MÜGE AKAR: “‘FOR MY FAMILY’ ALREADY GOT THE ATTENTION FROM OUR INTERNATIONAL BUYERS”

A couple of days ago, ATV presented its new drama, which is ready to be distributed under the title “For My Family”. With a captivating storyline and the classic elements of Turkish drama, “For My Family” is about the newly orphaned four siblings’ survival story in a dog-eat-dog world. Müge Akar, Content Sales Deputy Manager at ATV, described the company’s strategy in Europe, Asia, and the CIS region, and explained why Turkish dramas still are so attractive all over the world.

What dramas will ATV present at MIPTV? What further projects are in the pipeline for 2021?
“We are happy to announce our fresh title ‘For My Family’ at MIPTV. Despite the fact that we launched the series shortly before, it already got the attention of our international buyers and proved its success with the rating results. Since last year, we have been making deals for our historical drama ‘The Ottoman,’ which has landed over 30 countries so far. Lately, we are closing deals for the third season of our best-selling drama ‘Hercai’. In 2021, our customers chose to carry on the path with this title as well”.

What is ATV’s distribution strategy specifically in Europe, Asia, and CIS?
“These territories are very significant for our business. As well as in other territories, we aim to enter into the countries where we want to work. Recently, we saw great potential in Asia, and we continue to close deals with Pakistan and Bangladesh. Furthermore, we are already in negotiations with other countries from the CIS region and Europe, which are yet to be announced”.

How do these markets differ from other large markets such as Latin America or the USA?
“Latin America and US Hispanic markets are pan-regional and follow a certain pattern. However, when we talk about Europe, Asia, and Africa, they are all unique in terms of both the way we do the business and also the taste of the content. Even within CIS countries, we need to evaluate each country specifically. The language is also quite an important factor because Latin America is a widely Spanish language-dominated region, whereas we need to deal with local languages in these other markets. At the end of the day, the same content can travel across all of these regions. A good drama is always gold!”

How do you analyze the potential of Turkish dramas around the world?
“With their warm and realistic stories, Turkish dramas still have great interest all over the world. As ATV, we are proud to represent high-quality productions along with sincere stories and traditional Turkish family values. With these components, we will continue to license our dramas to the international markets”.

What are audiences demanding for this type of show?
“Audiences from abroad tend to prefer the romance genre. They want to watch love stories blended with the Turkish culture. In addition, they care about family values and they interiorize it with their own cultures. Although 2020 was a tough year at all points, we managed to turn it into an advantage. Luckily, our series have continued shooting and that gave us permanency in the sales. ‘Hercai’ and ‘The Ottoman’ played a key role in achieving this. In 2021, we hope to make it with ‘For My Family’ owing to online markets”.

By Federico Marzullo