One Hundred Years of Solitude: How Colombia Crafted Netflix’s Epic

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It’s heartening to learn that the production of “One Hundred Years of Solitude,” Netflix’s most ambitious series in Latin America, infused approximately $52 million (or 225 billion Colombian Pesos) into Colombia’s economy. This figure includes both the immediate costs and the broader impact felt throughout the supply chain, which benefited countless local residents who played a part in its creation.

Under the guidance of renowned Colombian producer Dynamo (known for “Narcos” and “Echo 3”), a two-part Spanish series titled “One Hundred Years of Solitude”, centered around the Buendía family, utilized approximately 900 crew members primarily from Colombia, 150 local artisans, countless extras, and collaborated with over 850 suppliers to build the fictional town of Macondo from the ground up. The production of Season One resulted in reserving over 100,000 hotel nights in Ibagué during filming.

Absolutely, this television series adaptation of Gabriel García Márquez’s 1967 masterpiece serves to highlight Colombia as an outstanding choice for international filming projects. It showcases the richness of Colombia’s landscapes, its talented workforce, and its top-notch production services.

Or:

This series adaptation of Gabriel García Márquez’s 1967 magnum opus clearly positions Colombia as a top pick for international film productions. It demonstrates the country’s diverse landscapes, skilled workforce, and high-quality services.

Andrés Calderón, co-founder and CEO of Dynamo, expressed that we’ve managed to synthesize numerous insights gained from past projects, not just at our individual level, but also in terms of service. He and his co-founder, Diego Ramírez Schrempp, come from the business and finance sector.

He notes that in contrast to our past ventures, we frequently needed to involve department leaders from outside the country, whether from Mexico or Spain. However, now, to a large extent, we’ve primarily had Colombian department heads, which I find incredibly fulfilling.

At the presentation of ‘One Hundred Years’ in Los Angeles, Paco Ramos, Netflix’s Vice President for Latin American Content, remarked, ‘This series demonstrates what Latin Americans can achieve when united by a common goal.’ He further noted that an impressive 98% of the team behind this show hail from Colombia.

For me, it’s been an incredibly personal experience, as I have strong familial connections,” he shares with EbMaster, mentioning that the book’s authors, Rodrigo García, a filmmaker, and Gonzalo García, who also serves as an executive producer, are his sons.

He points out that in terms of actors, directors, and artisans, Latin America is rapidly advancing; there are now many more skilled individuals who can make a living from their craft. He reflects on the past decade since Netflix began its Latino productions with ‘Club de los Cuervos,’ remarking on just how far we’ve come.” – Ramos.

At the LA gathering, Rodrigo Garcia shared an interesting perspective about his father’s stance on adapting a book into a movie. He expressed that his father cherished the book living in the minds of readers and was initially reluctant to see it transformed onto the big screen. However, he acknowledged some practical issues such as the story being too long for a two-hour film, let alone three or four hours. Furthermore, the cost would have necessitated an English production with Hollywood stars. My father strongly opposed this idea. Yet, he occasionally speculated about the possibility of a lengthy adaptation in Spanish, set in Colombia, which intrigued him. He always said that after his passing, we could do as we pleased, so it’s fortunate for my brother and me, as this provided some form of therapy, he chuckled.

Incentives 

Colombia’s appeal as a filming location has been strengthened by an attractive package of production incentives, leading to an increase in international productions taking advantage of its benefits.

Netflix utilized the CINA incentive, offering a 35% tax refund on expenses related to international film projects’ location shoots, for a period of 100 years. This rebate covers audiovisual and logistical services contracted with Colombian individuals or businesses. The CINA incentive can be applied as a tax reduction by those filing taxes in Colombia, with the annual maximum amount determined by the Colombia Film Promotion Committee.

Silvia Echeverri, Colombia’s Film Commissioner, states without reservation that ‘One Hundred Years of Solitude’ is an unprecedented and pivotal project. Moreover, she mentions that the second season, now in production, continues to capitalize on this incentive,” says Silvia Echeverri.

As a devoted movie reviewer, I’ve had the pleasure of collaborating with more than 30 production service companies, all thriving within Colombia’s incentive system. This self-supporting framework requires foreign filmmakers to contribute 5% of their project’s eligible expenses directly to the Colombian Film Commission. These contributions are vital, as they support our daily operations, promotional activities, and communication efforts.

It’s worth mentioning that approximately half of these collected resources are channeled into training and educational programs. By doing so, we’re nurturing the ongoing evolution and progression of this vibrant industry.

Starting in 2003, after the passage of Law 814, Colombia has likewise been supported by a film development fund, overseen by Proimágenes Colombia under the leadership of Claudia Triana.

The Colombia Film Fund (FFC) offers a cash rebate that covers 40% of the costs associated with audiovisual services and 20% for logistical expenses like hotel stays, meals, and transportation. This incentive also necessitates the involvement of a Colombian producer or production service company.

Domestic manufacturers are eligible for the fund, yet excluded from the CINA incentive, whereas foreign manufacturers have the option to access either one, but not both.

Due to the efforts of the FFC, it’s predicted that the year 2024 will be a record-breaking year for Colombian theatrical film releases. As per Proimágenes, from January to November alone, 70 local feature films were premiered, with two more in the first week of December. Two additional films are expected towards the end of the month, bringing the total number of releases to potentially 74.

Locations

As Calderón explains, the main hurdle in the production occurred during Episode 1, where José Arcadio Buendia guided his family and community on a journey towards the sea to build their ideal village, Macondo. This odyssey took them across almost half of Colombia, starting from the highlands of Páramo de Chingaza, through the mangrove wetlands near the border of Magdalena and La Guajira.

Constructing the entire Macondo set from scratch in Tolima wasn’t just about learning set construction; it also involved creating roads, setting up drainage systems, and bringing power to an underdeveloped region covering approximately 5,812,506 square feet (or roughly 133.4 acres). That’s his claim.

According to Echeverri: “The geography of Colombia is remarkably tough – filled with mountains, marshes, and forests – which has resulted in towns being established in some of the most challenging locations. This situation plays a significant role in shaping who we Colombians are, influencing how we adapt and endure. Our lives and stories are intricately linked to this vibrant yet demanding landscape, showcasing how we’ve learned to live harmoniously with one another and our surroundings day by day.

In many Colombian towns, you’ll often find that a central tree serves as the heart of the community, with streets radiating out from it. The town’s structure revolves around this central point—the tree, the square, the church, and the town hall or other administrative buildings. This layout is a common and distinctive feature in Colombian towns, according to executive producer Carolina Caicedo.

Since every season with eight episodes covers a span of fifty years, finding suitable locations and creating a coherent storyline becomes challenging due to the progression of time. This requires a balance between depicting the passage of time through both narration and visual representation on screen,” she points out.

Talents

In this extraordinary series, numerous roles were masterfully filled by talented women from Colombia. The executive producers were Caicedo and Juliana Flórez Luna, while Laura Mora shared directorial duties as co-director. Claudia Barragán and Camila Rodríguez Beltrán served as second assistant directors. Catherine Rodriguez took charge of costume design, Andrea Espinal excelled in visual effects, and Folks Bogotá was founded by one of the team members. Lastly, Natalia Santa and Camila Brugés collaborated with José Rivera and Albatros González as co-writers.

Mora explains that his team is primarily composed of women, from leaders to assistants, a fact that wasn’t planned but rather happened organically as we preferred working with women. Many of my team members have been with me on both films “Killing Jesus” and “Kings of the World,” where women also formed the majority.

The main actresses varied from the established TV and film actress, Marleydo Soto, making her debut in this series as Ursula, the matriarch of the Buendía family, to Susana Morales, a dancer with no acting background, portraying the younger version of Ursula.

Lead actor Claudio Cataño, portraying Colonel Aureliano Buendía, spent six months working with his coach Bárbara Perea. The focus wasn’t solely on perfecting the character’s accent, as they also delved into the core of his being: how he breathed, spoke, and moved. “A remarkable aspect of this role,” Cataño notes, “was the chance to explore and construct the character’s entire life, from his youth to his old age. This enabled me to create a comprehensive evolution in terms of form: the vitality and enthusiasm of youth, the hardening and complications of adulthood, and the decline in his later years.

To get ready for this part, I needed to engage in a variety of tasks – physical, vocal, imaginative, and emotional, as every phase of the character’s life had unique moments and subtle emotional shades,” he explains.

The music accompanying the series has a clearly Colombian flavor, with performances by Los Gaiteros de San Jacinto, Toto La Momposina’s drummer, Carmelo Torres, and Víctor Navarro contributing to its sound.

Storytelling

Transforming what was once thought impossible required years of meticulous planning in every production facet. For the scriptwriting crew, this entailed comprehensive study of the eras portrayed in the novel. “Our aim was to stay faithful to how that region might have appeared during those one hundred years. Yet, we were also influenced by Gabo’s [García Márquez] aspirations. He wasn’t penning a historical narrative but a work of imagination, allowing for some artistic license. This made it captivating to strike a balance between authenticity and creative autonomy, as we weren’t producing a documentary about Colombia,” Brugés explains.

There’s a common question about whether our adaptation was designed for all people or just Colombians in particular. To us, it was more about staying true to the original novel, which inherently makes it Colombian, but also universally relatable.

Moving forward with her analysis of the writing process, she explains: “Rather than changing the original scenes from the novel, we concentrated on two key aspects. Firstly, arranging the non-linear storyline. Since Gabo frequently jumps between time periods, it was necessary for us to arrange events in a chronological order, which helped to remove inconsistencies and improve overall dramatic flow.

As a cinephile, I often find myself filling in the gaps left by a director’s subtle storytelling techniques. For example, when a scene is described as a ‘dreamlike love,’ but lacks specific dialogue or action, I imagine and script additional scenes that capture the essence of this poetic moment, enhancing the overall narrative.

For Mora, who typically works outdoors, adjusting to studio work proved to be quite a task: “I was determined to make the town appear authentic, not like a stage set. To me, being part of such a large-scale production with so many people involved, there’s no such thing as an insignificant scene in ‘One Hundred Years of Solitude.’ Even if the script merely states, ‘Úrsula walks down a street,’ that translates into 120 extras, carriages, animals, wind, countless hours of costume fittings and prosthetics.

For a film director, managing time effectively is a significant hurdle. There’s the question of how much time you truly have for shooting compared to the time required for preparation. This task calls for extensive planning and synchronization, she ponders.

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2025-01-20 16:18