BBC Studios, the commercial arm of the broadcaster, has acquired Spanish producer Brutal Media.
Founded in 2009, Brutal Media’s credits include the recently announced original miniseries for Netflix, “Asalto Al Banco Central,” “The Academy” (Sony Pictures Television), “Vintage” (3cat), film “Killer Book Club” (Netflix), series “Welcome to Eden” (Netflix) and “The Hockey Girls” (Netflix, 3Cat), documentaries “The End of the Storm” (Sky TV, Liverpool FC) and “Murder by the Coast” (Netflix) and romantic comedy “I Love You Stupid” (Netflix).
Brutal Media’s portfolio also includes formats “This is Opera” and “This is Art” and it has produced primetime family oriented factual shows “El Paisano” and “El Foraster.”
Under the agreement, Brutal Media will continue to develop and market its slate of original IP in Spain as well as producing local adaptations of the unscripted and scripted formats in the BBC Studios catalogue. BBC Studios will distribute and produce Brutal Media formats outside of Spain. Founders Raimon Masllorens and Nèlida Sanchez will continue to lead the local team.
BBC Studios global entertainment production network has bases in the U.K., Australia, France, Germany, India, South Africa, the Nordics and the U.S.
Jacob de Boer, executive VP, global entertainment at BBC Studios, said: “This agreement with Brutal Media is the natural next step for BBC Studios to expand our presence in the Spanish market. With their local expertise, strong local network and exciting development slate, Brutal Media is the perfect partner to produce the high-quality Spanish language content that we know local and global audiences are looking for.”
Masllorens and Sanchez added: “We are proud to join the esteemed BBC Studios group, which served as a prestigious role model for us over the years with its renowned outstanding productions. Their catalogue offers us new and exciting opportunities, in both scripted and non-scripted content. The vision and values of BBC Studios are perfectly aligned with those upheld at Brutal Media.”
Matt Forde, managing director, global entertainment, BBC Studios Productions, said: “Together with the announcement earlier this week about Werner Film Productions in Australia, bringing Brutal Media into our award-winning production network is testament to our commitment to supporting the world’s best local creative talent, identifying complementary expertise in some of the world’s most dynamic media markets and showcasing it to our partners and audiences on a global stage.”
