Onza Distribution sells ‘El Hormiguero’ to the new live streaming channel OLGA in Argentina.

Onza Distribution has reached an agreement to sell the adaptation rights for El Hormiguero (The Anthill), one of the most successful television shows in the history of Spanish and Latin American TV. The deal was struck with OLGA, a new live-streaming platform and one of the most-watched channels among young people in Argentina.

This deal adds to other major sales of the format in 2024: earlier this year, Onza Distribution sold the show’s ready-made version to Estrella TV in the United States. After several years of negotiations, they also reached an agreement with Mediaset Italia to adapt El Hormiguero for the Italian market. The format has already been successfully adapted in various countries, including Brazil, Mexico, and Portugal.

El Hormiguero and 7 y Acción

Hosted by Pablo Motos and broadcast on Antena 3 every Monday through Thursday night, El Hormiguero is Spain’s most successful prime-time show, now in its 19th season since its debut in 2006.

“El Hormiguero is a perfect example of how Spanish formats can be adapted and succeed worldwide,” said Carlos Garde, Managing Director of Onza. “We’re thrilled that it’s now arriving in Argentina, a country with a rich television tradition that we know will appreciate this unique format and add its own local flair. We can’t wait to see the ants speaking with an Argentine accent.”

The production company behind El Hormiguero, 7 y Acción, led by Jorge Salvador and Pablo Motos, has created other successful shows featured in Onza Distribution’s catalog. These include El Desafío (The Celeb Challenge), a Friday night prime-time leader set to launch its fifth season in 2025, and El Camino a Casa (The Way Home), a format also sold by Onza to Telefe, the leading channel in Argentina, with the production and airing of its local Argentine version expected in the first quarter of 2025.

Production of El Hormiguero in Argentina

The production of El Hormiguero in Argentina will be handled by OLGA with support from Onza Américas. Producers are currently designing the studio in Buenos Aires, where the show will be broadcast live daily. The host will be announced soon.

“We understand the vital role Pablo Motos plays in the format, and we want the Argentine host to also have great charisma,” said Carlos Garde. “This host will need to excel at conducting engaging interviews while bringing the energy and joy that make each episode a fun experience with the guests, the ants, and the surprising experiments and performances featured every night.”

Onza Distribution expands its international presence with new fiction sales in key territories

Onza Distribution has closed deals for several telenovelas, such as ‘Cacao’, ‘Forever,’ and ‘Value of Life.’

‘Heartless’ and ‘Flowers Over the Inferno,’ two titles from Onza Distribution’s catalog, have been acquired by RTP (Portugal) and AntenaPLAY, part of Antena TV Group Romania.

The Spanish international sales agency has also sold ‘Traffic Jam’ to AntenaPLAY and ‘Allende, The 1000 Days’ to Canais TVCine (Portugal).

During this MIPCOM, Onza Distribution announced sales of several key titles from its catalog to Portugal, Romania, Croatia, Latvia, and Mozambique. Among the most relevant productions are telenovelas like ‘Cacao’ and ‘Forever’, as well as recent hits like ‘Heartless’, ‘Flowers Over the Inferno’, ‘Traffic Jam’ and ‘Allende, The 1000 Days’.

Another Sale for TVI’s Telenovelas

‘Cacao’ (220×50’) has been sold to Croatian broadcaster HRT, in addition to the 70 countries where the Portuguese series will air, such as Spain and Lithuania. This compelling story centers on a young woman named Cacao, whose life takes a dramatic turn when she discovers her real father is the owner of the cocoa farm she lives in. This revelation triggers a series of intrigues, as Cacao becomes a threat to the other heirs. Her life is in danger, but Tiago, a handsome young man she falls in love with, will do everything he can to protect her from her enemies.

Onza Distribution has also secured deals for the sale of other TVI telenovelas, such as ‘Forever’ (205×50’), sold to Helio Media in Latvia, and ‘Value of Life’ (207×50’), which will air in Mozambique soon.

‘Heartless’ y ‘Flowers over the inferno’ sold to RTP and AntenaPLAY

The thriller series ‘Heartless’ (8×45’), produced by Onza, which reached number 2 on Prime Video Series during its premiere in Spain, has been acquired by Portugal’s public broadcaster RTP and the streaming platform AntenaPLAY, part of Antena TV Group Romania. The series follows a ruthless kidnapper who targets the business elite of Madrid, torturing them through cruel psychological games. Haro, an aristocrat imprisoned for rape and murder, becomes a key figure in the investigation. He offers to cooperate with the authorities in exchange for a reduced sentence, though his true aim is to seek revenge on the judge who sentenced him.

The acclaimed Italian series ‘Flowers Over the Inferno’ (6×60’), first case of the profiler Teresa Battaglia, has also been sold to RTP and AntenaPLAY, including its new second season, ‘Sleeping Nymph’ (6×60’), which was added to Onza Distribution’s catalog for MIPCOM and will premiere on RAI1 on October 28. Produced by Publispei and based on the homonymous bestseller by Ilaria Tuti, the thriller follows the profiler Teresa Battaglia as she solves crimes in the Alps while battling Alzheimer at an early stage. In the new season, a young police officer is found dead after investigating her father’s alleged crime, which is tied to a series of murders and a mysterious painting called ‘The Sleeping Nymph.’

‘Allende, the 1000 days’ sold to Canais TVCine

‘Allende, The 1000 Days’ (4×50’), a drama that revisits the final years of Chilean president Salvador Allende’s life, has been sold to Canais TVCine (NOS) in Portugal. The series, which won a Platino Award for Alfredo Castro’s portrayal of Allende, has captured global attention for its powerful historical narrative. This political drama, produced by Chilean company Parox, has already been sold in several countries.

‘Traffic Jam’ sold to AntenaPLAY

Additionally, ‘Traffic Jam’ (6×25’), a comedy produced by Onza that brings together some of Spain’s top comedians and reached number one on Prime Video Spain during its premiere, has been acquired by Romania’s AntenaPLAY. The series depicts a traffic jam that disrupts the plans of thousands of citizens: thieves who won’t make it to the jewelry store they plan to rob, a couple crisis between two crane operators, an ambulance driver desperately seeking a bathroom, and a food truck that won’t reach its destination. These comical, unexpected, and emotional stories unfold on the road, featuring a cast of 25 of Spain’s leading comedy actors.

Mediaset Italia Acquires the Rights to Adapt the Hit Show ‘The Anthill’

Mediaset Italia has acquired the adaptation rights to the popular Spanish show ‘The Anthill’ (‘El Hormiguero’), aiming to develop an Italian version for the 2024/2025 season.

This agreement with Mediaset follows Onza Distribution‘s successful sale of the show’s ready made version to Estrella TV in the United States earlier this year. After several years of negotiations in Italy, Onza Distribution has finalized an agreement with Mediaset this month to adapt ‘The Anthill’ for the Italian market. This format has already been successfully adapted in several countries, including Brazil, Mexico, and Portugal.

‘The Anthill’ (‘El Hormiguero’) is the most successful prime time show in Spain, accumulating 18 seasons since its inception in 2006. Hosted by Pablo Motos, it airs on Antena 3 four times a week. The production company of ‘The Anthill,’ 7 y Acción, has also created other successful shows that are included in the Onza Distribution catalog. Among them are ‘The Celeb Challenge,’ prime time leader on Fridays with 4 seasons aired in Spain, and ‘The Way Home,’ a format recently acquired by Telefe Argentina. For its Italian version of ‘The Anthill,’ Mediaset is working on a weekly prime time broadcast on its channel Italia 1.

“At Onza Distribution, we are very excited to see one of our hit formats being adapted by such a prestigious channel with a strong commitment to entertainment production in Europe,” said Béatrice Nouh, Head of Sales at Onza Distribution. “This demonstrates the value of ‘The Anthill’ as a format, and we firmly believe this news can once again boost the format in the international market. We wish the future Italian version all the possible success!”

New deals for Onza Distribution’s documentaries ‘Young Addictions’ and ‘Real Madrid: The White Legend’

Onza Distribution confirms the sale of the documentary series ‘Young Addictions’ in Germany (ZDF), Belgium (RTBF), Slovenia (RTV Slovenija), Portugal (CNN Portugal) and the pan-regional territory of MENA (Al Jazeera). The Spanish distributor announces that ‘Real Madrid: The White Legend’, also produced by Onza, has been acquired by Croatia’s HRT. 

Onza Distribution announces new sales for documentaries ‘Young Addictions’ and ‘Real Madrid: The White Legend’, both produced by Onza. ‘Young Addictions’ (Adictos a la pantalla, 3×45’/1×52′), a documentary series portraying the reality of young people’s addictions to new technologies, has been acquired by ZDF in Germany, Al Jazeera for the pan-regional territory of MENA, Belgian channel RTBF, RTV Slovenija and CNN Portugal.

‘Real Madrid, The White Legend’ (Real Madrid: la leyenda blanca, 6×50′), co-produced by Onza and Morrigan Films, will travel to Croatia thanks to HRT. It already landed at MENA territories in 2023. Onza’s remarkable sports title, released two years ago on Prime Video Spain – who was also a nominee for Best Sports Title at the 2023 Venice TV Awards -, continues to receive new offers in new regions.

During the week of Sunny Side of the Doc, Onza Distribution proves to be a landmark as a documentaries distributor and widens its catalog with important acquisitions such as Wakai‘s sports documentaries (‘Thibaut Courtois: A Real Madrid Story’, ‘FC Barcelona: A New Era’, ‘Marc Marquez: All In’ or ‘Simeone: Living Match by Match’), as well as other titles of various genres, such as nature, culture or social research,that will be revealed very soon.

“At Onza Distribution we want to promote documentaries that can be both commercial and appealing to the public, so they fall in line to the needs of the market and our clients, with quality always as our priority” comments Béatrice Nouh, Head of Sales at Onza Distribution. “We represent independent production companies with talent and a lot of topics to discuss. They are capable of captivating international audiences.”

 

Onza Distribution announces new sales in Central and Eastern Europe

Onza Distribution has sold several telenovela and fiction titles in its catalog in key territories in Central and Eastern Europe: Onza Distribution’s telenovelas ‘Forever’ and ‘Unlimited Love’ will travel to Serbia for the first time, whereas ‘Payback’ will renew its presence in Serbia, and ‘Cacao’ will have its premiere in Lithuania. On the other hand, TV fiction series ‘Motel Valkirias’, ‘Parot’, ‘Little Coincidences’ and ‘Flowers Over The Inferno’ will soon be available in Romania.

The international sales agency thus strengthens its presence in these regions. In addition to this, Onza Distribution is attending NEM Dubrovnik and NATPE Budapest markets, where it will seal new deals in these territories.

Onza Distribution started very well the 2024’s sales cycle, with ‘Cacao’ leading the way. Since its premiere last January on TVI in Portugal, and after being #1 prime time in Portugal ever since, the telenovela has already been acquired in Spain, CIS and Baltics, while important deals are still in negotiation in several other countries. ‘Forever’, ‘Payback’ and ‘Unlimited Love’ keeps engaging audiences all over the world, after being seen in the Balkans, LATAM or the US. Onza’s telenovelas has also amassed big success in awards, such as the International Emmys, which granted the Best Telenovela to ‘Payback’ in 2018 and a nomination for ‘Forever’ in 2023.

Onza’s original productions, such as ‘Parot’ and ‘Little Coincidences’ keep travelling to CIS, Eastern Europe or France. In Spain, ‘Parot’ has managed to hit again the #8 spot on Amazon Prime Video’s ranking of most-watched TV shows 3 years after its premiere. Along with these titles, Onza Distribution will present to the CEE and Balkan markets the main novelties of its catalog, such as ‘Heartless’, which premiered last April on the #2 ranking in Prime Video Spain, the Czech period drama ‘Golden Swan’, and new seasons of Italian hit series ‘Flowers Over The Inferno’ and of ‘Sweet Strawberries’.

Regarding ‘Motel Valkirias’, produced by CTV in association with SPi, its sale to the Antena group in Romania comes shortly after the news of its silver medal in the Drama category at the New York Festivals. The Galician-Portuguese series has already been broadcast through HBO Spain and Portugal, the Portuguese public channel RTP, Galicia’s TVG or through the main channels of the Brazilian group Globosat.

 

‘Flowers Over The Inferno’ seals the deal for three new sales

Thriller series ‘Flowers Over the Inferno’, distributed by Onza Distribution, has closed three new deals this spring with the Public Broadcaster SBS Australia, Walter Presents (division of Global Series Network) in the UK, and Antenaplay, the SVOD platform from Antena TV Group Romania. Other offers are also being considered – some in advanced stages of negotiation in the rest of Europe.

Based on the best-selling 4-book saga by Ilaria Tuti and produced by PUBLISPEI (the independent production company who brought the long running series in Italy in 1998: Un ‘Medico in Famiglia’, ‘I Cesaroni’). The first season (6×60′) of this crime series follows the events from the first book, where the profiler Teresa Battaglia must find the serial killer who kills in defense of helpless children, while facing her Alzheimer’s diagnosis. It premiered on the Italian public channel RAI 1, recording a viewership of 25.49% share, and amassing an average of 24.96%.

The second season, also based on the second book of the saga ‘Sleeping Nymph’, is currently in post-production and will premiere in the Fall of 2024. We’ll follow again the profiler Teresa Battaglia facing a complex case of murder, this time in the landscapes of the Resia Valley, at the foot of the Alps.

“We are very proud to partner with these prestigious broadcasters and we believe the announcement of the second season is helping to add more interest to the series throughout the world” – comments Béatrice Nouh, Head of Sales at Onza Distribution.

With the second season yet to premiere, Onza Distribution will bring this hit Italian series to the main markets in 2024, along with other new releases such as ‘Heartless’, Onza’s premium thriller and the second most watched series on Spain Amazon Prime since its premiere on April 19, TVI’s telenovela ‘Cacao’, recently acquired by Mediaset España, ‘Golden Swan’, a Czech period drama produced by NOVA, recently added to Onza Distribution’s catalogue or ‘Allende The Thousand Days’, recently acquired by OCS in France and with new sales in current negotiation.

Onza Distribution sells TV miniseries ‘Allende The Thousand Days’ to France’s OCS

Onza Distribution just announced the sale of the highly anticipated miniseries ‘Allende The Thousand Days’ to France’s OCS. The channel, now part of the Canal+ group, will broadcast the 4 episodes of the miniseries in the first quarter of 2024.

‘Allende The Thousand Days’ is a historical drama recollecting the last years of former Chilean president Salvador Allende and his political aim in the thousand days that his presidency lasted. The series represents an important testimony committed to democracy with the purpose of reinforcing historical memory.

The series was broadcast for the first time in Chile (TVN & Riivi) and Argentina (TV Pública) last September – also the month of the San Sebastian Film Festival premiere on an exclusive screening in the days that followed the coup’s 50^th anniversary. It will be broadcast on a double-episode marathon next Wednesday 21^st February on Spain’s TVE.

This announcement comes shortly after the good news of its 5 pre-selections at the 2024 Platino Awards. The series is a co-production of Parox, who already received the Best Miniseries award at the Prix Europa awards for ‘Invisible Heroes‘, which was broadcast on YLE in 2019, in association with Mediterráneo Media (Spain) and Aleph (Argentina).

“I am pleased that our great series ‘Allende The Thousand Days’ will be seen on OCS in France starting March 24^th, a premium channel betting on quality international series; this proves that the story of Salvador Allende still resonates in our international History”, says Béatrice Nouh, Head of Sales at Onza Distribution.

Onza Distribution sells the successful series “Crimes” to ZDF

 

Onza Distribution confirms the sale of Crimes, Spain’s most successful true crime series, to the German television network ZDF. Crimes spans three seasons with a total of 36 episodes. The latest season premiered this year, garnering massive viewership ratings.

Just a year ago, Onza Distribution announced that Crimes, already considered the most successful true crime series in Spain, was joining their catalog to make its leap into the international market after its triumphant run on TV3 and Movistar. Now, the distributor announces the sale of the series, created by Carles Porta and produced by Goroka and True Crime Factory, to the German television channel ZDF.

“We look forward to presenting this series to the German audience on TV and also in our media library. The high-quality design and the insight into investigative activities in Spain and Catalonia complement ZDFinfo’s true crime portfolio,” commented representatives from the network.

The latest season of the series, premiered on TV3 this year, has broken all historical audience records, with a 30.9% share in its first episode and over a million viewers, with more than 35% of them being a young audience.

“The great success that Crimes has achieved in Spain since the airing of its first episode has attracted the attention of many international buyers,” comments Carlos Garde, General Manager of Onza. “It is a true crime series that has succeeded due to its high production quality and the public’s interest in these stories. We have witnessed that it is an addictive show that captivates the viewer and keeps them on edge until the very end.”

This true crime series covers over 40 real crimes from the past 10 years, and unlike other series in the same genre, it doesn’t feature experts discussing the crimes. Instead, it is the actual protagonists who narrate their involvement in the events, either because they experienced them firsthand or investigated them. Thus, Crimes aims to shed light on the darkness through the direct or indirect testimonies of those who lived through each of these stories.

Onza Distribution sells “Payback” to Uruguayan Channel 4

 

Onza Distribution confirms the sale of Payback, International Emmy winner, to Channel 4, Uruguay. During its first broadcast month, the telenovela boasts an average of 41% share.

Onza Distribution has announced some of its most recent sales, including telenovela Payback, to Channel 4, Uruguay. The Uruguayan channel recently premiered this TVI production with excellent audience numbers.

Payback (Ouro Verde) is the story of Ze, played by renowned actor Diogo Morgado, returns home, after being missing for years, with a false identity and a single goal: to avenge the death of his family. His plans get complicated when he meets Beatriz (Joana de Verona), his first love and the daughter of the person who murdered his family.

Payback, winner of International Emmy for Telenovela, premiered on Uruguayan Channel 4 December 26th 2022 with considerable viewing figures, reaching an average share of 41% during its first broadcast month.

“We are very satisfied with the reception Payback is receiving. It’s a great telenovela that has surprised audiences with both great production values and a story that is captivating right from the start,” reports Mariano Mosca, Channel 4 Head of Marketing and Content Strategy. “Since premiering in December, it has had great results on the channel. We are very happy to have opted for this production from TVI and Onza, as it shows that Portuguese telenovelas can excite our audience the same way a Turkish telenovela can – or even more so”.

This is one of the telenovelas in Onza’s Distribution catalog, available in neutral Spanish, alongside other TVI productions such as The Gipsy Heiress, The Pretender and Unlimited Love.

“The excellent reception in Uruguay by a telenovela like Payback reaffirms how important the Latin American market is for us,” adds Carlos Garde, Onza General Manager. “Payback had been released with great success in Latin America, in Brazil on channels like Bandeirantes and on platforms like Globoplay. Before that, it had traveled not only to European countries like Poland and France, but to more complicated territories such as the Middle East (UAE, Lebanon, etc.). We have also sold it to African countries such as Algeria, Morocco and Angola, and even Asian countries like China. It’s clear that Portuguese telenovelas have universal characteristics that allow them to travel easily and interest a large number of viewers from all continents and cultures”.

A few weeks ago, during Content Americas, the Spanish distributor demonstrated its continuing faith in a varied catalog that can reach customers anywhere in the world by announcing the addition of new productions, including documentary series Osel (4×50′) and Christmas romantic comedy Christmas Eve (1×80′).