Calinos Entertainment Rides Momentum to MIPTV

Strong sales are powering Calinos Entertainment as it gears up for MIPTV. The company sold nearly 18,000 hours of programming in 2022 and continued to diversify its catalog with dramas and movies from different countries in addition to Turkish series. Among the new content is Adela, the Romanian remake of That’s My Life, and Polish movies such as Squared Love, Heart Parade, The In-Laws and Warsaw 44.

The hit drama Forbidden Fruit continued to conquer new countries in 2022, including the U.S. It was hailed as the best fiction premiere in a decade on Atresmedia’s Antena 3 following its February debut. 

Calinos also strengthened its presence in the U.S. with new OTT platform deals in the last year. At the start of 2022, the company partnered with Pluto TV to create the channel Corazon Turco, exclusively dedicated to some of the best Turkish dramas. And it has added two new titles to its catalog in the first quarter of this year, Farah and Twisted Lives, both produced by O3 Medya.

“The appetite for Turkish dramas still continues to grow all around the world,” says Asli Serim, head of international sales at Calinos Entertainment. “Turkish production quality has always been over the top, but with this continuing demand, our production companies are taking it to another level. With the rise of social media, dramas took a new path, too. Turkish scriptwriters caught the vibe, and they started to evolve stories according to daily social media feedback. This flexibility and pace positively affect the global audience as well as the local one. And the buyers loved this trend.”

To help deliver on this demand, Calinos works with “the leading production companies and TV channels who share a global vision like us,” Serim says. “For example, we have always been a solid supporter for women empowerment. Our titles like Woman, Our Story and Forbidden Fruit have strong leading female casts and narratives supporting the issue. And we continue to add new ones to our catalog.” 

Serim adds that Turkish dramas continue to draw audiences on five continents, and “we can say they are more popular than ever.” The temporarily closed MENA region opened in the middle of last year and increased the reach of Turkish dramas. In addition to selling finished content, format sales are on the rise, notably in countries in the MENA region, Africa and Romania. 

Enjoy the Drama with the Calinos Catalog
And it’s not just traditional storylines that buyers are after, Serim points out: “Turkish storytelling techniques are the fastest evolving part of Turkish dramas.” 

In terms of new catalog highlights, Farah has been leading the Turkish TV market on Wednesdays. The series is an adaptation of the Argentinean drama La chica que limpia (The Cleaning Lady). It follows the story of an Iranian woman who had to run away from her country and is struggling to live in Istanbul, working as a cleaning lady in order to maintain the treatment of her son. She turns into a mafia accomplice at the end. Demet Özdemir and Engin Akyürek star in the series, alongside Fırat Tanış, Senan Kara, Lale Başar, Oktay Çubuk, Mustafa Avkiran and Ali Sürmeli. 

Meanwhile, Twisted Lives stars Timuçin Esen and Şevket Çoruh in the story of two best friends who become each other’s worst enemies for the love of their children. The feud will destroy the lives of many people, including women and children. The show is shot in Bodrum, the coastal town in the southwest of Turkey. Genco Özak, Sezin Akbaşoğulları, Serhat Kılıç, Bahar Şahin, Esra Kızıldoğan and Baran Can Eraslan co-star. 

Also a catalog highlight for Calinos, the Romanian phenomenon Adela has had four successful seasons on Antena 1. “The adaptation of the Turkish drama O Hayat Benim (That’s My Life) will be the new global phenomenon of 2023,” says Serim.