By Anna Marie De La Fuente

(According To The variety) Woo Films, one of Mexico’s most successful indie companies behind such hit titles as Manolo Caro’s Netflix series “The House of Flowers” and lauded dramas “The Good Girls” (“Las Niñas Bien”) and “Los Adioses,” has teamed up with film collective Colectivo Colmena, to develop and produce three pics. Two of them are based on original ideas from Colmena and the third an adaptation of a Mexican novel.

Woo Films is taking “The Ballad of the Phoenix” (“La balada del fénix”), the first stop-motion animation feature by Cinema Fantasma (“Frankelda’s Book of Spooks”), to participate in the Guadalajara Film Festival’s co-production forum. This is one of three stop motion animation projects from Cinema Fantasma that Woo Films boarded last year.

 “It is essential to support the growth of new voices in Mexican cinema to boost their visibility at a time when resources for independent film production and exhibition opportunities are scarce,” Woo Films producer Mario Savino pointed out, adding: “Combining our capabilities with the extraordinary talent of Colmena feels like a natural step in our quest to continue generating unique, plural and relevant stories.” Colectivo Colmena was founded by a group of independent filmmakers, led by Mauricio Calderon Rico, Fernanda Tovar, José Pablo Escamilla, Francisco Borrajo and Daniel Loustaunau, in a bid to pool their funding and creative resources as well as prompt conversations about the issues currently affecting Mexican society.

Among their films are Calderon Rico’s coming-of-age drama, “Todos los incendios” and youth comedy “Lumbren sueño” by Escamilla. Its 2022 working class youth drama “Mostro” won a string of awards, including the Malaga Film Festival’s Silver Biznaga for Best Ibero-American Film.

 “This alliance, along with the celebration of our 10th anniversary, signifies the consolidation of a project we built in the Colectivo Colmena. Today, it will allow us to grow and join forces with an internationally renowned production company like Woo, so that together we can continue creating in such a challenging context for independent cinema in Mexico,” said Loustaunau.

Tovar concurred: “In an industry where it is sometimes difficult to navigate independently or through new paradigms, it is significant that a production company with so much renown, experience, and importance in the continent is interested in opening its doors to new ideas and ways of working and collaborating.”

Woo Films, which includes Monica Vertiz, Andrea Toca, Rafael Ley and Mario Savino, has entered into a number of pacts with other companies. In February, Woo Films and  Manolo Caro  entered a multi-year first look deal with Onyx Collective.

Among its upcoming projects with Netflix are adaptations of three lauded novels: the much-anticipated directorial debut of Oscar-nominated cinematographer Rodrigo Prieto who adapts the classic “Pedro Paramo”; Juan Pablo Villalobos’ debut novel “Fiesta en la Madriguera” (“Down the Rabbit Hole”) with Caro directing, and Bárbara Anderson’s novel “The Two Hemispheres of Lucca,” to be directed by Mariana Chenillo (“Somos”).

A breakdown of Woo’s projects with Colectivo Colmena:

“Karate Kiss”

A further exploration of youth narratives by Colectivo Colmena, it centers on two young girls studying Karate who defy all odds to fall in love. It aims to celebrate transformative romantic upheavals and represent the diverse bonds and relationships between women.

“B95-11”

Exploring the darker aspect of science, a secluded scientist in the Valley of Mexico breeds a rare axolotl for its bioluminescent bacteria, believed to have healing properties. She creates an ointment that quickly heals wounds, becoming a local legend. However, the ointment causes abnormal skin growths, sparking an outbreak of a strange disease.

Untitled

The third project involves adapting a book, more details of which are yet to be disclosed, that centers on its protagonist’s emotional and personal losses. According to Colmena, the film will feature a fragmented narrative and employ diverse visual techniques like animations, visual effects, and montages to convey the book’s abstract concepts and ideas.