Spain’s independent production scene is leaning into a familiar playbook — strong creators, distinctive local stories and plenty of hustle — while looking for new ways to make those stories travel. At the 6th Iberseries & Platino Industria confab in Madrid, executives from The Mediapro Studio companies Globomedia, 100 Balas, Big Bang Media, Cimarrón Cine and El Terrat laid out strategies that, despite their different slates, share a common thread: don’t chase scale for scale’s sake. Build projects around talent, stay nimble and find the right production model for each story.
Globomedia’s entertainment slate remains closely tied to comedy, a genre that director general Maria Jose Rodríguez said is embedded in the company’s DNA. The company has been behind influential Spanish TV titles including “Sé lo que hicisteis” and “Caiga quien caiga” — shows that, she argued, helped reshape the country’s television landscape. For 100 Balas, real-life stories and creator-driven fiction are at the heart of the strategy.
Director General Alejandro Flórez described the company as “a production company with stories, with origins and with authors,” pointing to real cases, investigations and creators capable of building their own worlds. The producer is behind scripted thriller “Death in Llanes,” based on the murder of Spanish politician Javier Ardines, and documentary series “Expediente Linares,” about the alleged paranormal phenomena surrounding Madrid’s Palacio de Linares. On the fiction side, titles including “Celeste,” “Su Majestad” and “Yakarta” reflect the company’s focus on projects with strong creative identities.
It’s about producing content that leaves a mark.” The company is also betting on the second season of “Celeste,” created by Diego San José and starring the ever-popular Carmen Machi, who was honored with the prestigious National Film Prize at San Sebastian Festival, as a tax inspector who delves again into tax evasions, money and powerful interests. On international expansion, Flórez said: “We don’t make series thinking about traveling,” he said. At Big Bang Media, meanwhile, live television remains a major part of the DNA.
General manager Carmen González pointed to “Malas Lenguas,” which has evolved across RTVE’s La 2 and La 1, different time slots and different presenting teams. The producer is also pushing deeper into fiction. Big Bang is now developing projects with bestselling author María Dueñas and “La Dama de la Cartuja,” a period drama based on Inma Aguilera’s novel.
Across the Atlantic-facing Spanish-language market, Cimarrón Cine is taking the borderless approach a step further. CEO-co-founder Santiago López likened the company to Uruguay’s cimarrón dogs, a breed shaped by generations of mixing and adaptation. López said that five years ago, roughly one in five projects was created in-house; today it is one in three, with the company aiming for one in two.
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