EXCLUSIVE: When former Univision exec Camila Jiménez-Villa and El Chapo creator Silvana Aguirre teamed up to launch their production company in 2019, they explained its meaning behind its unusual name as “identity [having] little meaning without the ‘Other’” — The Immigrant.
In the five years since then, that idea of identity, the Other and stories that transport the viewer into the lives of people with different worldviews has been intrinsic to everything The Immigrant has done. Backed by Fremantle, Jiménez-Villa and Aguirre are on a hot streak right now, with series in post-production for Disney+ and Prime Video. They have becoming a key supplier to streamer Vix, and pushed across the Atlantic from their bases in LA, Miami, Mexico and South America into Spanish-speaking Europe. Success has come without forfeiting creativity for commercialism.
“It’s been pretty great so far,” says Jiménez-Villa, The Immigrant’s CEO, of the company’s path. “In 2023, we were shooting three shows for different platforms in different countries. It felt really remarkable to be a young company doing that, and it fulfilled on what we wanted when we started the company.”
In Mexico, The Immigrant has produced the likes of high school thriller series Ella Camina Sola and queer relationship drama Todo lo Que Fuimos for Vix, whose owner, TelevisaUnivision, was Jiménez-Villa former employer, and No One Will Miss Us, a Prime Video series about five nerds who run a high school business selling homework in the 1990s. In Spain, Jiménez-Villa and Aguirre persuaded Champions director Javier Fesser to make his first ever TV show and the first project not based on his own writing. The result was the upcoming Shared Custody, a comedy-drama that explores what happens when parents break up. A debut film, Sofía Auza’s Adolfo, won the Crystal Bear at Berlin last year. Upcoming shows include Sofía Auza’s Spanish-language dramedy series for Vix, Yellow, which was previously for Starzplay but is now being distributed by Fremantle after the streamer was shut down.
Given the tough state of the scripted market around the world — and that The Immigrant isn’t making programs and films that could be described as ‘overtly commercial’ — the success rate has been eye-catching. The state of the market is not lost on The Immigrant bosses, who say that consolidations means “fewer and fewer buyers, which is never a good thing.”
However, that international focus has provided a response. “We are in a good position because we are very diversified geographically,” says Jiménez-Villa. “We’re U.S.-based but work in two languages and several countries. That gives us flexibility and makes us interesting because we can tailor production plans and financing for projects and to each country’s strengths.”
In this Q&A, Jiménez-Villa and Aguirre discuss their work to date, the state of the Spanish-language market and the strategy that will influence how they approach the future, and confirm that the “important flexibility” provided by Fremantle could see the super-indie become The Immigrant’s majority shareholder in the future.
DEADLINE: You’ve had several shows in production last year and this year. How would you sum up where The Immigrant is right now?
CAMILA JIMÉNEZ-VILLA: It’s been pretty great. In 2023, we were shooting three shows for different platforms in different countries. It felt really remarkable to be a young company doing that, and it fulfilled on what we wanted when we started the company. We were working with incredible talent on high quality shows. It might seem easy because the content is in Spanish, but it’s not that common for a young company to be developing and producing across the Atlantic. The stars aligned and we produced the three shows and had a movie that won in Berlin. It was a very nice strike.
In production you work in silence and then people get to see what you’ve been up to, and it feels good when they do. We’ve produced five TV series [to date], but only one has come out and now we can showcase what we’ve been doing since the pandemic. It’s important for us in regards to talent, commissioners and audiences. We’re trying to enjoy the moment also know it’s also a very difficult market and are continuing to develop. That’s our philosophy and ambition in an increasingly challenging market.
DEADLINE: The streamers have withdrawn from commissioning non-U.S. programs in many cases, but you have landed orders from Disney+ and Prime Video. In your view, why is that?
CJV: We are in a good position because we are very diversified geographically. We’re U.S.-based but work in two languages and several countries. That gives us flexibility and makes us interesting because we can tailor production plans and financing for projects and to each country’s strengths.
Unfortunately for producers out there, it is a market that has been consolidated. There are fewer and fewer buyers, which is never a good thing, so it’s good to speak with different buyers in different markets, with different editorial lenses, even if they are from the same platform.
We’re also privileged because we’ve managed the company in a way where we’re not looking to make volume. It’s always audience-facing quality, commercially viable projects first. We don’t need to make a lot but just want to make beautiful shows. Being nimble allows us to survive in a market that is getting challenging because of all that consolidation.
SILVANA AGUIRRE: We’re also in a privileged position because of our deal with Fremantle. We are a small independent company, but backed by a major company. That makes us distinct.
DEADLINE: What’s your read on the commissioning market right now?
CJV: A lot of buyers are operating from the place of fear, which makes people very defensive. That’s not great for people in our job. Our job is to look forward and try not to repeat things that have been done. Fear tends to makes you look backward to what works, which isn’t exciting from a talent and creative standpoint. It’s about finding a balance. I personally think we will find a new normal at a lower watermark than what we’re used to. Companies that are adaptable will be able to make sense of that and survive.
DEADLINE: How has Fremantle’s backing impacted your operation?
CJV: They have given us distribution and network, which allows you to have more business models for your content and not just be stuck with one avenue. It allows you to think about international co-productions in a way that’s more interesting, as you have something to bring to the table.
SA: They came provide financing. If there has been a gap, Fremantle has been a very good partner to us. Having Jens Richter’s distribution arm makes it possible.
CJV: The third thing is intelligence. They are everywhere. It’s really good to know what’s happening beyond our markets. You can talk to your investor and find out if what’s happening to you is happening everywhere in the world.
DEADLINE: What was the experience of working with Javier Fesser like on Shared Custody?
SA: Maybe it’s something you don’t expect from someone with such a long and successful career, but you would have believed it was the first TV or film project he had ever encountered from his level of passion and commitment. He would eat, dream and breathe the project, and that was so good to see — when you find people who match your passion for the content, it is a joy.
Plus, he is on top of his game. Watching him on set is like having a masterclass. On one occasion, he was shooting two actors in a majorly emotional scene with two cameras in a tiny room. Choreographing that is not easy, but with him it looked so natural and you knew it was going to be amazing without any editing. He is the kind of creator we want to work with – those who are absolutely passionate about telling a story.
CJV: It was the first time he had directed somebody else’s material — he is notoriously difficult to attach to projects. We weren’t aware of that when we reached out, which was probably a good thing. One of the most rewarding things has been talking to Javier after the shoot had finished and hearing it was among the most amazing experiences of his life and that not writing it gave him lots of freedom as a director. It was beautiful. Working with Disney in Spain was also very rewarding, they gave us a lot of support. They were incredibly respectful of the creators of the story and Javier’s vision. It was a dream to produce.
DEADLINE: You’ve pushed heavily into Spain, but are there expansion plans beyond where you currently operate?
CJV: I don’t think we’re playing a game of Risk, just trying to conquer more and more territories. We need to solidify the places in which we are doing well. Spain is definitely important as we both have ties there and with filmmaking in Europe more generally. I spend most of time in Spain for family reasons, and the experience with Javier [Fesser] and Disney was wonderful. We have a slate in Spain that is incredibly solid with strong writing and directing talent. We want to make sure we grow there.
We want to solidify Mexico, which is critical to anyone making Spanish-language content — it has the highest number of Spanish speakers in the world by leaps and bounds, is a super interesting market and where we have our biggest office.
Also important for us is the shows we are working on for the U.S. market coming to fruition. A few are incredibly exciting for us from creative standpoint, but from business standpoint we want to continue to work on that avenue. We’re working with Fremantle, Fremantle North America and Dante and Lorenzo de Maio on another big show, which is an adaptation of a well-known novel.
DEADLINE: You’ve also got offices in Colombia and Peru. What are the plans there and other parts of South America?
CJV: We have to make the most of smaller territories with tangible opportunity, like Colombia. The history of Colombian content is of great exportability generally, and it’s a great place to shoot, with great talent, storytelling and incentives. We have to take advantage of all of that. Of course, Silvana looks at Brazil, which she loves, from time to time.
DEADLINE: How do you like to work with creatives?
SA: We’re always conscientious about finding writers and creators. It always starts with allowing us to take their seeds and grow their babies. We worked with two amazing directors on No One Will Miss Us, Catalina Aguilar Mastretta (Cindy La Regia) and Samuel Kishi Leopo (Los Lobos), who were extremely passionate. Last year, we were extremely lucky with the three shows we shot. Sometimes it can be tough on set, but each time going to set was such a joyful experience. The actors were super involved and happy to work with the directors, who were amazing captains of the teams.
CJV: In each case, one of the things the creators and directors had in common was personal connection to the story. Javier saw himself in the Shared Custody scripts and there were several things that were serendipitous about his connection with the characters. With Catalina and Samuel, it was about growing up in Mexico in a specific time during the 1990s. For Todo lo Que Fuimos, Jimena Montemayor and Pepa San Martin are queer filmmakers looking to make a completely different melodrama that reflected the different ways we can love. If you’re passionate, it is way easier to tell that type of story.
DEADLINE: What’s coming up in the future?
CJV: We’re continuing to work with people who love the material. We have several things with filmmakers who we love to work with. We’re also producing Jimena’s new show, Cuerpo de Agua (Body of Water), with Alba Sotorra’s company in Spain. It’s a personal story and our first co-production between Mexico and Spain.
We’re always looking more for quality than quantity, so if we can stay somewhere at the 2-3 per year mark, that would be great. As a company, we don’t need to be producing in volume, and we might be expanding into podcasting and interesting other storytelling perspectives.
DEADLINE: Finally, Fremantle has an option to extend its 25% stake to an ownership position. Do you foresee that happening?
The structure [of the agreement] has given us the important flexibility we need going forwards. We are in talks with Fremantle and Andrea Scrosati, and they do have an option to go up. The partnership has been great, so I don’t see why they wouldn’t. Fremantle as a strategic partner has proven one of the better choices we’ve made. Hopefully, the deal continues as well.
The post The Immigrant Bosses On Their Spanish-Language Slate, Buyers “Operating From A Place Of Fear” & Future Of Their Fremantle Partnership appeared first on Deadline.
