My Father Is in the Military (Babam Askerde) (translated)

Handan İpekçi's first feature, from 1995, was Babam Askerde (My Father Is in the Military), a Turkish drama and political film. She also wrote the screenplay and produced it, with Yeni Yapımlar Ltd. as the production company. Shot in color on 35 mm and running 86 minutes, it opened on April 21, 1995, and is counted among the September 12 films.

The story follows three children from different social classes whose parents are arrested during the September 12 period. Overnight they lose their fathers' affection and are left with explanations that sound hollow, trying to give their pain some meaning within a child's own world. Instead of open political speech, the film conveys the pressure of the time through a quiet fragility in the children's gaze.

Tevfik Şenol was the cinematographer, A. Sinan Hatipoğlu composed the music, Nevzat Dişiaçık edited, Ayşe Akıllıoğlu was art director, and Erkan Aktaş handled sound recording and the final mix. The cast includes Murat Daltaban, Gülnihal Yazıcı, Yunus Gencer, Zühal Gencer Erkaya, Nurettin Şen, Nuran Bozkurt, Yasemin Alkaya, Hülya Karakaş, Ceylan Öcal and Ali Sürmeli. At the 7th Ankara International Film Festival in 1995, the film won İpekçi both the Promising New Director and Promising New Screenwriter awards.