Kemal Sunal

Kemal SunalAli Kemal Sunal (November 11, 1944 – July 3, 2000) was a Turkish actor, producer, screenwriter and comedian. He is considered one of the most successful and unforgettable actors of Turkish cinema. [5][6]
Kemal Sunal, who started his artistic life with theater, first performed Zoraki Tabip, which he starred in while he was at Vefa High School. After acting professionally in Kenterler, Ulvi Araz, Ayfer Feray and finally Devekuşu Cabaret theaters, he took his first step into cinema in 1972 by starring in the movie Tatli Dillim when the famous director Ertem Eğilmez noticed him. [7][8] She made her leading debut in the 1974 film Salako. [9] In the same year, she gained great popularity with her character "Cow Saban" in the movie Hababam Class, and this role caused her name to be remembered as "Şaban" in the following years. He won acclaim for his roles as good, naïve and funny men in his films. Although the artist was predominantly in comedy films, he also took part in drama films.
The last film of the artist, who has starred in a total of 82 films, is Propaganda, which was released in 1999. [10] This film was also Kemal Sunal's first and only film in which he starred with his son Ali Sunal. Kemal Sunal died at the age of 55 on July 3, 2000 after suffering a heart attack on the plane he took to go to the filming of the movie Balalaika in Trabzon. His grave is located in Zincirlikuyu Cemetery. [11]

Early life and education[edit] |change source]

Ali Kemal Sunal was born on November 11, 1944 in the Küçükpazar district of the Fatih district of Istanbul to a family from Malatya. His father is Mustafa Sunal, retired from Migros, and his mother is Saime Sunal. [12][13] Kemal Sunal, the eldest child of the family, also had two brothers, Cemil and Cengiz. [14] She attended primary school at Mimar Sinan Primary School and then graduated from Vefa High School. [15][16] The artist, who completed high school in 11 years, explained this with the following words:

It wasn't because of my laziness or stupidity. We had a group of 15-20 people. We used to pass by together, we stayed together. It was a consensual group. It was kind of mischief, of course...
— Kemal Sunal, Interview with Ses magazine, 1985[15]

Although he started his higher education at Marmara University Faculty of Communication (then known as "Istanbul School of Journalism"), he could not complete his education. The artist, who worked in various jobs throughout his education life, first worked at the Enamel Factory and also worked as an apprentice in an electrician. He explained:

Our economic situation was not good. My father is retired from Migros. During the summer holidays, I used to work to help pay for shoes and books.
— Kemal Sunal, Interview with Ses magazine, 1985[15]

The artist, who went to the army in 1981,[17] was returned to service on the grounds that he disrupted the order of the unit, as other soldiers started laughing when they saw him. Sunal, who did his military service in Etimesgut, Ankara,[18] was distributed to the morale group called "Harmony Harmonica" in his master unit, and on this occasion he served in many regions of Turkey. [19]
He completed his university education, which he left unfinished, in 1995 by graduating from Marmara University, Faculty of Communication, Department of Radio, Television and Cinema, and then completed his master's degree. He graduated from his master's degree in 1999 with his thesis titled "Kemal Sunal Comedy in TV and Cinema". [20][21][22]

Theatrical career[edit]change source]

Sunal's artistic career started with the theater play Zoraki Tabip, which he played as an amateur while he was at Vefa High School. [11] She was selected as the "Best Character Actor" in the "Evening Newspaper Inter-High School Theater Competition" for a play she performed during her high school education. [13] Around this time, the person who discovered Kemal Sunal's talent was Belkıs Balkır, his high school philosophy teacher and theater teacher. [23][24] After Belkıs Balkır introduced her to Müşfik Kenter, Sunal started working as a professional actress at Kenterler Theater. [24] Her first role in this theater was "Fadik Kız".[15] The artist, who received a salary of 150 liras here, later played the role of "Deli İbrahim" in the same theater, and his salary increased to 300 liras. [15] He left there and moved to the Ulvi Uraz Theater,[25] where he performed for four years. In this theater, he played the character of "Taşkasaplı" in Orhan Kemal's Finches. [15] He later played a watchman in the play "Caretaker Murtaza",[26] and a coffee shop in the second act of the play. [15]
The artist, who left Ulvi Araz and moved to Ayfer Feray Theater, worked there for a year. The artist, who had a salary of 1500 liras in Devekuşu Cabaret, which was his last theater experience, has now started to play bigger roles. [27] While they were performing a play called "Yesterday Today", actor Zeki Alasya, who had gone to cinema before him, invited the famous director Ertem Eğilmez to this theater to choose the actors he was looking for for his new film. [15] Münir Özkul, who was watching the play in the theater, said to Ertem Eğilmez, "Look, Ertem, be careful with this child. There's work in that." He made Eğilmez and Sunal meet. [11] During the play, Ertem Eğilmez admired Kemal Sunal very much and decided to cast him in Tatli Dillim, which would be his first cinematic experience. [15] Sunal began her film career in 1972 with this film.
Kemal Sunal expresses his early years and his orientation towards comedy with the following words:

I don't know how it happened, I found myself in the audience on a real stage. My first role in the Sound Theater was very short. I was either on stage for three minutes or I wasn't. And I don't remember saying much like that. I was going in at one end of the stage and exiting at the other. I don't remember much of what I did, but the audience breaks down laughing. And I liked that. As you know, I love making people laugh ever since.
— Nuran Turan, Kemal Sunal as a Child, 2000[28]

When asked why he didn't continue with the theater, Sunal said, "The film was interfering with the theater rehearsals. When it started to limp, I thought it would be better if I quit." He replied by saying. [15]

Film career[edit]change source]

Main articles: Kemal Sunal filmography and Cow Saban (character)

Early life (1972–1974)[edit | change source]

A turning point in Kemal Sunal's career took place when director Ertem Eğilmez discovered him and gave him the role of Tarık Akan's basketball player friend in the 1972 movie Tatli Dillim. [29][30] Sunal commented on her first film as follows:

I was both honored and proud to work with a famous actress like Filiz Akın and a master director like Ertem Eğilmez. While we were on tour with the theater in Ankara, some friends said that they watched the movie and that the audience laughed when they saw me. After returning to Istanbul, I watched the film at the back of the Saray Cinema on the first day. Even though I appeared in a few scenes on the screen, the audience was raising hell in every scene. They were clapping and laughing as soon as I appeared. My face looked interesting to the audience. I think he found someone warm and of his own. Then I sat back and said, "That's done, Kemal!"
— Kemal Sunal[31][32]

"The first film, My Sweet Tongue, is over; With the second film, Kemal was far ahead of us in cinema. No one could deny it. We've always been together... Okay, of course we were together. We have achieved all the successes together... Of course. But Kemal was in a different place. Kemal was now the big star of cinema. Maybe we were good players. We may have starred in our own right, but none of us were in a position to call that 'national star' or 'the number one star of cinema'. It's just Kemal."— Zeki Alasya, My Life is a novel documentary, "Kemal Sunal", TRT, 2012[14]
A year after this film, director Ertem Eğilmez gave him the role of a passenger with a Kayseri dialect in the 1973 film Canım Kardeşm. [14] In the same year, she starred in the films Oh Olsun, Güllü Geldi, Güllü and Yalancı Yarim. Sunal played the role of a hired killer in the movie Güllü Gidiyor Güllü, starring Türkan Şoray and Ediz Hun. [33] Sunal acted in this film for the first time with an external voiceover. This film would be re-released in 1980 under the title I Will Equip the Handle of My Pistol with a Rose. Although Kemal Sunal did not play the lead role and was an extra, the picture of Sunal, who was a shining star at that time, would be placed on the poster of the film as if he was in the leading roles with Türkan Şoray.
Seeing that the Kayseri dialect was adopted by the public, Ertem Eğilmez decided to shoot the movie Salak Millionaire in 1974. [34] When this film attracted great attention, a sequel was made in the same year. Sunal, who played the role of "Saffet" in these films, was one of the four main characters. [35][36] The screenplay of these two films belongs to Sadık Şendil and they are the first two films in which Kemal Sunal played major roles. [37] In the same year, Sunal played the naïve and funny role of "Cafer" in the movie Mavi Boncuk, and when director Ertem Eğilmez gave equal roles to everyone in the film, she started to appear more on the screen. [14][38][39] Mavi Boncuk is one of the rare films starring people who are considered to be the most famous actors of that period and Turkish cinema. Kemal Sunal worked with actors such as Emel Sayın, Tarık Akan, Zeki Alasya, Metin Akpınar, Halit Akçatepe, Münir Özkul and Adile Naşit in this film. [14][38] Another point that should not be overlooked in 1974 is that Kemal Sunal began to be accompanied by actress Meral Zeren. [40] In the same year, she worked with director Zeki Ökten in the film Hasret, and after this film, she would take her first leading role. [41]
The front yard of Adile Sultan Pavilion, a historical building where the first films of the Hababam Class series were shot, Üsküdar, Istanbul.
Again in 1974, the artist was given the leading role this time and the name of the movie was Salako. [42] This time, Atıf Yılmaz is in the director's chair. Salako, written by Sadık Şendil, in which Meral Zeren accompanies Kemal Sunal and Sunal plays a bandit, is the first film in which he played the leading role. [14][43][44] During this period, Ertem Eğilmez decided to adapt the novel "Hababam Class" written by the writer Rıfat Ilgaz, which would later be highly appreciated by the public, to the cinema. [45][46] Since all of the main characters in this film had equal roles, Kemal Sunal was more visible on the screen. In this 1974 film, Sunal starred with names such as Münir Özkul, Tarık Akan, Halit Akçatepe, Adile Naşit and Sıtkı Akçatepe. [47] The role of "Cow Saban" in Hababam Class would cause her name to be remembered as "Saban" in the following years. When the calendars showed the year 1975, Kemal Sunal starred in two films by Zeki Ökten, Şaşkın Damat and Hanzo. [48][49] The artist, who was with Meral Zeren again in these films, was now playing leading roles; however, he was far from his success in Ertem Egilmez films.

Promoted years (1975–1979)[edit | change source]

In 1975, Kemal Sunal met Şener Şen, with whom he would star in many films in the future. [50] As the duo complemented each other, the films they starred in together began to come one after another. Meanwhile, Ertem Eğilmez decided to turn the film into a series due to the high demand for the movie Hababam Class and started to shoot the second film of the series. The screenplay of this film, called Hababam Classroom Class, was written by Sadık Şendil, as in his first film. Unlike the actors in the first film, Semra Özdamar, who played the role of "Semra Hoca", and Şener Şen, who played the role of "Badi Ekrem", joined the cast in the movie. [51] The film was the first film in which Şener Şen and Kemal Sunal starred together, while it was the second and last Hababam Class film starring Tarık Akan. [52] The film was released in 1976 and Sunal became more popular. On the poster of this Hababam Class movie, the names of Kemal Sunal and his character Cow Saban appeared in huge letters at the top. The film, whose music was composed by Melih Kibar,[53] was also awarded the Golden Orange Best Music Award in 1976. [54]
Simenoğlu Mansion, which hosted the filming of many Kemal Sunal films such as Tosun Pasha, Süt Kardeşler, Şaban Oğlu Şaban, is located in Yeşilköy, Istanbul. [55]
The year 1976 was one of the busiest years in Kemal Sunal's career. Sunal made six films this year. Tosun Pasha, directed by Kartal Tibet and written by Yavuz Turgul, was shot first. [56] Tosun Pasha describes the problem of a territorial dispute between two hostile families in the Ottoman-ruled province of Egypt in the 19th century within the framework of comedy. [57][58] In addition to Kemal Sunal, the leading roles of this film, which can be called a historical comedy, were Şener Şen, Müjde Ar, Adile Naşit, Ayşen Gruda, Sıtkı Akçatepe, Akil Öztuna and Mete Sezer. [59] Later, Ertem Eğilmez took over as director again for the film Süt Kardeşler and reunited Şener Şen and Kemal Sunal. In this film, whose screenplay was written by Sadık Şendil, Sunal starred with Adile Naşit, Halit Akçatepe, Hale Soygazi, Dinçer Çekmez, Ayşen Gruda and Ergin Orbey as well as Şener Şen. [60] Sunal, who played the character of "Şaban" in both of these films, shot the movie Merak Köfteci under the direction of Ergin Orbey in the same year. Kemal Sunal had the opportunity to work with actors such as Gölgen Bengü, Ali Şen, Hulusi Kentmen, Şevket Altuğ, İhsan Yüce, Sümer Tilmaç, and Dinçer Çekmez in this film,[61] in which he played the well-intentioned but very curious character of "Zühtü", who makes mobile meatballs. [62] She then starred in the film Fake Kabadayi, directed by Natuk Baytan and playing the character of "Kemal". [63][64] In this film, the character of "Kemal" was added with the feature of "hero" along with Natuk Baytan's different sense of humor. Sunal struggled against the villains in the productions in which he played the role of "naïve and the hero of the people" and stood against injustice with a humorous presentation. This situation is more evident in the movie Fake Bully, written by Suavi Süalp. [65]
The artist's next project in 1976 was the film Hababam Class Awakening, with Ertem Eğilmez in the director's chair again. On the poster of this Hababam Class movie, Kemal Sunal's name was again at the top. In this movie, in which Tarık Akan did not take part this time, unlike the previous films of the series, Şevket Altuğ as a chemistry teacher and Ahmet Sezerel as "Ahmet", a distant relative of Mahmut Hodja, joined the cast. [66] Like the previous films in the series, this film was shot in the Adile Sultan Pavilion, a historical building in the Üsküdar district of Istanbul. [67] His last film of 1976 was The King of Doormen, which later brought him the Golden Orange Best Actor Award. [68] The role of "Seyit" in this film, which is completely independent of the naïve and funny character of Saban; He is an intelligent, cunning, mercenary, busy, funny and funny as well as irritable character, and it is the first movie in which a completely different Kemal Sunal appears. [14][69] Written by Umur Bugay and directed by Zeki Ökten,[70][71] The King of Doormen is a film that deals with the class structure of the country through the metaphor of the apartment. [72][73] The film was shot in an apartment building on Güneşli Street in Istanbul's Cihangir district, which was also the home of several later Kemal Sunal films. [74] Sunal starred in this film with Sevda Ferdağ, Bilge Zobu and Sevil Üstekin. The King of the Janitors tells the story of the Janitor Seyit, who is not even put in his place and is constantly humiliated, attaches great importance to material values because of the society and chooses to gain economic and positional power in the society and gain a social status. [75]
1977 was another busy year for Kemal Sunal, and the artist shot a total of five films this year. First, the movie Sakar Şakir, directed by Natuk Baytan, was shot. [76] In this film, Sunal played the naïve character named "Şakir", who annoyed and fed up those around him with his clumsiness. Sunal starred in this film with Adile Naşit and Ali Şen, as well as Ünal Gürel as "Gardırop Fuat". [77][78] Later, the film Şaban Oğlu Şaban, based on the character of "Şaban" played by Kemal Sunal, was shot by Ertem Eğilmez. [79] Written by Sadık Şendil, this film brought together artists such as Kemal Sunal, Halit Akçatepe, Adile Naşit, Şener Şen, Ayşen Gruda, Şevket Altuğ, Sıtkı Akçatepe and Ergin Orbey. [80] This film, directed by Arzu Film, is about Şaban, who constantly injured his commander Hüsamettin during the military and made all kinds of clumsiness, and his soldier friend Ramadan, with whom he played an instrument at an entertainment venue after his military service. [81] The film Şaban Oğlu Şaban is the most watched film on Arzu Film's official YouTube channel. [82] In the same year, Sunal starred in the film Güllüşah with İbo, directed by Atıf Yılmaz, with Gülşah Soydan, who was only eight years old at the time. [83] The film is about Ibo, who cannot marry the girl he loves because he does not have bride price, and his friendship with a little girl named Güllüşah, whom he meets by chance. [84] Around this time, Ertem Eğilmez decided to make another Hababam Class film. In addition to Tarık Akan, Halit Akçatepe, who has been playing since the beginning of the series, did not take part in this movie, which was called Hababam Class on Vacation, but Münir Özkul, Adile Naşit and Şener Şen continued to play. [85] In the script of this film, the principal accepts four female students who have just arrived at the school, thinking that they can earn more money; Ayşen Gruda plays the head of the female student crew. [85] Hababam Classroom Tatilde was the last film Kemal Sunal starred in in the Hababam Class series, and thus the artist starred in a total of four Hababam Class films. [86]
The last film of 1977 was The King of Garbage by the famous director Zeki Ökten, who had previously worked with Sunal in the movie The King of Doormen. [87] Starring Kemal Sunal, Şener Şen and Ayşen Gruda, produced by Ertem Eğilmez and written by Umur Bugay, this film was shot in and around Güneşli Street in Cihangir, Istanbul, which is also home to the film The King of Doormen. [74] In this film, Sunal played the character of "Apti", a neighborhood scavenger who falls in love with a cleaning lady. This film later won the "Best Screenplay" award for Umur Bugay and the "Best Supporting Actor" award for Şener Şen at the Antalya Golden Orange Film Festival in 1978. [88]
Today's view of the Selahattin Zeren Apartment, which hosted the movie The King of Doormen. Kemal Sunal won the only Golden Orange Best Actor Award in his career with this film.
The year 1977 had a special significance for Kemal Sunal. Kemal Sunal will be celebrating his 14th anniversary this year. He won the "Best Actor Award" at the Antalya Golden Orange Film Festival for his role as "Seyit" in the movie The King of Doormen. [89] This award was the first major award Kemal Sunal received, as well as the only Golden Orange Best Actor Award he received in his career. [90] The King of Doormen was also selected as the "Second Best Film" at this festival and won the "Best Director Award" to the director of the film, Zeki Ökten. [91] Sunal was selected as the "Best Actor" by the Cinema Critics Association in the same year. The artist commented on these awards as follows:

I received the Best Actor Award at the Antalya Film Festival for the movie The King of Doormen. There is nothing like this in Antalya and in the history of Turkish cinema. Because this award has always been given to young people, not to comedians. I broke that system for the first time. Then I received the first award of the Film Critics Association with the same film. It's not that I didn't make successful films after that, but we didn't send them to festivals. That's why we couldn't issue any other awards.
— Kemal Sunal, Interview with Ses magazine, 1985[15]

The year is 1978... After spending two busy years, Kemal Sunal partnered with Fatma Girik and founded a film company, Can Film. [92] This film company made its film debut that year, with the film Hundred Number Adam, produced by Fatma Girik and Kemal Sunal. The screenplay and direction of this film belongs to Osman Fahir Seden. [93] This film, which deals with the misleading aspect of advertisements, is an important point in Kemal Sunal's cinematic life; [94] After Meral Zeren, Sunal was accompanied by Oya Aydoğan in this film. [95] In the same year, Atıf Yılmaz and Müjdat Gezen directed the film The Man Who Turned the Corner,[96] in which Sunal plays the character of "Adem", who works as a chamberlain in a confectionery company and attributes his salvation to the lottery coupons given by the newspapers, and The Good Family Child, written and directed by Osman Fahir Seden, were filmed. In the movie Good Family Boy, Sunal was accompanied by the Great Hunter this time. [97] Later, the film İnek Şaban, also produced by Can Film, was shot. [98] Sunal played the role of "Şaban", who was a greengrocer's apprentice but was sent to the matches as a goalkeeper as a result of a misunderstanding. Subsequently, Avanak Apti, directed by Natuk Baytan and starring Kemal Sunal with Ayşen Gruda, was shot. In this movie, he played a poster hanger. [99]
The last film of 1978 was Kibar Feyzo, which was also the film that made a great impression of the period.[100] Kibar Feyzo is a political and allegorical film produced by Ertem Eğilmez, directed by Atıf Yılmaz and written by İhsan Yüce. [101] The film tells the story of Feyzo, played by Kemal Sunal, who wants to marry the woman he loves in the village, while trying to collect bride money and his stance against the lordship system. [102][103] Although this film, which belongs to Arzu Film, was censored in many scenes due to its political stance and was banned in Turkey for 10 years, it has an important place in the history of Turkish cinema. [100] In addition to Şener Şen, Kemal Sunal was accompanied by many names such as Müjde Ar, İlyas Salman, Adile Naşit, İhsan Yüce and Erdal Özyağcılar in this film. [104] The shooting took place in the Harran neighborhood of the Reyhanlı district of Hatay. [105] The film, which has a social realist quality by approaching the landlord order in Turkey within the framework of black humor,[106] was among the cult films with its centering on class conflict and its denouncing anti-communist measures and fascism. [107] Concepts such as custom, livelihood, and lordship are frequently dealt with in the film. [108]
In 1979, Sunal starred in five films. First, Umut Şaban, an Kartal Tibet film, and then Kartal Tibet directed, but this time the Oriental Nightingale, written by İhsan Yüce, was shot. In the movie Our Hope Saban, the social wounds were conveyed to the audience in the element of comedy. [109] In Şark Nightingale, Sunal played the character of "Şaban", a very famous singer who went to Istanbul from his village to earn bride money. [110] There are references in the film to celebrities and pseudo-clerics who quickly rose to fame. [111] Later, Natuk Baytan's film Korkmaz Korkak and Osman Fahir Seden's directed and written films Dokunmazlar Şabanıma and Bekciler Krali were shot. Sunal co-produced the films Don't Touch My Saban and The King of Keepers with Fatma Girik. The two producers commissioned these films not from their own film company, Can Film, but from another company, Uğur Film. She was accompanied by Ahu Tuğba in the movie Don't Touch My Shabanima and Semra Türel in the movie The King of Watchmen. [113]

1980s[edit]change source]

Yener Süsoy: What's the magic in you?
Kemal Sunal: I don't have magic or anything. I don't do anything special. For one thing, God-given, I have a beautiful face. And secondly, I think it's talented.
— Kemal Sunal's interview with Yener Süsoy, 1985[15][114]
In 1980, three of the four films starring Kemal Sunal were based on a novel. These; Zubuk was the Top Scorer and State Bird. Sunal worked with Kartal Tibet (Zübük, Top Scorer) and Memduh Ün (State Bird) in these films. The movie Zubuk has political criticism and Sunal is remembered for his character "İbrahim Zübükzade". [115][116] With the military coup of 1980, the majority of the films made at that time were censored, and some of the important actors went abroad. Although Sunal has acted in political films from time to time, he has always stayed away from polarization. [14] That year, Gerzek Şaban, directed by Natuk Baytan, was also filmed. [117] In this film, Kemal Sunal played two people who looked alike, Seyfi, a famous mafia boss, and Osman, a naïve young man who worked as an extra in films. [118]
Between 1981 and 1985, many "Shaban" films were shot. Although these films lacked quality in the name of Sunal cinema, they went down in history as productions that managed to make the audience laugh. In 1981, he worked with Natuk Baytan in the movie Üç Kağıtçı, Memduh Ün in the movie Bloody Nigâr and Kartal Tibet in the movie Davaro, and starred in three films. In the movie Davaro, Sunal was accompanied by Pembe Mutlu, Şener Şen and Adile Naşit. In addition, this movie is the last movie in which Kemal Sunal and Şener Şen starred together. Davaro is a work based on tradition and blood feud, in which Kemal Sunal plays the role of "Memo". [119][120] In 1982, Sunal starred in two films, Yedi Bela Hüsnü, directed by Natuk Baytan, and Doktor Civanım, directed by Kartal Tibet. Actors such as Oya Aydoğan, Şevket Altuğ and Ali Şen starred in the movie Yedi Bela Hüsnü along with Sunal. [121] In the film Doktor Civanım, Sunal was accompanied by Bahar Öztan and Yadigar Ejder. This movie tells the story of the character "Kemal", who has been a janitor in a hospital for years and learned a few medicines from doctors, telling his mother that he is a doctor and acting as a fake doctor in the village in order not to upset his mother and to protect the health of the ignorant people of the village. [122]
In 1983, he starred in the films Tokatçı (Natuk Baytan), Kilıbık (Uğur İnan), En Büyük Şaban (Kartal Tibet) and Çarıklı Millionaire (Kartal Tibet). [10] She was accompanied by Nevra Serezli in the film Kilıbık and Necla Nazır in the film Çarıklı Millionaire. He also co-wrote the screenplay of the movie Çarıklı Millionaire with İhsan Yüce. [123] In 1984 and 1985, as in 1983, she worked mainly with Kartal Tibet and starred in many "Shaban" films during this period. In 1984, he shot the films Şabaniye (Kartal Tibet), Postacı (Memduh Ün), Ortadirek Şaban (Kartal Tibet) and Atla Gel Şaban (Natuk Baytan). In the movie Postman, Sunal was accompanied by Fatma Girik. [124] In the film Shabaniyeh, she played a role that attracted attention with her awkwardness and naivety, but was forced to play the role of a woman due to a blood feud. [125] In the film Atla Gel Şaban, in which she co-starred with Nevra Serezli and Dinçer Çekmez and whose screenplay was written by Aydemir Akbaş, the name "Şaban" in the title of the film is not actually among the characters. Kemal Sunal played the character named "Niyazi" in this movie. [126][127] The artist describes this situation as follows:

Even if we don't name Saban in the movies from now on, I don't think anything will change. Folks know him as "Shaban". This year, the firm made a mistake. My film name is Niyazi. It should be called "Atla Gel Niyazi". Posters and lobbies all had "Jump Come Saban". Not one in the audience came out and said, "Your name is Niyazi in the film, Shaban on the poster." He didn't even notice. What would happen if Kemal Sunal's name was Niyazi, what would happen if he was Saban?
— Kemal Sunal, Interview with Ses magazine, 1985[15]