The Turkish drama leads the distributor’s catalog at NEM Dubrovnik, where it’s attracting buyers’ attention and is poised to expand its growing list of deals in the international market.
Produced by Luis Cabrera, from Croatia
Back in April, Turkish distributor Calinos Entertainment presented its new drama, Ugly (Çirkin), to the international market.
Produced by 25 Film, the drama premiered on Star TV in Turkey at the end of March to excellent results, with the first episode achieving a 4.70 rating, rising to a 5.14 rating in the second episode, and reaching 5.89 by the third episode, reflecting its growing popularity and strong viewer engagement.
The first episode has also surpassed 4.8 million views on YouTube.
Directed by Burcu Alptekin and Merve Çolak, the series brings together Derya Pınar Ak and Çağlar Ertuğrul in the lead roles, alongside a strong cast including Başak Gümülcinelioğlu, Olgun Toker, Baran Bölükbaşı, Nur Sürer, and Çetin Tekindor.
Ugly (Çirkin) follows Meryem Tunalı, a young woman shaped by loss and hardship. What starts in a rough neighborhood gradually unfolds into a powerful story of transformation. After losing her family at a young age, Meryem grows up holding on to one constant feeling, her deep love for Kadir. Years later, when their paths cross again, their story becomes more than just a love story, evolving into a dramatic journey shaped by power, ambition, and long-buried secrets rising to the surface.
“Although it’s been presented not too long ago, we’ve already closed several deals for this series”, said Aslı Serim, Head of Content at Calinos Entertainment, who spoke to ttvnews at the current edition of NEM Dubrovnik in Croatia.
“We’ve signed deals with major territories and players in the MENA region, Romania, and a couple more countries,” she revealed. “And we are about to close further agreements with Bulgaria, Bosnia, and Albania”.
Set to come back with a second season in September, Ugly made waves at the event in Croatia, where it received interest from key territories such as Hungary. “So within a very short period of time, we think that we can make a couple more announcements.”
