On May 3rd, 2025, the velvet curtain of Vancity Theatre lifted for the world premiere of Burcu’s Angels, a tender and vividly crafted short documentary by Özgün Gündüz, unveiled as part of the DOXA Documentary Film Festival.
Nominated for Best Short Documentary, the film drew a spirited, full house—among them, Burcu Özdemir herself, surrounded by her sons and her chosen family: devoted shoppers, bandmates, friends, and admirers spanning decades of Vancouver’s eclectic, queer, vintage-loving underground.
Burcu’s Angels is not just a documentary—it’s an ode. A layered, time-traveling tribute to a vintage boutique – Burcu’s Angels- that has, for 30 years, been more than a shop: a sanctuary for the 2SLGBTQIA+ community, a gathering place of magic, memory, resistance, and radiant self-expression. As Burcu closes the doors of her latest location, the film lingers not in loss but in celebration—archival footage, textured images, and soulful Turkish melodies invite us into the spirit of a space where clothes were only the beginning, and true belonging was stitched into every thread.
The film also gracefully weaves in some valuable footage from former VTFF director Eylem Sönmez’s 2003 VFS student documentary- an earlier glimpse into Burcu’s world.
We learn of Burcu’s rebellious youth in Türkiye, of being sent to Canada to live with her father, and of surviving a home shadowed by physical abuse in Canada. In defiance and resilience, Burcu carved a life of her own making—one fueled by radical joy, glittering creativity, and deep-rooted empathy.
What the film only touches on—but those of us who were there remember well—is Burcu’s electrifying life on stage. In the early 2000s, long before Turkish culture had found much visible footing in Vancouver, Burcu blazed a trail as the lead singer of Something About Reptiles, an eccentric, genre-defying band that played Turkish pop with hypnotic charm. The lyrics danced between English and Turkish; the band, a delightfully oddball ensemble of non-Turkish musicians, carried the melodies Burcu taught them with love and flair.
Her voice—low, sultry, and undeniably smokey—carried both sorrow and celebration. Audiences were invited to dress up from a treasure chest of vintage rags she brought to every show. It wasn’t just a concert—it was a happening, a theatrical collage of East and West, flamboyance and feeling. The songs—like Boşvermisim, Yıldızların Altında, and Bu Ne Biçim Hayat (Those Were The Days)—still echo in my mind, preserved on a cherished CD I never had the heart to part with, even when others were tossed away.
As described on their Facebook page, the band was “a whimsical, wafting Lotusland-Canadian-Turkish-Bohemian music group, with the smokey, beautiful Burcu Özdemir at the helm.” That sums it up with poetry.
Back to the film—Burcu’s Angels is a resounding success. With Özgün Gündüz’s perceptive direction, the film captures the radiant complexity of Burcu’s personality and the vital role she’s played in shaping queer, vintage, and immigrant subcultures in Vancouver. The cinematography by Özgün Gündüz, Ben Fox, Sepehr Samimi, and Deniz Özden is intimate and atmospheric. Editors Tony Massil and Han Pham masterfully weave time and texture, while Eli Haligua’s sound design allows the story to breathe in its own rhythm. And fittingly, the music of Something About Reptiles forms the film’s vibrant heartbeat.
Congratulations to Özgün Gündüz and the entire creative team. You’ve not only honored a local legend—you’ve preserved a piece of our collective soul. We eagerly await what you create next.
Old articles by Bahar Çınarlı»
Bahar Çınarlı / Notre Anatolie / Bizim Anadolu / May 09th, 2025
