Turkish dramas () are a genre of television series made in Turkey. These dramas reflect Turkish culture and are considered by some to be one of the country's most important economic and cultural exports. They have seen significant growth since the 2000s, and Turkey surpassed Mexico and Brazil as the second-largest exporter of television series after the United States by the mid-2010s. The television industry has played a crucial role in increasing Turkey's popularity in Asia, Europe, Latin America, and North Africa.
Turkish series are chiefly produced in Istanbul, following the liberalization of private television in Turkey in the 1990s. Turkish television channels producing dramas include TRT, Kanal D, Show TV, Star TV, ATV, Now, TV8, and Kanal 7. The Turkish TV series market is characterized by intense local competition; out of the around 70 series produced annually in the country, only around 10% of them go on to a second season. Many are taken off air after running a few episodes without even completing their first season. Each episode of a Turkish drama is typically between 120 and 150 minutes in length, excluding advertisements. However, this does not apply to internet series.
Rapid content production has led to a perceived decline in quality. Some also complain that recent shows are produced for the international market and do not cater sufficiently to Turkish tastes. Furthermore, those working on such series, including actors, set designers, screenwriters, and costume designers often have to work ceaselessly.
Turkish dramas tend to be inoffensive with widespread cultural appeal. They are exported to many countries, particularly in South America and Asia. Çalıkuşu was the first Turkish TV series to be exported internationally in 1986 to the Soviet Union. Turkish television shows are almost always dubbed or subtitled in multiple languages to accommodate the target country. The success of Turkish TV has also boosted tourism, as visitors are eager to visit the locations used in their favorite shows. The sudden and massive international popularity of Turkish TV dramas since the 2000s has been widely analyzed as a social phenomenon.
Production Production of Turkish television dramas is generally quite expensive, with a typical episode costing around 600,000 TL in 2016 (4,540,000 as of 2024) or around $200,000 at the time. Most of the budget is spent on production design, costumes, technical equipment and cast. Most series produce around 40 episodes during their run.
In the late 2000s, an episode of a Turkish television drama would typically last an average of 60 minutes. By 2010, this had risen to 90 minutes, and by 2016 to 130 minutes, leading to longer working hours, with crews having to work for 18 hours per day. This translates into around 5,200 hours of domestic TV content broadcast yearly. Meriç Demiray, a screenwriter who has written hundreds of pages for episodes since the early 2000s, commented in 2016 that, "it was wonderful until about 10 years ago. Then I had to write a 60-minute episode per week, as opposed to today's 130-plus minutes. It has become a very mechanical and uninteresting process, just a question of keeping the melodrama going." He adds this has driven away the industry's most experienced professionals and that wages have not gone up much. Actor Kanbolat Görkem Arslan also said in 2016 that "compared to cinema or theatre there's no depth expected from a performance, the emotional curve of a character is not consistent from beginning to end. A character can change any minute according to audience reception."
Çağrı Vila Lostuvalı, 10 years in the business and four as a director, adds: "To deliver one episode per week our crews work up to 18 hours a day. This job eats up our entire lives." According to Şükrü Avşar, one of the leading Turkish TV shows producers and director of Avşar Film, some episodes need between 15 and 20 days of work to get satisfying results.Dizi Ekonomisi, from Sokagin Ekonomisi, broadcast on Turkish television channel NTV in 2016.
The average season length of a Turkish drama is around 35-40 episodes. New episodes are filmed 6 days a week to keep up with the demanding production schedule, and crews can work up to 18 hours a day.
Episodes are generally much longer than those of Western series, with 60% of series running between 120 and 180 minutes per episode including advertisements. When Turkish series are run in other markets such as the Balkans and southeastern Europe, episodes are usually split into shorter segments, usually not exceeding more than 60 minutes.
History
Turkey's first TV series was Aşk-ı Memnu, which was produced in 1974. It was adapted from the eponymous 1899 novel by Halid Ziya Uşaklıgil. The series was released on TRT, the public broadcaster of Turkey. The era of TV dramas on TRT alone continued until 1986 and is referred to in Turkey as the "single channel period" () and the shows themselves are called the "old TRT series" (). TRT was known for its adaptations of Turkish classic novels into historical TV miniseries.
Turkish Yeşilçam films (named after the eponymous Yeşilçam Street where many film studios were headquartered, similar to Hollywood), were more popular at the time. Yeşilçam stars did not play in TV series.
Other Turkish TV channels appeared in the 1990s, and TV production increased as a result.
Turkish TV series produced between 2000 and 2005 were between 60 and 80 minutes in length. Screenwriters could not finish scripts on time. Because of this, soundtrack music were added to scenes. It was widely successful, and Turkish TV series changed into one long music video.
Turkish TV series between 2005–2010 were on average, 90 minutes in length. TV series became more popular than Turkish cinema, which mostly consisted of festival movies and comedy movies.
Adaptations of Turkish classic novels began to be produced. Authors whose works were commonly adapted included Reşat Nuri Güntekin, Orhan Kemal, Halid Ziya Uşaklıgil, Peyami Safa, Ayşe Kulin, Ahmet Ümit, Nermin Bezmen, Hande Altaylı, and Elif Şafak. However, these adaptations usually transformed the stories from their late 18th- 20th-century settings to contemporary times.
In the 2010s, series ranged from 120 to 150 minutes in length on average, meaning an episode of Turkish TV series is like a feature-length movie. The series range from a period drama, modern-absurd comedy, crime, to romantic-comedy. The most watched comedy series were Avrupa Yakası (2004–2009), Leyla ile Mecnun (2011–2013), Kardeş Payı (2014–2015), İşler Güçler (2012–2013), 1 Erkek 1 Kadın (2008–2015), Yalan Dünya (2012–2014), Tatlı Hayat (2001–2004) and Belalı Baldız (2005–2006).
Milestones of Turkish TV dramas
Produced by the state-run channel TRT, Aşk-ı Memnu became the first Turkish TV series to be exported internationally when it was sold to France in 1981. Çalıkuşu (1986), also produced by the TRT, was the first popular Turkish TV series broadcast in Soviet Russia. Deli Yürek was the first Turkish TV series sold to Kazakhstan. This sale marked the beginning of exports of Turkish TV series to private channels. Yabancı Damat was the first Turkish TV series sold to Greek channels. Turkish TV series started to gain popularity with the release of the Arabic-dubbed Turkish drama Gümüş, in the Arab World. Turkish TV series are widely successful all over the Balkan Region. Suskunlar (Game of Silence) became the first Turkish drama to be remade by the US. Then Son was licensed as Runner for ABC, but it never aired. Son became the first Turkish TV series adapted in Western Europe, having been adapted by Netherlands. Pasión Prohibida, a remake of Aşk-ı Memnu, was the first Spanish-language American remake of a Turkish drama and was released in 2013. Interest in Turkish TV series in Latin America started with the TV series Binbir Gece, which was released in Chile in 2014. Many channels in Latin America have been broadcasting Turkish series and many local remakes aired. Adını Feriha Koydum was the first Turkish drama success in India. Kya Qusoor Hai Amala Ka? was the first Indian remake of the popular Turkish drama Fatmagül'ün Suçu Ne?, about a gang-raped girl's fight for justice. Fatmagül'ün Suçu Ne? also remade by Spain as Alba for Netflix.
Storytelling of Turkish TV series
Censorship, bans and self-censorship in Turkish TV series In Turkey, the Radio and Television Supreme Council (RTÜK) regulates television channels. If the council deems a channel's content to be obscene, illegal, disruptive, or divisive, it may fine, suspend, or close the channel by revoking its license. Therefore, TV channels must pay close attention to their content. Punishments are often given for content that goes against the general moral code. Forbidden content is generally not shown on television; however, if it is shown, it is censored. However, the boundaries of what is considered immoral are often unclear and subjective. Therefore, what deserves punishment and what does not is controversial. For this reason, screenwriters have adopted self-censorship. According to one anonymous screenwriter, scenes involving alcohol or sexuality receive more attention than scenes involving abuse or violence.
Cursing is censored in TV shows. Cursing is either suppressed by the beep or the sound is muted. If the curse is long, the scene may be cut completely. Making love and kissing scenes are a sensitive subject. It is not forbidden to show, but the boundaries are not sharp either. TV series are also shown by censoring alcohol, drugs and cigarettes, and encouraging the use of these substances is prohibited. Homosexual intercourse is a sensitive subject. Blood is also censored in TV series, scenes such as bloody and body dismemberment and extreme violence are prohibited. Insulting and humiliating religion, nation, national values and state administrators is prohibited in TV series.
Values shown in Turkish series Turkish shows have become popular in the Balkan region because they depict Islam, democracy, modernity, and traditionalism. Free of violence and obscene language, these shows appeal to viewers with their realistic characters and straightforward plots. They evoke nostalgia for family values that people in the region have lost.
According to Izzet Pinto, the head of Istanbul-based powerhouse distributor Global Agency; it is the "combination of family-based stories with big talents and directors, and great music" that attract audiences so widely, and Turkish culture as a whole, which he calls both "modern, but at the same time, also very traditional".
Contrary to showing elements that are not accepted in the region in Western shows, similar social problems are told within acceptable limits in Turkish TV series.
For Latin America, the reasons were the cultural similarities, emphasis on family values, popularity of family viewing, attractive people, and picturesque locations.
Fatmagül'ün Suçu Ne? tells the story of a courageous woman who overcame challenges faced by women around the world and achieved success in many countries.
Criticism Some religious authorities in the Middle East have condemned Turkish TV series as "immoral" due to taboo-breaking scenes, including those involving premarital sex, love triangles, and nudity. In some cases, the series have been banned altogether.
Social and political discourse Owing to their popularity, the government of Turkey has used Turkish television series as a propaganda outlet. Every year, the Turkish public broadcaster TRT commissions several series that depict the history and values of the Turkish nation from a conservative Islamic perspective. (Resurrection: Ertuğrul), a historical drama inspired by the life of Ertuğrul Bey, son of Osman I, founder of the Ottoman Empire, is a prominent example of this.