Kate Del Castillo’s Cholawood Productions has signed a first-look deal with The Mediapro Studio US & Canada.
Revealed by JC Acosta, head of TMS US & Canada, during a panel at Miami’s Content Americas, the arrangement grants The Mediapro Studio the exclusive first look and option to develop and produce all of Cholawood’s scripted and unscripted projects.
Projects will be in Spanish or English or both and across all different types of genres. Acosta said in Miami. The announcement came one day after Daniel Burman’s “Yosi, The Regretful Spy” won best drama at the Rose d’Or Latinos, whose awards were announced at Content Americas.
Also on Tuesday, The Mediapro Studio confirmed that Francesca Ricagni had been appointed its first head of US Hispanic Content.
Co-founded by Del Castillo and entertainment partners Carmen Cervantes and Jessica Maldonado, Cholawood’s most recent productions take in Spanish-language hit series “Volver a Caer” on ViX, and action thriller “Hunting Ana Bravo,” an action thriller from Cholawood, Erik Barmack’s TMS-backed Wild Sheep Content, both in L.A., and Park City-based Top Dead Center Films.
Distributed by The Mediapro Studio Distribution, “Hunting Ana Bravo” was No. 1 for several weeks on Amazon in Latin America and currently streams on Roku in the U.S.
“I’m ecstatic about this new partnership with Mediapro. They not only understand Cholawood’s vision but also the importance of supporting females and Latinos in an industry that is going through such a transformative time. Only together can we continue to make our voices heard,” Castillo said in a statement.
“We are thrilled to welcome Cholawood productions to The MediaPro Studio. Kate, Carmen, and Jessica are true pioneers in elevating the voice of Latinos across the globe. With our studio doubling down on the US, we are excited to partner together to create stories that entertain audiences with Latino and female lead voices.”
Addressing the Content Americas panel via a video message, Castillo added that “both companies are interested in telling stories with a mass attraction which transcend orders and audiences.”
“Our industry is evolving and confronting difficult challenges. Mediapro understands these challenges and recognises that we can only make a difference if we’re united. Only together can we continue to make stories which are really important and trascendental. Stories of the kind which aren’t forgotten.”
The Content Americas panel served to present The Mediapro Studio US & Canada’s ambitions to serve Latino audiences. “Language – English or Spanish – is only important in that it is authentic to the story,” Ricagni said.