By Kerim Emrah Turna*
When we were making our plans during the last quarter of 2019, we were expecting a tough 2020, but we couldn’t have predicted how tough the year would turn out to be. We began the year in Miami with an unpleasant surprise. The reservation system of the Hotel Fontainebleau, where NATPE Miami traditionally takes place, collapsed completely. We had no clue then that this would be the first and last physical market of the year.
In the second half of January we started hearing about the coronavirus and began to redesign our plans accordingly. Throughout the remainder of the year, productions stopped globally, but we continued to supply our best-selling finished titles to our clients.
We, the owner of the most comprehensive Turkish catalog and the first Turkish drama channel, kept on growing in 2020 — against all pandemic odds — and will continue to add new destinations to the journeys of our dramas and our channel, Kanal D Drama, in 2021.
In 2020, the journeys of “KDI Dramas” around the world continued successfully with leading titles Hekimoglu, Ruthless City, Love Trap, and all-time favorite dramas like Fatmagul, Forbidden Love, War of The Roses, Price of Passion, and Wounded Love.
As of 2021, Hekimoglu, the Turkish remake of award-winning U.S. scripted series House M.D., will air its second season in Turkey.
Ruthless City has conquered the hearts of audiences in 76 countries, and the ratings-busting romantic comedy Love Trap continues its journey with its charming cast and equally charming themes.
The dark pandemic days were lightened somewhat by the joys of “Golden KDI Dramas,” specifically during the worldwide production shutdown. Our clients were able to add our dramas to their catalogs for their locked-down audiences to enjoy.
Fatmagul was introduced to U.S. audiences over the summer and will continue its journey with its Spanish adaption, Alba, at the Spanish network, Atresmedia, in 2021. Ukraine adapted our Price of Passion (a modern Snow White story), while the original title premiered in countries like Spain, Israel, Romania, Lebanon, French-speaking countries, Angola, Mozambique, South Africa, Myanmar, the Philippines, Pakistan, and Kazakhstan in 2020. This year, Price of Passion will debut in the Dominican Republic and Honduras.
Kanal D International Networks’ major B2C brand “Kanal D Drama” celebrated its first year in the U.S. at the end of 2020 and is currently on air in 13 countries on three continents.
Kanal D Drama, the first-ever international Turkish Drama channel, entered the U.S. market in 2019. It made its debut in France, Albania, Kosovo, and Peru in 2020, presenting 24 hours a day of Turkish dramas.
With its catalog of more than 1,500 hours of Turkish dramas, “Kanal D Drama” is currently on air in Albania, Argentina, Bolivia, Chile, the Dominican Republic, Ecuador, France, Kosovo, Panama, Paraguay, Peru, Uruguay, and the United States. In 2021 we will be penetrating into new territories in CEE, Asia, and CIS.
*Kerim Emrah Turna is Kanal D International’s Executive Director
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