Mipcom: Endemol Shine Boomdog, Somos Prods to Co-Produce Saint Juan Diego Series
By Anna Marie de la Fuente
LOS ANGELES (Variety.com) – Endemol Shine Boomdog, a unit of North America, is exploring a religious theme in its drive to create more original scripted series. The Mexico City-based shingle has teamed with Somos Prods. to co-develop the first-ever series based on Saint Juan Diego, the first Mexican-born saint.
To be produced by Endemol Shine Boomdog and Somos Prods, “Juan Diego: The Story of Guadalupe” will be sold worldwide by Somos Distribution.
The two companies have also been developing a TV series based on renowned Latin boy band Menudo, “Subete a Mi Moto—The History of Menudo.”
“The Story of Guadalupe is widely known across all of Latin America and throughout the world and our series will showcase Juan Diego’s truly remarkable journey to become the first indigenous saint of the Americas,” said Endemol Shine Boomdog CEO, Alejandro Rincon.
Luis Villanueva, CEO of Somos Group, Somos Productions and Somos Distribution, concurred: “San Juan Diego Cuauhtlatoatzin is the base for the devotion for the Virgin of Guadalupe and the best way to honor our roots and traditions.”
“For us it is a responsibility to show this part of our heritage and as we do with all our products, we guarantee that this series will make all of us proud and will be enjoyed by audiences worldwide,” he added.
Saint Juan Diego Cuauhtlatoatzin, also known as Juan Diego (1474–1548) was said to have been visited by the Virgin Mary on four separate occasions in 1531 at the hill of Tepeyac, near Mexico City.
Now a major pilgrimage destination receiving some 22 million visitors a year, the Basilica of Guadalupe , built at the foot of Tepeyac hill, claims to possess Juan Diego’s mantle, on which an image of the Virgin is said to have appeared by a miracle to prove the authenticity of the apparitions. Juan Diego was beatified in 1990 and canonized in 2002 by the Roman Catholic Church.
Endemol Shine Boomdog was formed last year with the merger of Endemol Shine North America’s Spanish-language division Endemol Shine Latino with Mexico City-based production company Boomdog.
