The Knot: How Go Türkiye Turns Series Stars Into 8.3bn Impressions

Short-form drama built for YouTube has given Türkiye’s tourism board 8.3 billion impressions, and its newest title, the Go Türkiye mini series The Knot: Gateway to Anatolia, now takes that model away from the beaches and into the heart of the country. Starring Sıla Türkoğlu and Serkan Çayoğlu, the romance follows two rival art historians from Ankara to Eskişehir, Konya and Çorum. Turkish showbiz journalist Birsen Altuntaş reported on 11 September 2026 that the series had reached viewers and published new stills from it.

For producers, brands and platforms, The Knot matters less as a single show than as the latest product of a state-backed commissioning line. In little more than a year, that line has turned some of the best-known faces of Turkish drama into guides to Istanbul, Antalya, Bodrum, Cappadocia, the Southeast and the Black Sea.

In brief

• According to figures reported in early August 2026, Go Türkiye mini series have reached 8.3 billion impressions and 4.9 billion views.
• The Knot: Gateway to Anatolia is produced by Süreç Film, directed by Yunus Ozan Korkut and written by Melih Özyılmaz and Elif Türker.
• Sıla Türkoğlu plays Bahar and Serkan Çayoğlu plays Toprak, two art historians competing for the same university post; Levent Özdilek plays their professor.
• The route runs through Central Anatolia: Ankara as the main setting, plus Eskişehir, Konya and Çorum, home to the Hittite capital Hattusa.
• The commissioner is the Türkiye Tourism Promotion and Development Agency (TGA), which is funded by a levy on tourism businesses.

What is The Knot: Gateway to Anatolia about?

It is a romantic adventure about two academic rivals who are pushed together on a journey through Anatolia’s past. The premise lets the camera move through museums, archaeological sites, landscapes and regional cuisine without stopping the story.

Toprak and Bahar both want the same post at the same university. Their rivalry turns into a forced partnership, and as they follow traces of Anatolia’s history they also rediscover each other. According to the official GoTürkiye page for the series, the plot is set off by Professor Hikmet Erdemli, who tests candidates for an assistant position in an art history department through a cipher hunt. Toprak’s clue takes him to Konya, Bahar’s to the ruins of Hattusa in Çorum, and both trails lead to the Museum of Anatolian Civilisations in Ankara, where they meet.

Reports at the start of filming in early August 2026 said the production would feature Anıtkabir and the Presidential Nation’s Library (Cumhurbaşkanlığı Millet Kütüphanesi) in Ankara, along with museums, archaeological sites and regional food. Altuntaş describes the project as weaving history, art, nature and gastronomy into a romance, so that the show sells the region as a range of travel experiences, not a list of monuments.

Who pays for a tourism board’s TV series?

The Go Türkiye mini series are commissioned by the Türkiye Tourism Promotion and Development Agency (TGA), a body set up specifically to market the country abroad. Its money comes largely from the tourism industry itself, not from a general advertising budget.

TGA was created by Law No. 7183, published in the Official Gazette on 15 July 2019. The same law introduced a “tourism share” collected from 1 October 2019: 0.75% of net sales for accommodation, licensed food and entertainment venues and marine tourism businesses, 0.075% for travel agencies and commercial airlines, and 0.2% for airport and terminal operators outside the state airport authority DHMİ. In other words, hotels and airlines co-finance the content that is meant to fill them.

Reports in May 2026 described the mini series project as coordinated by the Ministry of Culture and Tourism and TGA. Minister Mehmet Nuri Ersoy framed the logic simply: tourism has changed, and travellers now look for a story and an experience, not only a destination. The stated aim is to carry the country’s cultural and natural assets to international audiences through storytelling.

How does the Go Türkiye mini series model work?

TGA commissions a Turkish production company, pairs two well-known series actors and builds a light romantic plot around a specific region. The result is released free on digital platforms, with the episodes cut short enough for mobile viewing.

The format has been fairly stable since 2025. Istanbul My Love, launched on the GoTürkiye YouTube channel in July 2025, was described as a 10-part series with episodes of about three minutes, in Turkish with international subtitles. Aşk Tadında, set in İzmir, was reported in August 2026 as 10 episodes of around three minutes each, released at once with Turkish and English subtitles. Each production has a different producer and director, so TGA works as a commissioning brand, not as an in-house studio.

Distribution goes well beyond YouTube. For An Istanbul Story, reports in January 2026 listed YouTube, Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, Douyin, VKontakte, Yandex, OK.ru and Mail.ru. When Cappadocia Fairytale launched in April 2026, its advertising began in 25 countries and 15 languages at the same time. The reported totals combine paid promotion of trailers (“teasers”) with episode viewing.

Which regions and stars has Go Türkiye used so far?

Before The Knot, the line covered Istanbul, Antalya, the Aegean, Cappadocia, the Southeast and the Eastern Black Sea, each time with a high-profile pair from Turkish drama. The table below lists the titles we could confirm with their reported cast and creative teams.

The Black Sea title is the closest relative of The Knot. Altuntaş reported on 4 September 2026 that Kalbimin Rotası Karadeniz had reached audiences, with stops at Uzungöl, Sümela Monastery, Rize’s tea gardens, Ayder Plateau, Fırtına Valley, Zilkale, Mençuna Waterfall and Borçka Karagöl. In July 2026 TGA had signalled the shift: after the Southeast, the next destinations would be the Eastern Black Sea and routes centred on Ankara. The Knot completes that announced plan within seven weeks.

How big is the audience, really?

By TGA’s own reported metrics, the reach has grown fast: from under 1 billion views at the start of 2026 to 4.9 billion views by August. These are platform figures released by the agency and include paid promotion, so they measure reach rather than loyal viewing.

• January 2026: An Istanbul Story and Hidden Lover together were reported at 959.8 million views; An Istanbul Story alone at 982.7 million impressions and 578 million views.
• May 2026: the series as a whole passed 3 billion views and reach.
• June 2026: 7.69 billion ad impressions and 4.4 billion views; An Istanbul Story stood at 2.53 billion impressions and 1.56 billion views.
• July 2026: 8.2 billion impressions and 4.8 billion views across six productions, of which 4.3 billion views came from episodes and 471 million from teasers.
• August 2026: 8.3 billion impressions and 4.9 billion views, as filming on The Knot began.

The early data also shows what drives the numbers. An Istanbul Story was reported at 4.7 million views on YouTube, Instagram and TikTok within 16 hours of release, and remained the largest title by a wide margin months later. Familiar series stars and a big-city setting appear to travel best.

Why is this branded entertainment, not just advertising?

Because the product is a story with characters and episodes that people choose to watch, and the destination is woven into the plot rather than shown in a spot. That is the definition of branded entertainment, applied to a country.

The Go Türkiye titles borrow the strongest export asset Türkiye already has, the romantic drama with recognisable leads, and compress it into a few minutes per episode. Turkish series already have international audiences, so the stars bring their own fan bases across borders. Each plot device, a cipher hunt in The Knot, an art auction in Antalya Gambit, a chef and a former banker in Aşk Tadında, is a reason to move the couple from one landmark, dish or landscape to the next.

What does this mean for producers, brands and buyers?

Our take. The facts above show a public commissioner placing roughly one short-form series every month or two in 2026, with a different production company each time. Our interpretation of what that means for the market:

• Production companies: Go Türkiye is a visible showcase for mid-sized Turkish producers. Süreç Film, Sky Film, NS Production, Dass Yapım and Ay Yapım have all delivered titles, and each project needs location services, regional crews and post-production in cities outside Istanbul.
• Foreign producers and service companies: the model is a working proof that Turkish crews can deliver short, location-heavy content fast. Partners pitching co-productions or location shoots in Anatolia or the Black Sea now have finished reference material for those regions.
• Brands: hotels, airlines, food producers and regional businesses already fund TGA through the tourism share. The same storytelling grammar, a known couple and a route, can be adapted for corporate branded content in the same regions.
• Platforms and buyers: these series are free and promotional, so they are not acquisition titles. They do work as a low-cost signal of which actors and regions perform with international audiences.
• Talent agencies: the casting pattern favours leads with proven export value. A Go Türkiye role adds global digital exposure between long-form seasons.

FAQ

Where can I watch The Knot: Gateway to Anatolia?

It is available free on Go Türkiye’s YouTube channel, and its episode list is published on the official GoTürkiye website.

Who stars in The Knot: Gateway to Anatolia?

Sıla Türkoğlu plays art historian Bahar and Serkan Çayoğlu plays art historian Toprak. Levent Özdilek plays the professor who sets their rivalry in motion.

Which cities appear in the series?

Ankara is the main setting, with Eskişehir, Konya and Çorum, including the Hittite site of Hattusa, along the route.

Who produces the Go Türkiye mini series?

TGA commissions them under the Go Türkiye brand, and a different Turkish production company makes each title; The Knot was produced by Süreç Film.

How many Go Türkiye mini series exist?

We count ten titles reported by 11 September 2026, from Antalya Gambit and Istanbul My Love in 2025 to Kalbimin Rotası Karadeniz and The Knot in September 2026. Some press lists show fewer, depending on publication date.

How is TGA funded?

Mainly through the tourism share introduced by Law No. 7183 in 2019, a levy on the net sales of hotels, entertainment venues, travel agencies, airlines and airport operators.

Sources

• Birsen Altuntaş, Sıla Türkoğlu ve Serkan Çayoğlu’lu “The Knot: Gateway to Anatolia” dizisinden yeni kareler, 11 September 2026
• Birsen Altuntaş, Kalbimin Rotası Karadeniz dizisinden yeni kareler, 4 September 2026
• GoTürkiye, The Knot: Gateway to Anatolia (official series page)
• Milliyet, İki sanat tarihçisinin keşif yolculuğu ‘The Knot: Gateway To Anatolia’, 2 August 2026
• Yeni Birlik Gazetesi, The Knot: Gateway to Anatolia çekimleri başladı, 2 August 2026
• CNN Türk, GO Türkiye mini dizilerinin yeni rotası Doğu Karadeniz oldu, 28 July 2026
• NTV / Anadolu Ajansı, Go Türkiye’nin yeni mini dizisinin çekimleri tamamlandı, 28 July 2026
• TGRT Haber, Go Türkiye mini dizileri yeni hikayelerle Türkiye’yi dünyaya anlatmaya devam ediyor, 24 July 2026
• Patron Rehberi, Mini dizilerle Türkiye küresel sahnede, 24 July 2026
• İşçi Haber, Aşk Tadında İzmir hangi platformda yayınlanıyor?, 2 August 2026
• Türkiye Today, Murat Yıldırım, Fahriye Evcen lead GoTürkiye’s new mini series Turquoise Summer, 20 June 2026
• Akşam, Go Türkiye mini dizilerinde kimler oynuyor?, 21 June 2026
• T24, Go Türkiye mini dizileri 3 milyar izlenmeyi geçti, 12 May 2026
• TGRT Haber, Kapadokya dünya sahnesine çıkıyor, 28 April 2026
• Hürriyet, Go Türkiye imzalı mini diziler 959,8 milyon izlenmeye ulaştı, 20 January 2026
• Ekonomist, An İstanbul Story: Ozan Akbaba ve Sinem Ünsal İstanbul’un yeni yüzü oldu, 12 December 2025
• India Outbound, GoTürkiye launches ‘Istanbul My Love’ mini-series, 14 July 2025
• Hürriyet Daily News, Antalya promoted with a mini-series, 12 June 2025
• Alomaliye, Turizm payı uygulaması (Law No. 7183), 16 July 2019

This article is for information purposes only.