Sabbatical Entertainment is working on several fronts: the development of its first fiction -announced at the last LA Screenings- based on the representation rights of Colombian photographer Baruch Vega; the first production of its Brazilian branch, Sabbatical Brazil; the dubbing into Portuguese of the 300 hours of its catalog; the launch of new installments of its franchise Únicos (Luminaries), and the contract renewal with gettyimages.
Miguel Somoza, CEO of Sabbatical Entertainment, said that soon they will be announcing more news about their first fiction project, a product of closing a deal regarding the representation of the rights of Baruch Vega, the Colombian photographer who was an informant for the DEA. “In the coming months ‘the bible’ will be ready and we will be filming before the end of the year between New York and Colombia.”
Regarding Luminaries (Unique) (13×30′), an original documentary series that takes viewers into the lives of unique personalities who have changed the world, Sabbatical will be adapting this type of format to all the documentaries they already have. “We have a strategy of producing content around current affairs, like Viva Elvis (1×60’) that we just finished. The next one we’re doing is about Queen Elizabeth II of England,” Somoza said. The first episode of the first season of this series was dedicated to the President of Ukraine, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, followed by Andy Warhol, Madonna, Christian Dior, Karl Lagerfeld, Frank Sinatra, and Maradona, to name a few.
In addition, they recently placed the documentary Pelé on DIRECTV Latin America.
Sabbatical is in the midst of the production of the first project of its branch in Brazil, which opened in 2018. “We partnered with a local entity and now we can create original local productions from Brazil while meeting the quota that the government requires of foreign producers,” Somoza explained. He added that this first project in Brazil entails short formats, capsule type, about Viking culture: boats, food, wars, commissioned by a client in Latin America and that will premiere in March as part of the release of a large production on the subject.
“This year we’re focusing on Brazil, apart from opening our office in that market, we are in the process of dubbing our entire catalog into Portuguese, 300 hours we have produced in the past five years and that will be ready to be offered by the end of the year,” he said. BKS is coordinating the dubbing.