3Pas Studios’ Eugenio Derbez, Javier Williams and Leo Zimbrón participated in a panel at Content Americas, discussing the company’s expansion into global markets, the search for stories with Latino components and co-production as a key strategy for achieving large-scale projects.
Derbez, chairman and co-founder of 3Pas Studios, began the conversation by sharing his early career and entry into the entertainment industry. “Since I was very young, I grew up surrounded by the world of acting,” he said. “My mother, Silvia Derbez, was a telenovela actress, so I practically grew up on set. From being a baby in her arms to the age of two and four, I was always present, observing and absorbing everything I could. I loved being on set, and whenever there was an opportunity, I would participate as an extra or take small roles. However, when I decided to pursue acting professionally, I realized that being ‘the son of Silvia Derbez’ did more to close doors than open them. Many producers saw me as ‘the son of’ rather than someone serious or capable of leading a project. It was a constant struggle.”
He continued, “For years, from the age of 16 to 27, I knocked on doors with no success. It was ten years of rejections. But everything changed when, instead of asking for work, I decided to pitch a project. That was the turning point in my life. I understood that in such a competitive industry, where millions are looking for opportunities, no one pays attention just because you ask or show your picture saying, ‘I’m good.’ The key is proving it. The problem was that I didn’t have the resources to create a project. I couldn’t even afford to hire a writer, and at that time, I didn’t even know I could write myself. But I didn’t give up. I sat down to work on an idea with help from someone else, and that’s how I managed to present my first project to Televisa. That project became my first starring show: Al Derecho y al Derbez.”
Javier Williams, senior VP of Spanish-language series at 3Pas Studios and CEO of Visceral, joined the company about six years ago and discussed his experience at the company, having the opportunity to present new content to different audiences and countries.
“Since I joined 3Pas six years ago, I’ve been very happy to be part of this project. The idea was to open up this new content to different audiences and countries,” he said. “The mission from the start was how to ensure 3Pas wasn’t just limited to Eugenio’s projects. While those projects are the most important to us, we knew that to grow, it was necessary to diversify the types of projects we were developing.”
Williams added, “At 3Pas, we have what we call ‘Eugenio Projects’ or ‘Eugenio Vehicles,’ as well as ‘Non-Eugenio Vehicles.’ Building on the success that Eugenio modestly mentioned, the next films he made with Ben (Odell, CEO and co-founder of 3Pas) were also very successful, like How to Be a Latin Lover and Overboard. These films were essential in positioning 3Pas as a relevant production company, marking our entry into a new market and solidifying our presence in the industry.”
The conversation then moved to the work the company does in co-productions, internationalization, partnership search and territorial expansion.
Leo Zimbrón, senior VP of international co-production and Spanish-language features at 3Pas Studios, commented, “My goal is to open doors to internationalize the production process, working in collaboration with partners from different parts of the world. Of course, there’s a financial strategy, but there’s also an expansion strategy. This applies both to projects with Eugenio and those that don’t feature him. My initial focus is on two languages, English and Spanish, aiming to reach different markets while leveraging the technical and creative capabilities of our global partners.”
Zimbrón shared that the company has established co-production partnerships with partners in Colombia and is in talks in Chile. “We’ve already produced in Spain, and we won’t stop there—we’ll continue with this strategy as we search for new partners, stories, scripts and creative horizons. The present state of our business is based on collaboration. We contribute our part, which is functional, but to achieve larger projects, we need to build teams. The doors are open for serious production companies that want to grow, just like us.”
Derbez highlighted that at 3Pas, they have a phrase with three ‘H’s: Heart, Humanity and Humor. “These are the three things we always try to include in our projects, regardless of the genre,” he said. “We strive to create something fun, but also something that touches the heart, that has humanity and preferably a message. It doesn’t matter if it’s a movie like How to Be a Latin Lover, which aims to make people laugh, or Radical, which tells a very tough and real story—there’s always a touch of humor.”
He added, “We’ve worked to create projects that connect with Latinos. One thing I realized, and I think it was key to the success of Instructions Not Included, is that we understood there was a Latino audience that wasn’t being heard. I told the Americans, but at that time, they didn’t pay much attention to us. However, the success of that movie showed what we could achieve by reaching out to that audience and genuinely connecting with it.”
When analyzing the U.S. Hispanic audience and the work the company does to generate content that resonates with the public, Williams emphasized the importance of finding fantastic stories that have the three ‘H’s. He cited Radical as an example, noting that while it’s not a comedy, “it has a dose of humor and humanity, and everything we’re looking for in those kinds of projects,” he said. “As Mexicans, as Latinos, we know that not all Latinos are the same. In conversations we always have, and which Eugenio summarizes in a very funny way, when we talk to Americans, many think all Latinos are the same. But the reality is that, as Latinos, we know we’re very different. In fact, it’s not the same for a Mexican immigrant in Los Angeles as it is for one in Texas or Miami. In that sense, what we try to do is not focus solely on one specific audience because we know that would limit the project to a niche or make it very complicated. What we’re looking for is to find the best stories to tell, with a Latino component, yes, but most importantly, it’s a good story worth telling.”
Zimbrón pointed out, “It’s worth clarifying that when we talk about ‘Latinizing’ certain stories or looking for Latino components, we don’t do it forcefully. If we find a story that interests us, catches our attention and is a good project—even if it doesn’t have Latino characters—it doesn’t mean we’ll reject it. We’ll get involved in some way because what we truly want is to make projects that we’re passionate about. This international expansion leads us to understand that there are different audiences… We’re not looking to force Latino elements into every project but to explore other stories that can connect with a broader audience.”
