HBO Max Picks Up First Season of Daniela Vega’s Spanish-Language Thriller “La Jauria”

Daniela Vega is maxing out…

WarnerMedia streaming service HBO Max has picked up the first season of La Jauría, Amazon Prime Video’s Spanish-language thriller starring the 31-year-old Chilean actress and mezzo-soprano singer.

Daniela Vega

Hailing from Pablo and Juan de Dios Larraín’s Fabula, which made the Oscar-winning A Fantastic Woman, the series tells the story of the disappearance of a young girl, who becomes the center of a police investigation into an online game that grooms men into assaulting women.

HBO Max will premiere the eight-part series on December 16.

In addition to Vega, La Jauría also stars Antonia Zegers, while Lucía Puenzo is the director. Fremantle produced the show alongside Fabula and Argentine company Kapow. Fremantle handles worldwide distribution.

Amazon commissioned a second season of La Jauría in July after premiering it across Latin America and Spain. Chilean public broadcaster TVN and the Consejo Nacional de Televisión (CNTV) are co-producers.

“It’s a gripping, compelling and timely drama that addresses important topical issues regarding the epidemic of violence against women. We are confident HBO’s audience will be moved by the standout storyline and the powerful performances,” said Sheila Aguirre, EVP of content distribution and format sales, Latin America, international, Fremantle.

Mon Laferte to Be First Chilean Artist to Kick Off Viña del Mar Festival in Decades

Mon Laferte is the fest in show…

The Viña del Mar Festival has unveiled its first artist its 61st annual event… the 36-year-old Chilean singer-songwriter, who was born and raised in the city.

Mon Laferte 

The announcement was made by the organizing committee of the LXI International Festival of Viña del Mar, chaired by Chilean politician Virginia Reginato

Mon Laferte will be the first Chilean artist to kick off the event in recent decades. 

Laferte is known for her fusion music of blues-rock, Latin alternative, bolero, and cumbia, as heard in her songs such as “Tu Falta de Querer,” “Mi Buen Amor,” and “Amarrame.” 

Television presenters María Luisa Godoyand Martín Cárcamowill be returning as hosts of Viña del Mar, which will take place between February 23 and 28. 

According to the official statement, the LXI International Song Festival of Viña del Mar will be broadcast in Chile via Channel 13 and TVN in conjunction with the radio stations of the IARC-ADNand Pudahuelradio conglomerate. FOX Networkswill air the festival in Latin America. 

Docu-Feature Film “Ruben Blades Is Not My Name” Currently in Production

Here’s your chance to learn about the man behind the living legend that is Ruben Blades

The 67-year-old Panamanian singer will be the focus of a docu-feature from Abner Benaim’s Apertura Films and Gema Juarez Allen’s Gema Films.

Ruben Blades

Entitled Ruben Blades Is Not My Name, the film about the Grammy– and Latin Grammy-winning salsa singer/composer is currently shooting in New York, will then segue to Panama and other Latin American countries.

Benaim, who helmed Panama’s 2014 Oscar entry Invasion, is directing.

Ruben Blades Is Not My Name turns on a multi-faceted figure who wrote and performed what was then the best-selling salsa album in history, 1978’s Siembra, was educated at Harvard University, was and is a political activist, and made a run for Panamanian president in 1994, obtaining 20% of the votes. He has enjoyed a second career as an actor, is currently playing Daniel Salazar in Fear the Waking Dead.

“The arc of the story is still playing itself out, but it will definitely be related to the history of Latin America in the past 50 years, of which Ruben has been a witness and an active part of,” said Benaim.

“We will concentrate on his music and particularly his lyrics and their effect on those who’ve listened to them, danced to them, thought about them, and were somehow shaped by them.”

“By way of its format, Ruben Blades Is Not My Name will include interviews with Ruben, other musicians and artists, friends and family and will use lots of incredible archive footage from concerts, daily life, politics, films and more,” Benaim added, saying that the docu-feature will also shoot Blades offstage as a man, “as someone who lives a private life also.”

Ruben Blades Is Not My Name is “a film full of rhythm, music and good stories -with the most remarkable characters. Ruben is a wonderful storyteller, so it will be a very entertaining and moving piece that will travel wherever there are fans of Ruben and beyond,” added Juarez Allen.

Panamanian TV station TVN is backing the docu-feature. Producers are in talks with co-producers from the U.S. and Latin America and sales agents for worldwide rights, per Benaim.