The Turkish star traveled to Mipcom Cannes to promote ATV Distribution’s new drama, produced by TIMSBI Productions, and spoke with ttv about portraying Kenan Kozan, the appeal of impossible love and the emotional connection his stories share with Latin American audiences.
*with reporting by Carolina Mussio and Ana Paula Carreira from Cannes, France.
Turkish star Burak Özçivit was among the special guests at Mipcom Cannes 2026, where ATV Distribution invited the actor to promote Land of the Sun (Güneşin Doğduğu Yer), one of its leading new dramas for the international market.
On Monday, October 12, Özçivit visited ATV’s stand at the Palais des Festivals, meeting international buyers, industry executives and members of the press. That evening, he joined the company’s exclusive dinner in Cannes, where ATV presented Land of the Sun and Different Lives to international clients, with the participation of actors and producers from both series.
During the event, Özçivit spoke with ttv about his approach to Kenan Kozan, the protagonist of Land of the Sun, and why passionate, often impossible love stories remain central to his career.
“I already knew what I needed to focus on [when building the performance]. I also drew on my previous experience. I’ve been in this business for more than 20 years now, and I know how to understand and analyze a character. I focused on those emotions I’ve explored in the past to bring Kenan to life,” he explained.
With a career spanning two decades, Özçivit has become one of Turkey’s most internationally recognized actors, starring in major productions such as Magnificent Century (Muhteşem Yüzyıl), Lovebird (Çalıkuşu) and Endless Love (Kara Sevda), the latter winner of the 2017 International Emmy Award for Best Telenovela. He also played the title role in the historical drama Kuruluş Osman from 2019 to 2025, further strengthening his international profile before returning to contemporary romantic drama with Land of the Sun.
Produced by TIMSBI Productions for ATV, Land of the Sun premiered in Turkey on September 17 and is distributed internationally by ATV Distribution. The series is produced by Timur Savcı and Burak Sağyaşar, written by Yıldız Tunç and directed by Çağrı Vila Lostuvalı and Çiğdem Bozali.
The drama follows Kenan Kozan, the son of one of Adana’s most powerful families, whose life changes when he falls in love with Leyla Breger, played by Beyza Gümülcine. Their relationship begins in Germany before taking them to Adana, where family loyalties, secrets and betrayal threaten their future together. Kenan’s relationship with Leyla places him between his family’s expectations and his commitment to the woman he loves, a conflict that Özçivit sees as part of a broader emotional thread running through his work.
“The atmosphere and the locations are different, but the emotion is the same as in my previous projects: a man who is passionately in love with a woman,” he said. “When you love someone, do you let them go or do you fight to keep them by your side? That’s the question we’re exploring. Kenan Kozan never lets go of the love of his life. It’s a passionate love. In my previous projects, I’ve also portrayed men who fight to keep the women they love close to them.”
For Özçivit, the emotional appeal of Turkish dramas is closely connected to their ability to portray universal feelings through intense romantic relationships. It is also something he considers when deciding which projects to take on.
“When I choose a project, I always focus on love, and especially on impossible love. I know how much Latin American viewers appreciate this theme of impossible love and how strongly it resonates with them. That’s also why I value these kinds of stories when choosing a project. They’re the kind of stories that connect with audiences in those countries,” he told ttv.
Asked about the message at the heart of Kenan and Leyla’s story, Özçivit pointed to the character’s determination to hold on to the woman he loves: “The message we want to convey through this story is that if you love someone, you should never let them go. You should never give up on that love,” he explained.
Strong Early Ratings in Turkey
Land of the Sun has also delivered encouraging early results in its domestic market. The series ranked first in Turkey’s AB and ABC1 audience categories with its fourth episode, broadcast on Thursday, October 8. In the Total audience category, it ranked third with a 4.27 rating and a 13.62% audience share.
Its premiere on September 17 had previously recorded a 3.91 rating and 13.31% share in the AB category, while reaching a 4.25 rating and 13.50% share among ABC1 viewers, according to figures reported by ATV from Kantar Media.
The series’ early performance provides a domestic backdrop to ATV Distribution’s international promotion of the drama at Mipcom, where Özçivit’s participation brought the story of Kenan and Leyla directly to international buyers.
