The LatAm & Hispanic event presents the global industry with an action-packed conference programme, unparalleled networking opportunities and A-list buyers
MIP CANCUN opens its doors to delegates from around the world from November 19-22. The premier content and co-production event for companies engaged with the Latin American and Hispanic US markets, MIP CANCUN organisers are expecting some 800 delegates to attend.
The event will welcome leading decision-makers from distribution firms, content creation companies, channels and platforms. Of particular note is the healthy line up of global and regional buyers attending MIP CANCUN. These include Warner Bros. Discovery, SPT, A+E Group, Amazon Prime Video, Televisa Univision, TV Azteca, Canal 22 (Mexico), Globo, RCN from Colombia, Canal 13, Chilevision (both Chile), and streamer Mubi.
The good news for MIP CANCUN delegates is that the most recent edition of MIPCOM CANNES in October showed there is an appetite among local buyers for the right IP. Turkish powerhouse MADD Entertainment, for example, sold a slew of shows to broadcasters in Argentina, Chile, Peru, Ecuador and Colombia among others. Top titles included My Wonderful Life, Blooming Lady and Margarita. Talpa Studios, meanwhile, used the market to announce that hit format The Floor is being adapted by Uruguay’s Teledoce/Canal 12 and Chile’s TVN. This trend continued post-market with Eccho Rights licensing Turkish drama I Am Mother to Caracol Colombia, Canal 13 Chile and TVN Panama.
While dealmaking is a big draw to MIP CANCUN, the event is also the perfect platform for peer-to-peer networking and intelligence gathering. A packed conference programme will include screenings, research from The Wit and media mastermind keynotes from industry leaders including Paulo Koelle, head, Prime Video Latin America and Pilar Blasco, CEO Banijay Iberia.
Day one also sees the MIP CANCUN FAST & GLOBAL: AMERICAS Summit, where experts will turn the spotlight on one of the most significant emerging opportunities in global content distribution. This picks up from MIPCOM CANNES where Maria Rua Aguete, head of media and entertainment at Omdia, projected that Brazil will be the third largest FAST market globally by 2029, behind the USA and UK. Rua Aguete predicts that Brazil’s FAST revenue will rise from $119m in 2024 to $303m by 2029, overtaking Canada.
Angela Colla, head of international business and co-productions at Globo, is a member of the MIP CANCUN advisory board. She said: “Events like MIP CANCUN are important for strengthening relationships with our partners in Latin America, as well as opening conversations with potential clients. The event provides four intense days in which we can showcase the diversity of our portfolio, discuss business opportunities with partners and follow market trends.”
Colla says Latin America has experienced the same turbulence as other parts of the global media and entertainment industries, but she says it continues to be a “resilient, creative and a strong consumer of content. Globo, for example, is recognised in this region mainly for our telenovelas, but we also have series and documentaries that reach different audiences and can be shown in different windows. I believe that we are a very diverse region, so it is important to be open to different business models, with a certain flexibility, to meet the particularities of each country.”
Echoing recent discussions at MIPCOM CANNES, Colla says one big trend is “the demand for new viewing windows, such as AVOD. In line with this trend, Globo recently launched a catalogue focused on the AVOD model. We already have some agreements with companies in Latin America such as Vix and Butaca TV.”
Colla has noted increased interest in “local adaptations and classic stories that are in people’s memories. We are investing in the sale of formats, both scripted and unscripted products, which combine our stories with local productions, which is a way of taking our content to new audiences. In addition, we have a Classics & Big Hits Project, in which we relaunch successes, such as Brazil Avenue, Anything For Love and Terra Nostra.”
Globo made waves at MIPCOM CANNES when it announced a partnership with Beta Film on police drama Discipline. Colla confirmed that global alliances are key to her company’s ambitions. “We are constantly looking for partnerships that make sense for everyone involved. Co-pros are important to take our content outside Brazil, but also to bring diversified products to our windows.”
She stressed, however that this will not mean burying Globo’s ‘Brazilianness’: “Our differential is that we represent all of Brazil, with Globo quality, in different formats and languages, and we bring this to the creative side of our co-production partnerships as well. It is important to have this perspective when internationalising content, to maintain our authenticity.”
From Argentina to México, the region is filled with incredible production companies that make great partners Coty Cagliolo
Another key player who sees the business benefits of MIP CANCUN is Fremantle’s head of production in Latin America, Coty Cagliolo. She said the Mexico-located event is unique “because of its amazing set up. It’s a market that happens in only one spot, and such a beautiful one. This makes your time at the market highly effective. In my experience, executives that come from other corners of the world get ‘in tune’ very fast with the spirit and rhythm of Cancún.”
Fremantle has been busy on both the scripted and unscripted side. Last year, it announced plans for a Chilean version of its hit entertainment series The Farm. More recently, it announced plans for a co-pro with Globo on Crime Inc., a drama that will feature on Globoplay in Brazil, with Fremantle taking rest-of-world rights. So what is Cagliolo’s advice to MIP CANCUN delegates looking to crack the market? “LatAm is an incredible region, full of opportunities and beauty,” she said. “But knowing the region is a must to have a successful production. So my advice is always: partner with a local company that knows the culture and the local law. From Argentina to México, the region is filled with incredible production companies that make great partners.”
