U.S. HISPANIC
Mexicanal produces 200 hours of original content annually
Maribel Ramos-Weiner| 4 de octubre de 2023
Demian Torres-Bohl de Mexicanal
Mexicanal produces around 200 hours of original programming annually. Among the most recent productions are the documentary Memorias del Escuadrón 201 (1×90′) about the little-known story of a group of hero pilots from the 201 Squadron of the Mexican Army during World War II; Tanque Lleno (12×30′), a travel and gastronomy show where the hosts tour different towns in Mexico visiting small restaurants and street vendors in search of the best Mexican dishes; the political interview show, México 2024, hosted by Javier Solórzano with the candidates for the presidential elections in June 2024, and the series Mariachis de México (14×30′). The network has 18 years on the air.
“We produce +200 hours of original programming every year. Our team tries to improve the quality of the content for our audience and other platforms to continue growing the value of the content of Mexicanal. Content is the most important thing in our industry,” said Demian Torres-Bohl, president at Mexicanal.
Torres-Bohl also highlighted that they have two or three scripted projects in different stages of development, something new for the company, and that a pilot of these projects could probably be ready by the end of 2023 or 2024.
Asked about the use of new technologies such as artificial intelligence (AI), he said that they are experimenting with AI for Europe+ – the VOD service in Latin America – which does not affect the artists. “We are not going to use AI to make our artwork.”
Regarding the FAST channels, Torres-Bohl mentioned they are exploring launching a Jaripeo FAST channel in the US. They already have one for Latin America.
“We try to be at the forefront of the industry, ensuring we explore all the options out there; anything we can do, we are going to try. FAST gives us more eyeballs. There are so many different avenues, but in the end, what matters is content. As a company, we have to be open to explore different options,” he noted, underlining that distribution via pay TV is a priority for the company. “FAST is just another distribution channel, but it won’t replace pay TV,” he concluded.
