Amazon Studios’ Big Latino Western ‘The Head of Joaquin Murrieta,’ Broken Down By Its Creators

variety.com:

Emiliano Granada “The Head of Joaquín Murrieta” bowed Feb. 17, guns blazing worldwide on Prime Video, weighing in as one of the biggest bets ever from Amazon Studios in Latin America and Amazon Prime and Colombian production powerhouse Dynamo.

Its success can open the door for other big swings in Latin America. Created by Colombia’s Mauricio Leiva Cock (“Capital Roar,” “Green Frontier”) at Fidelio, one of the fastest rising writing-directing talents in Colombia, and Diego Ramírez Schrempp (“Narcos,” “Falco”) at Dynamo, which handled physical production of “Narcos” in Colombia, the ambitious Latin Western, fully locally developed, describes how Joaquin Murrieta, played by a mischievous Juan Manuel Bernal, became a legend.

His figure emerged to offer hope for downtrodden Mexicans in the chaotic and brutal aftermath of the 1846-48 Mexican American War which ended with Mexico’s loss of over half its territory, a hero to Mexicans, villain to the U.S., a Robin Hood of sorts, in a fractured and disjointed land,  scarred by the legacy of war and soon to be decimated by the 1848-55 Gold Rush.

The show is seen as key momentum in Prime Video’s expansive plans. Murrieta’s high production values – seen in Paulo Andres Perez’ stunning cinematography – herald a new scale of projects rarely seen on the Latin American landscape. “Amazon Studios started with indie productions whilst always providing a stamp of high quality but now we are finding the balance between the niche and the wider audiences, notes Camila Misas, Prime Video head of local originals for Latin America. “The show’s size is a testament of a huge endeavor of investigation, development and production between Dynamo, Amazon Studios and Mauricio.” Very much like its