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Q & A: Timur Savci

Producer Timur Savci, who heads prolific Turkish shingle TIMS, conceived “Magnificent Century” and spearheaded the country’s TV boom. His “Game of Silence” more recently became the first Turkish TV drama adapted for U.S. audiences. Savci spoke to Variety about his efforts to break into the U.S. market.

Q: Though “Game of Silence” was ultimately pulled by NBC it still represents a milestone for Turkish TV. Can you share some thoughts about the show’s U.S. version?

A: It made us proud to see an American remake version of a Turkish format. I’m sure American producers and studio executives would have a better idea as to why it didn’t work out. In my opinion, while I do not claim to know the American market well, the way we tackled “Game of Silence” (Suskunlar) in Turkey v.s. the American version, there were some major tone differences. I may be emotional about this, but I still find the Turkish version more powerful, more profound. In the American version, there seems to be a bit more of a mechanical and action-oriented drive. Maybe this was considered to be more appropriate for the US. But as I mentioned, this is quite subjective. In the end, I consider both versions as our own and love them both.

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Q: Perhaps more importantly, are there other shows TIMS is working on for the U.S. market out of its L.A. office?

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A: Yes. One of them is “Amtrak Wars,” a sci-fi comic book which was a bestseller in the 80s in the U.S.. We are currently working on its script development. We are also in pre-pre-production on the [English-language] remake version of “Magnificent Century,” which we would like to make with a partner there. Both projects are in development stage as we speak.

Q: Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan famously tried to interfere with “Magnificent Century” but was forced to back down. There are concerns about his conservative crackdown affecting the TV sector. Is this something you are concerned about?

A: It’s not. Because we are not companies that produce political content or work with the news media

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