the deal.

Just beware.