Cihan Saglam
- Writer
- Director
- Producer
Cihan Saglam is an award winning writer, director and producer with a PhD in Art from Beykent University. He began his career in theatre as the founding Art Director of The Club in 2011, where he wrote and directed socially engaged plays such as Neverland, Love Song, Retro, Birdcage, Tourist and Domino. Neverland, featuring a protagonist with Down Syndrome, was noted for its rare and responsible representation. Under his leadership The Club earned critical recognition, including a place among Time Out’s Top 10 Venues, and received numerous awards and nominations.
Saglam transitioned to screen with the short film Ember (2014), which won the Jury Special Award at the Los Angeles Turkish Film Festival and was nominated for Best Short Film at the 46th Siyad Awards. He developed his craft at the USC School of Cinematic Arts in Los Angeles, and continues to mentor emerging writers and directors through workshops and industry talks, including the 5th International Art Days in Trabzon and Fiyab's Directors’ Film Talks in Ankara.
From 2015 onward he moved into television and documentary work: co designing and co writing the 13 episode Turning Points of World History (TRT Documentary / TRT 1) and scripting the TV film Hidden Kingdom. He was a co author of The Century Old Screen (2015), a volume commemorating 100 years of Turkish cinema.
In 2017 he co founded his film and production company CSC Film with producer Cenk Ozcelik, and became a member of Seyap (Association of Film Producers), an organization that brings together many leading Turkish producers and directors.
In 2018 he wrote and directed the 10 episode documentary series Be a Witness, broadcast on TRT Documentary. Featuring world renowned actor Engin Altan Duzyatan, the series aimed to raise awareness about the clean water crisis in Africa.
In 2019 he wrote and directed his first feature film Uzun Zaman Once (Long Time Ago), produced by CSC FILM with support from the Ministry of Culture and Tourism and in partnership with TRT. Saglam served as screenwriter, editor, director, and producer on the film. The feature screened at numerous national and international festivals and won several awards, including the Mahmut Tali Ongoren Best First Film Award (Cihan Saglam), Best Actor (Serdar Orcin), and Best Original Music (Uygur Yigit) at the 31st Ankara International Film Festival; the Cengiz Sezici Best Supporting Actor Award (Serdar Orcin) at the 26th International Adana Golden Boll Film Festival; Best Actor (Onur Dikmen) at the 8th Silkroad International Film Festival in Dublin; and Best Actress (Nihan Okutucu) at the 7th Bosphorus International Film Festival.
From 2020 to 2023 he wrote and directed the three episode international project You Better Notice, produced in collaboration with Greenpeace to address the global plastic waste problem. Presented by Engin Altan Duzyatan, the project was filmed in the UK, Japan, Thailand, Malaysia, the Philippines, and Turkey, and after three and a half years of production it premiered on NTV.
He directed the social impact series Big Dreams Big Deals (16 episodes, 2021) and a music video for Altkat theBand (2021). He received a Script Support Award from the Ministry of Culture and Tourism for Miss (2022) and won Best Screenplay at the 10th Silk Road International Film Festival for Migration (2023).
In 2025 he wrote and co directed Rainbow Fascism, a six episode documentary filmed across three continents and twelve countries; it premiered on TRT Tabii on 18 January 2026 and garnered widespread international attention. That same year he wrote and supervised the scripts for The Diaries of Danube and The Balkan Jersey.
In 2026 he co wrote and directed the 16 episode period drama The Boys of Fifteen (Onbesliler) for Miray Yapım and TRT Tabii, a World War I set series distinguished by its large scale production, striking and realistic battle sequences, and meticulous period detail. Praised for its emotional core, powerful ensemble performances and cinematic scope, the series won strong audience approval and critical recognition. He also co directed The Centennial Night (Asirlik Gece) for TRT 1 and Tabii, a record breaking production that reached millions of viewers nationally and internationally from its first day on air.
He founded 2134 International Production House in Los Angeles in 2026 and continues to develop and produce socially conscious, large scale films and series for national and international audiences.
Saglam transitioned to screen with the short film Ember (2014), which won the Jury Special Award at the Los Angeles Turkish Film Festival and was nominated for Best Short Film at the 46th Siyad Awards. He developed his craft at the USC School of Cinematic Arts in Los Angeles, and continues to mentor emerging writers and directors through workshops and industry talks, including the 5th International Art Days in Trabzon and Fiyab's Directors’ Film Talks in Ankara.
From 2015 onward he moved into television and documentary work: co designing and co writing the 13 episode Turning Points of World History (TRT Documentary / TRT 1) and scripting the TV film Hidden Kingdom. He was a co author of The Century Old Screen (2015), a volume commemorating 100 years of Turkish cinema.
In 2017 he co founded his film and production company CSC Film with producer Cenk Ozcelik, and became a member of Seyap (Association of Film Producers), an organization that brings together many leading Turkish producers and directors.
In 2018 he wrote and directed the 10 episode documentary series Be a Witness, broadcast on TRT Documentary. Featuring world renowned actor Engin Altan Duzyatan, the series aimed to raise awareness about the clean water crisis in Africa.
In 2019 he wrote and directed his first feature film Uzun Zaman Once (Long Time Ago), produced by CSC FILM with support from the Ministry of Culture and Tourism and in partnership with TRT. Saglam served as screenwriter, editor, director, and producer on the film. The feature screened at numerous national and international festivals and won several awards, including the Mahmut Tali Ongoren Best First Film Award (Cihan Saglam), Best Actor (Serdar Orcin), and Best Original Music (Uygur Yigit) at the 31st Ankara International Film Festival; the Cengiz Sezici Best Supporting Actor Award (Serdar Orcin) at the 26th International Adana Golden Boll Film Festival; Best Actor (Onur Dikmen) at the 8th Silkroad International Film Festival in Dublin; and Best Actress (Nihan Okutucu) at the 7th Bosphorus International Film Festival.
From 2020 to 2023 he wrote and directed the three episode international project You Better Notice, produced in collaboration with Greenpeace to address the global plastic waste problem. Presented by Engin Altan Duzyatan, the project was filmed in the UK, Japan, Thailand, Malaysia, the Philippines, and Turkey, and after three and a half years of production it premiered on NTV.
He directed the social impact series Big Dreams Big Deals (16 episodes, 2021) and a music video for Altkat theBand (2021). He received a Script Support Award from the Ministry of Culture and Tourism for Miss (2022) and won Best Screenplay at the 10th Silk Road International Film Festival for Migration (2023).
In 2025 he wrote and co directed Rainbow Fascism, a six episode documentary filmed across three continents and twelve countries; it premiered on TRT Tabii on 18 January 2026 and garnered widespread international attention. That same year he wrote and supervised the scripts for The Diaries of Danube and The Balkan Jersey.
In 2026 he co wrote and directed the 16 episode period drama The Boys of Fifteen (Onbesliler) for Miray Yapım and TRT Tabii, a World War I set series distinguished by its large scale production, striking and realistic battle sequences, and meticulous period detail. Praised for its emotional core, powerful ensemble performances and cinematic scope, the series won strong audience approval and critical recognition. He also co directed The Centennial Night (Asirlik Gece) for TRT 1 and Tabii, a record breaking production that reached millions of viewers nationally and internationally from its first day on air.
He founded 2134 International Production House in Los Angeles in 2026 and continues to develop and produce socially conscious, large scale films and series for national and international audiences.
