Turkish TV series continue to attract global audience

The Last Emperor (Payitaht: Abdülhamid) -- a Turkish TV series about the life of Abdül Hamid II, the 34th Sultan of the Ottoman Empire -- has drawn a broad international audience, especially in the Middle East and the Balkans. Serdar Öğretici, the show's producer, spoke to Anadolu Agency as the series recently aired its 95th episode on state TV channel TRT1. The Last Emperor came to life following another Ottoman history-related TV series Filinta. Öğretici said they decided to produce The Last Emperor after seeing the audience interest in the character Abdül Hamid II in Filinta. 'There are many documents and books [regarding the life and reign of Abdül Hamid II] available due to proximity of his reign to the current times and his reign's long duration, and also he was a visionary,' he added. Because it is a closer date to current time, and Sultan Abdülhamid Han reigned for a long time and he has a visionary, different style, we have many documents and books about him. The hard-working directors and crew give Turkey an edge over the U.S. when it comes to filming TV series, according to Öğretici. 'We can create higher quality (content), because in one year they produce 10 episodes of 45-50 minutes, while we produce in 10 weeks episodes of much longer duration and spectacular […] we have more practice, our industry works very hard,' the producer said. Öğretici said they also work with historical consultants to ensure accuracy. 'We are also keeping check on the credibility of the stories being told. A certain amount of fiction, of course, is unavoidable as we produce over 150 minutes of content per week. At the end of the day, we aren't filming documentaries; we are creating something watchable that doesn't contradict history,' he added. Many people in the Middle East and the Turkic countries have a particular interest in the Ottoman history. '(They) embrace the character as one of them […],' Öğretici pointed out. The Turkish producer said that what attracts the Turkish audience also tends to attract the international viewers and their focus has been on continuously raising the bar since the famous Turkish TV series Muhteşem Yüzyıl (Magnificent Century), Resurrection: Ertuğrul and Filinta.