Chris Hool Launches Studio 33 Films in Spain and Mexico (EXCLUSIVE)

Anna Marie de la Fuente In perhaps one of her meatiest roles since Alfonso Cuaron’s “Roma,” Oscar-nominated thesp Yalitza Aparicio stars in Prime Video’s upcoming series “Cometierra,” created by its showrunner Daniel Burman, The Mediapro Studio’s head of content for the U.S., Mexico and Central America. Principal photography is underway, predominantly in Mexico, with some scenes shot in Uruguay.

Anna Marie de la Fuente In a bid to bypass traditional distribution channels and open up new ones, Madrid-based 59 En Conserva has launched a newly expanded Les Films de la Résistance, its international sales agency for non-fiction and hybrid Spanish films. Among the first titles in its roster is the critically acclaimed feature debut of 59 En Conserva co-founder Irene M. Borrego, “The Visit and a Secret Garden” (“La visita y un jardín secreto”).

Chris Willman Senior Music Writer and Chief Music Critic The making of the Rolling Stones‘ forthcoming album, “Hackney Diamonds,” is explored in a new one-hour TV documentary, “The Stones: Still Rolling,” produced by Fulwell 73 and Mercury Studios. Mercury is looking to sell the project at Mipcom, taking place this week in Cannes.

Brent Lang Executive Editor Samuel Goldwyn Films has signed a worldwide catalog deal with Concord Originals for rights to three Rodgers & Hammerstein films. The distribution pact involves two classic Hollywood films, 1958’s “South Pacific” and 1955’s “Oklahoma.” It also includes a filmed Royal National Theatre production of “Oklahoma!” that was staged in 1998 and starred a pre-Wolverine Hugh Jackman.

Anna Marie de la Fuente In a deal unveiled at Mipcom, Movistar Plus+ International, the prominent Spanish pay TV/SVOD platform’s sales division, announced at Mipcom a key sale to HBO Latin America of series “La Mesías,” hailed as the buzziest title at the San Sebastian Film Festival in September. The series is written, directed and produced by Javier Ambrossi and Javier Calvo of Suma Content, best known for their series “Veneno,” an HBO Max U.S. pickup, as well as “Paquita Salas,” sold to Netflix.

Caroline Brew editor Level 33 has acquired Christopher Kahunahana‘s “Waikiki” for theatrical and digital release. The film will be released in theaters across the country on Oct. 27.

Marta Balaga Two is better than one. Amsterdam-based Skoop Media has closed a deal with Walter Presents on “Evilside” and “Sleepers” for the U.K., Ireland, US, Canada, Australia and New Zealand. The platform will have exclusive VOD rights in these territories.

Michael Schneider Variety Editor at Large Former Electus CEO and Shine International prexy Chris Grant has launched a new distribution company, Osmosis Global, which he will unwrap in time for next week’s Mipcom conference. Investor and entrepreneur Marc Pierce is backing the new venture.

One of the most intriguing films of the fall is a new genre-bending film from Greek filmmaker Christos Nikou. Nikou started as an assistant director and second unit director on films like Richard Linklater’s “Before Midnight,” and Yorgos Lanthimos’ “Dogtooth.” He then made shorts and then graduated to feature-length filmmaking with his acclaimed 2020 film, “Apples,” which Cate Blanchett loved so much she came on as an executive producer.

Elsa Keslassy International Correspondent Bertrand Bonello‘s “The Beast,” a dystopian romance drama starring Lea Seydoux (“No Time to Die”) and George MacKay (“1917”), has been bought by distributors in all major markets following its world premiere in competition at the Venice Film Festival. Represented in international markets by Kinology, “The Beast” has sold to the U.K. (Vertigo Releasing), Italy (iWonder), Spain (Caramel), Australia and New Zealand (Rialto), Benelux (Imagine), Scandinavia (NonStop), Latin America (Impacto), Middle East (Front Row), Poland (New Horizons), Greece (Weirdwave), Portugal (Alambique), CIS (Capella), Romania (Transilvania), Bulgaria (Cinelibri), Ex-Yugoslavia (MCF Megacom), India (Superfine) and Indonesia (P.T.

Anna Marie de la Fuente Multinational studio Dori Media Group (DMG), founded in Israel in 1996 by Yair Dori and with outposts in Israel, Switzerland, Argentina, Spain and Singapore, is presenting more than a dozen new series at Mipcom, led by two notable action-drama series, “Amia” and “Indal.” Led by Nadav Palti, CEO & President of Dori Media Group, the studio’s contingent of sales execs and reps will be presenting a slate of both scripted and unscripted series spanning multiple territories, languages and cultures at the annual confab in Cannes. “Amia” was filmed in Uruguay and is inspired by the terror attacks of 1992 on the Israeli embassy and in 1994 against the Argentinian Jewish community while “Indal” is a high-octane series that follows the kidnapping of a police officer by a group of Ethiopian Israeli youth.

Anna Marie de la Fuente In a glittering event at Madrid’s Florida Park, Spain’s Secuoya Studios brought out its big guns, led by its president James Costos and Secuoya Content Group CEO Raúl Berdonés, to tout the fast-growing company’s slate, led by its 10-episode series “Zorro,” its most ambitious production. The series pilot will be unveiled at Mipcom in a special screening on Oct.

Anna Marie de la Fuente This is Why Cinema and Inna Payán’s Animal de Luz Films have licensed drama “Todo el silencio” (“All the Silence”) to Prime Video. This follows that of Animal de Luz’s licensing of Katina Medina Mora’s “Latido” (“Heartbeat”) to the giant platform. “All the Silence” marks the debut feature of award-winning theater director Diego del Rio, based on a screenplay by “La Jaula de Oro” writer, Lucia Carreras.

Christian Nodalis sticking to his word. Earlier this year, he revealed that he would be removing some of his face tattoos, claiming that he wanted his daughter, who he had with his partner Cazzu, to meet him with a fresh face. Recently, Nodal shared a selfie that showed how much he had changed, including less tattoos and a significantly leaner look.Becky G pays heartfelt tribute to Selena Quintanilla during her ‘Mi Casa, Tu Casa’ stop in NYC2023 Latin GRAMMY nominations: Celebrating excellence in Portuguese and Spanish-language musicOn Instagram, the 24 year old singer shared a new image, sharing how much he’s changed, with his followers claiming that he looks better than ever.

Anna Marie de la Fuente Buenos Aires and Madrid-based Bikini Films is presenting Carolina Daza’s Canary Islands mystery series, “Non Trubada” at Iberseries’ Co-Production and Financing Forum. Set in Spain’s Canary Islands in the year 2025, “Non Trubada,” meaning Not Found in Latin, centers on the mythical island of San Borondón, which resurfaces after a period below the water.

Guy Lodge Film Critic “Long-awaited” isn’t quite the term for Victor Erice’s “Close Your Eyes,” a film that dedicated admirers of the Spanish master may have hoped for, but didn’t dare expect. Instead, Erice’s first feature in 31 years — and only his fourth overall — arrives as something between a desert oasis and a mirage: a shimmery, nourishing culmination of ideas and ellipses in a career so elusive as to have taken on a mythic quality, to the point that his latest feels almost dreamed into being.

Anna Marie de la Fuente In more news emerging from Spain’s San Sebastian Festival, Clara Larraín’s Clara Films has boarded Lucía Lalor’s docu-fiction hybrid “Mam” from Argentina’s Gale Cine. Described as a “thought-provoking autobiographical hybrid documentary that explores how it is to grow up with a ghost mother,” it follows a millennial in her thirties and her fantasies about her dead mother.

Leo Barraclough International Features Editor Munich-based Beta Film, one of Europe’s leading television companies, and seasoned executive Danny Goldman have joined forces to form London-based Omega Global Media, a distribution business focusing on a selection of high-end English-language TV series. The new entity’s first project is the Canadian crime series “Something Undone,” starring Billy Campbell (“Cardinal”) and Amanda Brugel (“The Handmaid’s Tale”).

Anna Marie de la Fuente Underscoring its historical importance, a further production marking the 50th death anniversary of Chile’s socialist president Salvador Allende could well be in the works. The historical drama, provisionally titled “The Meeting,” details a historical encounter between the doomed president, whose downfall heralded the rise of the infamous military dictatorship of General Augusto Pinochet in 1973.

Todd Haynes’ May December will open the New York Film Festival on Friday, but Netflix is giving an intriguing sneak peek via the first official trailer for the film that was the talk of Cannes this year.