Exclusive: Af, the production company founded by Frank Ariza, has acquired the rights to adapt Where Are You, Heart?, a short story from an anthology by beloved Argentinian novelist Mariana Enríquez.
Where Are You, Heart? is one of 12 short stories in The Dangers of Smoking in Bed, a 2009 anthology by Enríquez. The book was translated into English in 2021 and was shortlisted for the International Booker Prize. The book, published in Spain by Editorial Anagrama, explores everyday horrors—a recurring theme in the work of Enríquez, who is best known for using classic horror elements like ghosts and rituals to explore the social and political realities of her home country.
Where Are You, Heart? follows a main character who realizes at a very young age that she is aroused by the terminally ill. After some exploration, she discovers that her true obsession is with people suffering from heart disease.
Where Are You, Heart? is one of 12 short stories in The Dangers of Smoking in Bed, a 2009 anthology by Enríquez. The book was translated into English in 2021 and was shortlisted for the International Booker Prize. The book, published in Spain by Editorial Anagrama, explores everyday horrors—a recurring theme in the work of Enríquez, who is best known for using classic horror elements like ghosts and rituals to explore the social and political realities of her home country.
Where Are You, Heart? follows a main character who realizes at a very young age that she is aroused by the terminally ill. After some exploration, she discovers that her true obsession is with people suffering from heart disease.
- 7/28/2025
- by Zac Ntim and Jesse Whittock
- Deadline Film + TV
Exclusive: Filmmaker Lluís Quílez, best known for directing the buzzy Netflix crime drama Below Zero, will direct Elegido, a social thriller inspired by a set of notorious race riots in El Ejido, southern Spain, in 2000.
Produced by Frank Ariza’s Af production company, the film follows Mishal, a 40-year-old Arab migrant who has just arrived in Spain seeking work. The murder of two farm workers at the hands of one of their undocumented employees, followed days later by the death of a local young woman, triggers an unprecedented wave of violence in the streets of El Ejido. For three days, local farm workers take over the town under a rule of mob justice, sealing off the area and preventing police intervention as they take matters into their own hands. Amid the chaos, Mishal is mistaken for the girl’s killer and subjected to a brutal public lynching, while...
Produced by Frank Ariza’s Af production company, the film follows Mishal, a 40-year-old Arab migrant who has just arrived in Spain seeking work. The murder of two farm workers at the hands of one of their undocumented employees, followed days later by the death of a local young woman, triggers an unprecedented wave of violence in the streets of El Ejido. For three days, local farm workers take over the town under a rule of mob justice, sealing off the area and preventing police intervention as they take matters into their own hands. Amid the chaos, Mishal is mistaken for the girl’s killer and subjected to a brutal public lynching, while...
- 7/28/2025
- by Zac Ntim
- Deadline Film + TV
Antonio Banderas has boarded Jesse V. Johnson’s action thriller “Above and Below,” produced by Spain’s Af Films, with Christian Mercuri’s Capstone Pictures acquiring worldwide distribution.
Laura Marano stars alongside Christina Ochoa, Mario Tardón (“Risen”) and Banderas.
Written by Tony Giordano and helmed by British stuntman turned writer-director Johnson, “Above and Below” has begun filming in Spain.
Capstone Global will oversee worldwide distribution, with London-based Capture, Capstone’s recent joint venture with Signature Ent., handling international sales.
Described as an “action-packed thriller, full of twists,” the film starts with a group of friends setting off for an unforgettable vacation. What begins as an adventure of partying and diving quickly turns into a nightmare when they are attacked by criminals in open waters.
Trapped in the depths of the ocean, surrounded by sharks and with a ruthless enemy lurking above, Tatiana – the lead role played by Marano – must use...
Laura Marano stars alongside Christina Ochoa, Mario Tardón (“Risen”) and Banderas.
Written by Tony Giordano and helmed by British stuntman turned writer-director Johnson, “Above and Below” has begun filming in Spain.
Capstone Global will oversee worldwide distribution, with London-based Capture, Capstone’s recent joint venture with Signature Ent., handling international sales.
Described as an “action-packed thriller, full of twists,” the film starts with a group of friends setting off for an unforgettable vacation. What begins as an adventure of partying and diving quickly turns into a nightmare when they are attacked by criminals in open waters.
Trapped in the depths of the ocean, surrounded by sharks and with a ruthless enemy lurking above, Tatiana – the lead role played by Marano – must use...
- 7/17/2025
- by Emiliano De Pablos
- Variety Film + TV
Exclusive: Spain’s Film Factory Entertainment has boarded the first two instalments of the horror saga The Collector: Manuel Sanabria’s The Collector: Mirrored Nightmares, and Joaquín Llamas’ The Collector: You’re Next.
The features hail from Madrid-based Isla Audiovisual, the production outfit behind Stories To Stay Awake, the acclaimed reboot of the iconic 1950s Spanish horror anthology created by genre maestro Narciso Ibáñez Serrador.
Set in a quiet town on the Spanish-Portuguese border, both films willfollow a woman, played by Belén López, whose arrival unsettles the new village in which she settles. She offers strangers seemingly harmless objects from her antique-filled home,...
The features hail from Madrid-based Isla Audiovisual, the production outfit behind Stories To Stay Awake, the acclaimed reboot of the iconic 1950s Spanish horror anthology created by genre maestro Narciso Ibáñez Serrador.
Set in a quiet town on the Spanish-Portuguese border, both films willfollow a woman, played by Belén López, whose arrival unsettles the new village in which she settles. She offers strangers seemingly harmless objects from her antique-filled home,...
- 5/16/2025
- ScreenDaily
The Orphanage star Belén Rueda will explore maternal fear, generational trauma, and supernatural mystery in Evil Dress (known in its native Spanish as El Vestido).
Variety reports that Film Factory Entertainment has acquired the worldwide rights for the psychological horror film, which is said to draw inspiration from modern horror milestones like The Others, It Follows, Longlegs, and Hereditary.
Rueda stars as Alicia, a mother struggling in the aftermath of a painful divorce. Seeking a new beginning, she moves into a remote house with her daughter, Carla. But the seemingly quiet setting soon reveals a sinister history.
As Carla connects with the ghost of a young girl through a mysterious blue dress, the house’s dark legacy begins to manifest, leading to terrifying consequences, including a violent incident that leaves a child in a coma. As the investigation unfolds, Alicia finds herself trapped in a nightmare from which there may be no escape.
Variety reports that Film Factory Entertainment has acquired the worldwide rights for the psychological horror film, which is said to draw inspiration from modern horror milestones like The Others, It Follows, Longlegs, and Hereditary.
Rueda stars as Alicia, a mother struggling in the aftermath of a painful divorce. Seeking a new beginning, she moves into a remote house with her daughter, Carla. But the seemingly quiet setting soon reveals a sinister history.
As Carla connects with the ghost of a young girl through a mysterious blue dress, the house’s dark legacy begins to manifest, leading to terrifying consequences, including a violent incident that leaves a child in a coma. As the investigation unfolds, Alicia finds herself trapped in a nightmare from which there may be no escape.
- 5/6/2025
- by Alex DiVincenzo
- bloody-disgusting.com
When “Sorry, Baby” premiered at the Sundance Film Festival earlier this year, it was one of the event’s few sensations and sparked a major bidding war between Neon, Mubi and Searchlight Pictures.
Ultimately, A24 proved victorious, setting the film for a June 27 theatrical release. And now, the studio has dropped the first trailer for the film, which you can watch below.
“Sorry, Baby” marks the directorial debut of writer/director Eva Victor, a journalist, actress and content creator. She also stars in the feature alongside Naomi Ackie, Lucas Hedges, John Carroll Lynch and Kelly McCormack.
In the film, Victor plays Agnes, a college professor in a small Northeastern town who is coming to terms with a sexual assault that happened years earlier. Ackie plays her best friend, who helps her process the trauma, while Hedges is her unlikely new romantic partner. The movie is quietly moving, earnest and raw,...
Ultimately, A24 proved victorious, setting the film for a June 27 theatrical release. And now, the studio has dropped the first trailer for the film, which you can watch below.
“Sorry, Baby” marks the directorial debut of writer/director Eva Victor, a journalist, actress and content creator. She also stars in the feature alongside Naomi Ackie, Lucas Hedges, John Carroll Lynch and Kelly McCormack.
In the film, Victor plays Agnes, a college professor in a small Northeastern town who is coming to terms with a sexual assault that happened years earlier. Ackie plays her best friend, who helps her process the trauma, while Hedges is her unlikely new romantic partner. The movie is quietly moving, earnest and raw,...
- 5/1/2025
- by Drew Taylor
- The Wrap
Spain’s Film Factory Entertainment has added to its burgeoning Berlin sales slate of star-laden upscale entertainment titles with market potential, acquiring international distribution rights to psychological mystery thriller “Reversion,” starring Jaime Lorente, who played the conflicted Denver in “Money Heist.”
Film Factory Entertainment will present a first promo of “Reversion”at this week’s European Film Market in Berlin.
As producers push casts as a manner to stand out in a far too crowded market, “Reversion” also stars Manu Vega (“With the Years I have Left”), Belen Rueda, lead in J.A. Bayona’s debut “The Orphanage,” and Fernando Cayo, Coronel Tamayo in “Money Heist.”
Co- written by Marco Legarde (“UFO Factory”) and Frank Ariza (“With the Years I have Left”), alongside first-time director Jacob Santana, “Reversion” turns on Mario (Lorente) who moves to a new house with his parents and older brother David (Vega).
One rainy afternoon, Mario witnesses his brother being violently kidnapped.
Film Factory Entertainment will present a first promo of “Reversion”at this week’s European Film Market in Berlin.
As producers push casts as a manner to stand out in a far too crowded market, “Reversion” also stars Manu Vega (“With the Years I have Left”), Belen Rueda, lead in J.A. Bayona’s debut “The Orphanage,” and Fernando Cayo, Coronel Tamayo in “Money Heist.”
Co- written by Marco Legarde (“UFO Factory”) and Frank Ariza (“With the Years I have Left”), alongside first-time director Jacob Santana, “Reversion” turns on Mario (Lorente) who moves to a new house with his parents and older brother David (Vega).
One rainy afternoon, Mario witnesses his brother being violently kidnapped.
- 2/10/2025
- by John Hopewell
- Variety Film + TV
A24 is closing on Eva Victor’s Sundance hit Sorry, Baby, The Hollywood Reporter confirmed on Sunday.
Victor’s film — which she wrote, directed and starred in — tells the story of a college professor recovering from sexual assault. Per the logline, “Something bad happened to Agnes. But life goes on… for everyone around her, at least.”
A24 noted that bidding was an incredibly competitive situation, but that the studio is closing on acquiring worldwide rights to the movie. The final price tag is still unknown.
Naomi Ackie, Lucas Hedges, John Carroll Lynch, Louis Cancelmi and Kelly McCormack co-star, with Moonlight‘s Barry Jenkins, Adele Romanski and Mark Ceryak as producers. The movie took home Sundance’s Waldo Salt Award for Screenwriting, and earned a 100 percent critics score on Rotten Tomatoes. THR’s Jon Frosch called it “a winning, at times strikingly strong big-screen debut.”
The film also landed on THR...
Victor’s film — which she wrote, directed and starred in — tells the story of a college professor recovering from sexual assault. Per the logline, “Something bad happened to Agnes. But life goes on… for everyone around her, at least.”
A24 noted that bidding was an incredibly competitive situation, but that the studio is closing on acquiring worldwide rights to the movie. The final price tag is still unknown.
Naomi Ackie, Lucas Hedges, John Carroll Lynch, Louis Cancelmi and Kelly McCormack co-star, with Moonlight‘s Barry Jenkins, Adele Romanski and Mark Ceryak as producers. The movie took home Sundance’s Waldo Salt Award for Screenwriting, and earned a 100 percent critics score on Rotten Tomatoes. THR’s Jon Frosch called it “a winning, at times strikingly strong big-screen debut.”
The film also landed on THR...
- 2/2/2025
- by Zoe G. Phillips
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
Btf Media and Spain’s Af Films have teamed up to co-produce “Hasta el Fin del Mundo,” the next film of actress Aislinn Derbez (“Miss Bala”), who marks her debut as an executive producer through her shingle Ais Ais Baby.
The romantic drama is also the feature debut of Emiliano Castro Vizcarra, who has written and directed numerous shorts, winning multiple awards, including Best Director at the Cineteca Nacional.
“Hasta el Fin del Mundo” (“Together Till the End”), a working title, is described as a compelling drama where a man’s destiny takes an unexpected turn when a woman from his past resurfaces after 15 years.
It’s also the first time Derbez is paired with actor Mauricio Ochmann who plays Manuel, a successful businessman about to marry the love of his life. However, a sudden phone call changes everything, leading Manuel to rekindle a connection with Esmeralda, played by Derbez,...
The romantic drama is also the feature debut of Emiliano Castro Vizcarra, who has written and directed numerous shorts, winning multiple awards, including Best Director at the Cineteca Nacional.
“Hasta el Fin del Mundo” (“Together Till the End”), a working title, is described as a compelling drama where a man’s destiny takes an unexpected turn when a woman from his past resurfaces after 15 years.
It’s also the first time Derbez is paired with actor Mauricio Ochmann who plays Manuel, a successful businessman about to marry the love of his life. However, a sudden phone call changes everything, leading Manuel to rekindle a connection with Esmeralda, played by Derbez,...
- 10/19/2023
- by Anna Marie de la Fuente
- Variety Film + TV
Barcelona-based indie studio Filmax has nabbed international sales rights to Joaquín Mazón’s “The Night My Dad Saved Christmas,” starring Spain’s king of comedy Santiago Segura (”Father There Is Only One”) and Ernesto Sevilla (“I Can Quit Whenever I Want”).
A Spain-Mexico co-production, the film teams Spain’s tax incentive structure La Navidad en Sus Manos Aie with three of Spain’s most successful film production companies: Nadie Es Perfecto, Esto También Pasará Producciones and Bowfinger International Pictures.
The family comedy, scripted by Francisco Arnal and Daniel Monedero, is set in the days leading up to Christmas, when Santa – played by Segura – has an accident on his sleigh, right in the middle of Madrid, and ends up in hospital, where he will have to stay until after Christmas.
Fortunately, Salva, the guy he’s sharing a room with at the hospital, is willing to step in and take on his all important Christmas work.
A Spain-Mexico co-production, the film teams Spain’s tax incentive structure La Navidad en Sus Manos Aie with three of Spain’s most successful film production companies: Nadie Es Perfecto, Esto También Pasará Producciones and Bowfinger International Pictures.
The family comedy, scripted by Francisco Arnal and Daniel Monedero, is set in the days leading up to Christmas, when Santa – played by Segura – has an accident on his sleigh, right in the middle of Madrid, and ends up in hospital, where he will have to stay until after Christmas.
Fortunately, Salva, the guy he’s sharing a room with at the hospital, is willing to step in and take on his all important Christmas work.
- 9/2/2023
- by Emiliano De Pablos
- Variety Film + TV
Screen legend Ron Perlman looks set to take a leading role in an adaptation of Carlos Augusto Casas’s award winning novel, ‘Ya no quedan junglas adonde regresar,’ whose big screen adaptation rights have been secured by producer Álvaro Ariza’s production company, Esto También Pasará.
The novel’s cinematic adaptation will mark the debut narrative feature film as a director of Gabriel Beristain, a seasoned Mexican cinematographer known for “Agent Carter” and his work with illustrious directors such as Guillermo del Toro, David Ayer and David Mamet. His early work with Derek Jarman on “Caravaggio,” won a Silver Bear at Berlin.
The agreement was struck with literary agency Editabundo. Cadiz-based Este También Pasará Productions, headed by Ariza, has a robust portfolio of successful films and series, including ‘¡Ay, mi madre!” from Frank Ariza, Macarena Astorga’s “The Snail’s House,” and “De Caperucita a loba,” directed by Chus Gutiérrez,...
The novel’s cinematic adaptation will mark the debut narrative feature film as a director of Gabriel Beristain, a seasoned Mexican cinematographer known for “Agent Carter” and his work with illustrious directors such as Guillermo del Toro, David Ayer and David Mamet. His early work with Derek Jarman on “Caravaggio,” won a Silver Bear at Berlin.
The agreement was struck with literary agency Editabundo. Cadiz-based Este También Pasará Productions, headed by Ariza, has a robust portfolio of successful films and series, including ‘¡Ay, mi madre!” from Frank Ariza, Macarena Astorga’s “The Snail’s House,” and “De Caperucita a loba,” directed by Chus Gutiérrez,...
- 6/29/2023
- by Callum McLennan
- Variety Film + TV
Paramount+ has bowed the trailer and key art of Colombian actor-producer Manolo Cardona’s directorial debut, “Death’s Roulette” (“Uno para morir”) ahead of its May 5 launch. The Spanish-language suspense thriller will stream on Paramount+ in the U.S., Canada, U.K., Australia and Latin America. It will also be available to stream in Italy, France, Germany, Switzerland, Austria and South Korea.
Based on the original script “La Terminal” by Frank Ariza, “Death’s Roulette” is written by Julieta Steinberg, Gavo Amiel and Cardona. The story revolves around seven kidnapped strangers who wake up in an isolated mansion to find that they are part of a deadly game. They are given 60 minutes to select one person to die but he or she has to agree to be sacrificed. The grim alternative is for all of them to lose their lives. As the clock winds down, their darkest secrets are revealed...
Based on the original script “La Terminal” by Frank Ariza, “Death’s Roulette” is written by Julieta Steinberg, Gavo Amiel and Cardona. The story revolves around seven kidnapped strangers who wake up in an isolated mansion to find that they are part of a deadly game. They are given 60 minutes to select one person to die but he or she has to agree to be sacrificed. The grim alternative is for all of them to lose their lives. As the clock winds down, their darkest secrets are revealed...
- 4/18/2023
- by Anna Marie de la Fuente
- Variety Film + TV
Exclusive: Mike Merrill has signed with Pantheon for representation in all areas.
The actor, who plays the young, hungry talent director Christian Mosley on The CW’s All American is also currently filming a BET feature, which is scheduled for release later in the year. He also recently signed a partnership deal with the Bumble dating service, to produce new media content on his channels.
Merrill’s previous credits include Tyler Perry’s series The Haves and the Have Nots, and BET’s The Bobby Brown Story.
He continues to be represented by Cgem Talent.
Manuel Vega, meanwhile, has signed with Cesd Talent Agency.
Quickly establishing himself as an actor to watch in Spanish and Latin American film and television, Vega starred in Telecinco drama Secretos de Estados, as well as MGM International Television’s hit comedy series, Herederos Por Accidente, among other projects. Most recently,...
The actor, who plays the young, hungry talent director Christian Mosley on The CW’s All American is also currently filming a BET feature, which is scheduled for release later in the year. He also recently signed a partnership deal with the Bumble dating service, to produce new media content on his channels.
Merrill’s previous credits include Tyler Perry’s series The Haves and the Have Nots, and BET’s The Bobby Brown Story.
He continues to be represented by Cgem Talent.
Manuel Vega, meanwhile, has signed with Cesd Talent Agency.
Quickly establishing himself as an actor to watch in Spanish and Latin American film and television, Vega starred in Telecinco drama Secretos de Estados, as well as MGM International Television’s hit comedy series, Herederos Por Accidente, among other projects. Most recently,...
- 5/6/2021
- by Matt Grobar
- Deadline Film + TV
MGM International TV has snapped up worldwide distribution rights (excluding Svod in Latin America) to culture clash comedic series “Herederos Por Accidente,” a big hit on the Mexican streaming service Claro Video, a subsidiary of billionaire Carlos Slim’s telco, America Movil.
As part of the deal, the studio also secured worldwide format rights and is developing an adaptation of the series for the U.S. market.
“We’re incredibly proud to announce our first partnership with Claro Video, Mexico’s family entertainment powerhouse,” said MGM International TV’s Svp of International Development, Diego Piasek. “‘Herederos’ has all the right ingredients to travel the world as both tape and format, and we’re excited for all of the possibilities to come,” he added.
Created by writer and executive producer Frank Ariza,, “Herederos Por Accidente” (“Heirs by Accident”) revolves around two families, one Mexican, the other Spanish, who are forced to...
As part of the deal, the studio also secured worldwide format rights and is developing an adaptation of the series for the U.S. market.
“We’re incredibly proud to announce our first partnership with Claro Video, Mexico’s family entertainment powerhouse,” said MGM International TV’s Svp of International Development, Diego Piasek. “‘Herederos’ has all the right ingredients to travel the world as both tape and format, and we’re excited for all of the possibilities to come,” he added.
Created by writer and executive producer Frank Ariza,, “Herederos Por Accidente” (“Heirs by Accident”) revolves around two families, one Mexican, the other Spanish, who are forced to...
- 5/22/2020
- by Anna Marie de la Fuente
- Variety Film + TV
Paz Vega To Star In & Produce Single Mom Immigrant Comedy Series ‘Tacowood’ For MGM International TV
Exclusive: MGM International TV is developing Tacowood, a comedy series headlined and produced by Spanglish star Paz Vega.
Based on an original idea by Spanish writer-producer-director Frank Ariza (Dreamland), Tacowood is a modern-day comedy that follows Guada (Vega), a 40-year-old single mother who spends her days running her family’s taco truck business in the outskirts of Mexico City as she embarks on the journey of a lifetime with her mother and 10-year-old daughter to pursue her dream of becoming a Hollywood actress.
MGM International TV will produce and distribute the project, which will be taken out shortly.
“Good ideas married with good talent knows no borders today,” said Diego Piasek, Svp International Development at MGM International TV. “As a first-generation immigrant myself, I’m so proud that MGM is supporting the new voices of our generation.”
Launched last year, MGM International TV is ramping up in key markets like UK,...
Based on an original idea by Spanish writer-producer-director Frank Ariza (Dreamland), Tacowood is a modern-day comedy that follows Guada (Vega), a 40-year-old single mother who spends her days running her family’s taco truck business in the outskirts of Mexico City as she embarks on the journey of a lifetime with her mother and 10-year-old daughter to pursue her dream of becoming a Hollywood actress.
MGM International TV will produce and distribute the project, which will be taken out shortly.
“Good ideas married with good talent knows no borders today,” said Diego Piasek, Svp International Development at MGM International TV. “As a first-generation immigrant myself, I’m so proud that MGM is supporting the new voices of our generation.”
Launched last year, MGM International TV is ramping up in key markets like UK,...
- 2/7/2020
- by Nellie Andreeva and Denise Petski
- Deadline Film + TV
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