Content Americas Spotlights Turkish Drama’s Global Success

Izzet Pinto, CEO of Global Agency, and Bariş Kılıç, lead actor in One Love, discussed the rise of Turkish dramas worldwide at Content Americas, highlighting the characteristics that make these productions appealing to global audiences.

“We started exactly 15 years ago,” said Pinto. “Our first territory was Bulgaria, so at that time, we covered CEE, then we expanded to Europe, Asia and finally, Latin America. It has been booming in the last ten years. I remember when we started, people said that Turkish dramas would only be there for three years, and then three years passed. Then they said maybe another three years. But we have been here for 15 years, and it’s stable and still growing. Sometimes there may be ups and downs because in some regions, they prefer local programs. However, once they try local programs, they understand that even local programs sometimes can’t match Turkish dramas. Besides, it’s much cheaper to acquire finished productions.”

Pinto added that 2023 was a good year for the company’s business and Turkish dramas. “I can say it was one of the best years to date, and we are once again in a growth phase.”

Kılıç mentioned that Turkish productions have undergone some evolution over the years. “At the beginning, I worked less than now because at that time, an episode was 40 minutes, and now it’s almost an hour and a half, maybe more. In the future, I don’t know, maybe one day it will be three hours.”

He added, “Twenty years ago, we were shooting around 40 minutes every week. And our story is diverse, as Izzet said. Initially, it was delivered locally. Then, when we started selling our projects to the world, they became international. We are in a different place and a different part of our work. It’s growing, it’s improving, and I’m sure it will be even better in the future.”

One Love tells the story of Doga, an idealistic young woman who falls deeply in love with Fatih, a charming man from a devout family, while they are in university. Their values clash with those of Fatih’s mother, leading to a poignant drama as they try to overcome their differences.

The production has seen solid international sales but has also attracted younger audiences. When asked why One Love has resonated with this demo, Kılıç commented, “It’s interesting, and perhaps that’s the key. We have many characters who are strong, so some of our fans closely follow certain characters. They engage in various activities, doing fun things on TikTok or Instagram, for example, which is why they stay so connected with us. Consequently, the drama is very popular. Each character comes from a different culture, and that’s what people find intriguing.”

The conversation then shifted to Turkish programming sales in Latin America and the challenges and opportunities in the region. “Every year we have 70 dramas in Turkey,” explained Pinto. “It’s a huge number, but at the end of the day, only about 15 are sold to Latin America. The competition is very intense, and I have to make sure my project is among those 15, and it’s not easy. They review the ratings; I know they review many things. Does the story fit the international audience? Do the characters understand the synopses well? Are the talents known in the region? It also has to do with who the producers are because some are like big brands. They know that everything coming from them is successful. Reputation is important in the market.”

He added, “One Love is like the biggest success of this year in the last two seasons. I am very proud to represent it. We have already reached 50 countries in a year. It’s a very good number. My goal is to reach 100 territories in the next 18 months. I hope the project lasts at least four or five seasons because it is very solid.”

In Latin America, Pinto highlights that Chile, Argentina, Ecuador and Honduras are among the most important buyers of Turkish drama, in addition to the U.S. Hispanic market.

The conversation then addressed the budgets to produce Turkish dramas and how they have changed over the years. “They are steadily increasing,” explained Pinto. “For example, when I started, budgets were around $100,000 per episode, and now they exceed $300,000. So, in US dollars, it has tripled. It’s enormous. Moreover, in the past, the industry was smaller, and talents did not receive any percentage of international sales.”

Pinto continued, “Now many people are sharing the pie, the channel producer, the distributor, the main talents, the cameramen, the director, and the writer. Everyone is getting [profits], which is great and makes the industry stable. It should be this way. I think very soon budgets will reach $500,000. It’s a significant amount. In Turkey, where budgets are not as large as in the U.S., where numbers are in the millions, it’s a lot. But for Turkey, $300,000 or $350,000 is a considerable budget.”

Regarding investors, whether from Turkey or foreign, the Pinto commented, “Turkish productions used to recoup their investment through the channel in Turkey because they covered [the expenses]. But now, since the budgets are so large, they cannot recover the investments solely from Turkey. Let’s say they recover around 80 percent of their local advertising sales, and the rest comes from international sales. After all the recovery, then comes the profit. So, it’s much more challenging. It has become very competitive.”

When asked if he ever considered that Turkish dramas would generate such global popularity, Kılıç noted, “I have received so many emails from Latin America, from Argentina, Peru and Chile, [among other] places. It was really a great experience for us. That means if you do something international, with a lot of strength and intense emotions, it means everyone can understand you. Because our stories can be understood and resonate with audiences.”

“I have always felt that there are many reasons behind this [success], but once I met with a Latin buyer, and he said, ‘I’ll tell you why it works,’” said Pinto. “I was listening very attentively, and he said things that really made sense. He said that Turkish dramas are so family-oriented that we can watch them as a family, whereas in local productions, they show sex, nudity, crime and strong language. But Turkish dramas are conservative. You don’t see sex, nudity, crime and strong language. This makes it suitable for family viewing. I think he was right. You can easily watch it with your family and spend time together. That’s one of the main reasons.”

Streaming was another topic discussed during the conversation, and Pinto offered his perspective on negotiating with these platforms, emphasizing that the duration of productions should be shorter on streaming services.

“For streaming platforms, I think the ideal would be a series of two seasons with eight episodes, each lasting 45 minutes. This is ideal for streaming platforms, but on television, people always ask for a minimum of 100 commercial hours. And in Turkey, episodes are very long. Of course, it’s very challenging for the team to do it, but as a distributor, it’s a great advantage for us because in Turkey, one episode lasts 135 minutes. That means three commercial hours. So, in Turkey, if you have a successful two-season program, it’s only equivalent to 210 commercial hours. From a sales perspective, it’s good that it’s long. But on the other hand, I think it should be shorter because it’s very difficult for the team to have it ready in a week. Normally, movies are 100 minutes long, and in Turkey, one episode lasts 125 minutes. So, I hope in the future, I wish it could be less, but it doesn’t seem to be the case right now.”