Earthquake disaster between Turkey and Syria: Producers begin accessing aid amid humanitarian crisis

The Turkish film and television production community is providing financial aid and resources to victims of the massive earthquakes that hit the country and neighboring Syria this week as the death toll passed the 5,000 mark.

Producers Association Tesiyap released a statement saying they are collecting aid and money from the country’s producers and making sure it is received “as soon as possible” by Turkey’s Disaster and Emergency Management Authority (AFAD) and non-profit organization AHBAP the earthquake victims are delivered.

“The majority of our affiliated producers have informed us that they are taking time off film sets for a while to support their charity work,” the statement said in Turkish, but it was translated and independently verified by Deadline.

Major Turkish production companies such as MF Yapim and Medyapim shared the statement on social media. Mediapim and Ay Yapim also released a separate joint statement that the premiere of a film they jointly produced, scheduled for tonight, has been postponed to a later date.

A local producer told Deadline that filming was delayed for a week due to his crew doing backup work.

Humanitarian efforts in Turkey and Syria continue as the death toll rises and rescuers desperately search for survivors. Almost 6,000 buildings were destroyed in Turkey alone. The country declared a seven-day mourning period.

According to the BBC, two earthquakes in southern Turkey and northern Syria killed more than 5,000 people yesterday. A 7.8 earthquake occurred while many were sleeping, followed by a 7.7 earthquake around 1:30 pm local time. It is feared that the death toll will continue to rise.

Doctors Without Borders, the Syrian American Medical Society and the White Helmets are collecting aid and donations. For more information on how you can help, visit www.unicefusa.org/ActNowEarthquake.