In a high-profile appointment, Sonia Martínez, an iconic TV executive on Spain’s modern TV scene behind “Money Heist” and “Locked Up,” has joined the Pablo Cruz-headed El Estudio aiming to power up its growth in Spain.
Established in 2020, El Estudio has offices in Madrid and Mexico City. Martínez will serve as El Estudio’s director of contents in Spain. Her oversight includes creative strategy, development and production of film and TV projects and the corporate consolidation of El Estudio in Spain.
El Estudio’s launch coincided with the build of peak TV as Hollywood’s studios and local operators scrambled to catch up with Netflix in grabbing market share in a global SVOD subscription market of seemingly limitless growth.
Spearheaded by Cruz, El Estudio has placed multiple titles with Netflix (“The Dance of the 41,” James Beard Award winner “Las Crónicas del Taco,” “Deseo”), TelevisaUnivision streamer ViX (“Pena Arena,” “Al Chile”) and Amazon Prime Video (the underrated movies Spanish movies “Voy a pasármelo bien” and “Voy a pasármelo major” and 2026 action movie “Vengeance,” the first Mexican original from Amazon MGM Studios, and a No. 1 across multiple territories, vindicating locally-rooted genre, made at scale.
Since Netflix’s shock early 2022 results, however, as global streaming have prioritized bottom line results over market share, scoring commissions from streamers has become an ever-harder call. Producers have turned ever more to attempting international co-production combined with key core broadcaster licensing deals.
“Martínez’s arrival is an important step in El Estudio’s growth strategy in Spain,” El Estudio said in a statement. “After building in film and TV in Spanish-language markets with platforms such as Netflix, Amazon and ViX, the company is now reenforcing its local structure. The aim is to grow presence in the Spanish market and develop new projects with international reach.”
Martínez will give El Estudio high-profile executive feet-on-the ground in Spain and one of its TV executives with largest experience in making successful shows in a fast-evolving TV landscape, whether prime-time free-to-air bread audience hits (“Hospital Central,” “Los Serrano,” “Aída”) at Mediaset España where she served as deputy head of fiction and the head of fiction over 2001-2006; or ambitious series made for Spain and international markets as the latter opened up to Spain originals (“Gran Hotel,” “The Time in Between”) which she executive produced at Atresmedia TV over 2006-17.
As peak TV began to explode, Martínez championed series with an ever larger cable edge, whether “Locked Up” or “Money Heist,” which recut by Netflix for international audiences became its very first global non-English language blockbuster. At Atresmedia Studios over 2017-2000, incorporated into Buendía Estudios from 2020, Martínez has also championed a new generation of creators, most notably Javier Ambrossi and Javier Calvo (“The Black Ball”), backing their “Veneno,” a U.S. hit on HBO.
Martínez announced in early February that she was departing Buendía Estudios for independent production.
“I’m confronting this new stage with large illusion and sense of responsibility,” said Martínez. “I’m joining a company with a very clear identity, large creative ambition and strong international vocation. I’m highly motivated about contributing to the growth of El Estudio in Spain and supporting projects which connect worldwide.”
“It’s a privilege counting on Sonia at El Estudio. I’ve followed and admired her work during years,” Cruz added. “Her experience, creative vision and profound knowledge of the industry will be key for the new stage. Her incorporation reenforces our objective of constructing a benchmark company in the creation of Spanish-language contents from Spain and Mexico for the world.”
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