Citation :
« I was born in Turkey, but I'm of Kurdish origin, and the Kurdish guerrillas used to come and visit us in my home village. The PKK fighters had been part of my environment from a very young age. Then, after immigrating to Canada, I met Gulîstan, who was 15 years older than me, but her story was similar to mine. [...] One day, she disappeared from my life and went to enlist in the PKK. At the time, I didn't really understand the significance of her act, but the more time passed, the more I sensed the gravity of it. That's why at first I wanted to make a film about Gulîstan, who died in 2000, by retracing her journey and motives. However, just as I arrived in Iraqi Kurdistan, Daesh (Islamic State) began attacking the region. The subject of my film now had to be these PKK women guerillas. And I think that a part of Gulîstan is inevitably there. Gulîstan means 'Land of Roses.' »
-- Zaynê Akyol

Source :
MELTON, Siân. « Hot Docs 2016 Women Directors: Meet Zaynê Akyol - 'Gulîstan, Land of Roses' », entretien avec Zaynê Akyol, Women and Hollywood, 2 mai 2016. [en anglais]