Showcase: Kanal D International

As the global business arm of the Turkish broadcasting powerhouse Kanal D, Kanal D International is home to a strong slate of dramas with all the hallmarks that viewers around the world have come to love in series from Turkey.

A highlight of the current catalog, That Girl centers on Zeynep, a young girl who dreams of being a social media influencer to escape her poor life. She also has to be a “mother” to her father, who has the mind and emotions of a 5-year-old—with his toy car, childish jokes and immature behavior. Zeynep dreams big and tries to escape the troubles of her aunt’s house, where her small room can hardly contain her and her cousins. Her uncle blames them and oppresses her aunt, who is exhausted. Zeynep works as a cleaner in the house of influencer Ozan, whose way of life is her ultimate goal. One day, in that house, she meets Sitare, a businesswoman who owns an agency and is the boss of several social media influencers—and is also Ozan’s secret girlfriend.

From director Serdar Gözelekli (Love Trap, Twist of Fate), Love and Hate is the first series produced by D Productions as part of its relaunch. It follows Tolga, a famous young actor at the top of his career but dissatisfied with his life, and Asya, an ordinary girl who dreams of studying at university but works as a shop assistant. Despite their different life perspectives, they meet coincidentally. Tolga, an admirer of young girls, will pay a high price for underestimating Asya, while Asya finds herself abruptly thrust into a world she has no interest in.

Reha Özcan, İclal Aydın, Berker Güven and Özgü Kaya lead the cast of Three Sisters, adapted from Aydın’s best-selling novel. Set at the end of the ’90s, the story features sisters Türkan, Dönüş and Derya. Türkan, the oldest daughter, is naïve, silent, pure and romantic—born to be a perfect wife. Dönüş, the second eldest, goes to high school and studies for the national university exam. She loves reading and writing and, eventually, wants to write a novel. Derya, the youngest daughter, also goes to high school and prepares for the national university exam, but she is rebellious, clever, outspoken, lively and strong. Even though these three sisters have different personalities, they are very close to each other. But in this series, their lives change suddenly.

Timuçin Esen stars as Ateş Hekimoğlu—a famous infectious diseases and nephrology specialist who treats unusual situations by using unique techniques with his team of three—in the series Hekimoğlu. Based on the hit U.S. show House, Hekimoğlu chronicles the day-to-day activities of this introverted, funny and maverick medical genius who ignores hospital regulations and does whatever it takes to practice medicine his way. Hekimoğlu was voted the best remake in Turkish TV history by viewers.

In Ruthless City, two families cross paths because of a bargain between a man and a woman. Agah (Fikret Kuşkan) and Seher (Deniz Uğur) come from the same hometown, but their lifestyles evolved in different directions over the years. The Karaçay family’s glamorous world conceals a dirty secret that rocks the values and lives of two families when the Yılmaz family steps into their mansion. Members of both sides are put to the test by their sins.

Love Trap features Kerem (Çağlar Ertuğrul), who comes from a wealthy family that runs a textile business in Istanbul and who never meets the standards set by his father, Muhsin (Altan Erkekli), despite being intelligent, attractive and an unredeemable womanizer. On the other hand, Ayşe (Burcu Özberk) is a working-class girl who works at the same company’s factory. Despite having a good heart, she is fed up with the direction that her life is going. As a last resort, Ayşe lays a trap by claiming that Kerem, the boss’s son, is her lover. Kerem realizes that he has been cornered from all angles and decides to play his cards by joining Ayşe’s game to unseat his father from the company. With the on-screen chemistry undeniable, in 2019, the pair was nominated as the best screen couple of the year.

The Kanal D International slate also includes Price of Passion. In the series, Ferhat (İbrahim Çelikkol) is a hitman with a traumatic past who works for his criminal uncle Namık (Muhammet Uzuner). Aslı (Birce Akalay), meanwhile, is a young and idealistic surgeon who wishes to serve humanity. Their paths cross when Aslı performs surgery on a man shot by Ferhat. Aslı accidentally puts herself in a difficult situation as a result of the surgery, forcing her to marry Ferhat to preserve her life. While the two of them are as opposite as black and white, they are stuck in power games and must get along. But Ferhat’s life is too dirty for an innocent love story.

See Kanal D International’s Showcase here.