Rüzgar Erkoçlar

Rüzgar Erkoçlar — Biography

Rüzgar Erkoçlar was born on 26 March 1986 in Istanbul. He first appeared on screen as a child in television commercials and gained wide recognition in 2002 through an advertisement for the sanitary-pad brand Molped, after which he began landing roles in series such as Seni Yaşatacağım, Bütün Çocuklarım and Emret Komutanım, where his portrayal of the character Foto Fato in the 2005 series became particularly well known.

He went on to appear in productions including Üvey Aile, Elif, Hesaplaşma, Maskeli Balo, Çakıl Taşları and Yamak Ahmet. In February 2013, he publicly came out as a trans man and adopted the name Rüzgar; his transition and the struggles that followed were later documented in the award-winning 2022 film Blue ID.

In March 2026, Erkoçlar shared an emotional tribute reflecting on his own fourteen-year journey following the death of Erol Köse, one of the first public figures in Turkey to speak openly about gender transition.