Mehmet Bozdağ, the producer and screenwriter of the popular TV series "Diriliş Ertuğrul" (Resurrection Ertuğrul), announced that preparations for a new show called "Mehmetçik Kut'ül Amare" (Soldiers Kut al-Amara) have been completed and it will debut in January.

Bozdağ, who came to Konya province for the "A Hadith A Film" Short Film Competition Award Ceremony, told Anadolu Agency (AA) that the series will tell of the triumph of the Ottoman Empire against the English forces.

"We have been working day and night to realize this project. We hope Mehmetçik Kut'ül Amare will be on TRT [Turkey's public broadcaster] in January. We will have such a great production, the likes of which viewers will have never seen before," said the producer.

He noted that they told the story of the establishment of the Ottoman Empire with Diriliş Ertuğrul, but they will focus on recent history with Mehmetçik Kut'ül Amare.

"We will try to tell the story of the heroes who set off from Istanbul in World War I to go to the hot sands of the desert. We hope we can make a project worthy of our soldiers," he continued.

Stressing that a busy preparation process and disciplined work are necessary for a TV series focusing on that period, the producer added, "It is hard to make a TV show in Turkey. You don't only present a film or TV series on screens but you also establish its industry."

"Actors in the role of soldiers should be skilled in riding a horse and the extras cast should be well educated as well. We have managed all of them in Mehmetçik Kut'ül Amare," he added. "Not only our actors but also the casting team were educated, getting up at 8 a.m. and continuing until midnight because we needed to make the work as realistic as we could."

Meticulous two-year preparationHalil Pasha with captive major general Sir Charles Vere Ferrers Townsend, four generals and staff officers.

Explaining that Mehmetçik Kut'ül Amare is shot on the biggest film sets in Turkey, Bozdağ said, "We have constructed the city of Kut al-Amara again. Many prop tents, rifles and guns were made for the series. An art team of 60 or 70 people has been working on the details of it for two years."

The producer confirmed that Diriliş Ertuğrul will continue on TRT, and said, "Our cast has been educated day and night for nearly six months. They have been trained like the soldiers in the 19th century were trained by the best commanders in Turkey. Besides all this, they also experienced the problems of the soldiers in the desert. We will see whether it will be liked as much as Diriliş Ertuğrul."

He said that the series will be shot in Istanbul and it will be about the triumph of the Siege of Kut Al Amara in 1916. The show will feature Serdar Gökhan, Kaan Taşaner, İsmail Ege Şaşmaz and İlker Aksum.

Bozdağ attends 'Photos of the Year' vote

Meanwhile, Bozdağ attended Anadolu Agency's "Photos of the Year" competition, which was first held in 2012. This year, 68 images selected from over 750,000 photographs shot in different parts of the world were put to a vote in news, life and sports categories.

Bozdağ, who took part in the vote, chose Ramazan Turgut's "Ramadan in the Holy Lands" as the best news photograph.

The photo depicts the crowd at the Kaaba in Ramadan, when Muslims from different places of the world visit Mecca most.

In the life category, Bozdağ chose a photograph dubbed "Sheep's Journey," which shows people taking their sheep to the flatlands seven kilometers away from their Yukarı Yongalı village in Muş province. The photo shows a citizen bringing the flock back to the village, while carrying a newborn lamb.

His choice in the sports category was "Turkey's Happiness," in which, Abdullah Coşkun captured the jubilation of the Turkish Amputee National Football Team when they defeated the English team in the final match of the European Amputee Football Federation (EAFF).