Amazon, Atresmedia romantically attached

La Catedral del Mar is airing on Antena 3

Amazon has linked up with Spanish commercial broadcaster Atresmedia’s fledgling production arm Atresmedia Studios on a romantic comedy created by Javier Veiga.

Little Coincidences (Pequeñas Coincidencias) marks one of the first commissions for Atresmedia Studios, which has been on the look-out for international projects and partnerships since launching in January.

The series will premiere on Amazon Prime Video internationally before airing on Atresmedia Televisión in Spain. A coproduction with MedioLimón and Onza Entertainment, it is currently casting and is due to begin shooting this summer.

Described as an edgy romantic comedy, Little Coincidences follows the relationship between a woman in her late 30s who is reluctant to settle down with a partner and a 40-year-old bachelor who enjoys his hedonistic life as a food critic.

Atresmedia Studios is the first production arm to be created by one of Spain’s broadcasting groups.

A key goal is to work with third parties on external commissions and international coproductions, along with in-house drama commissions for the group’s channels, to generate more original IP and become a player in the global drama market.

The studio currently has about 10 projects in development, all 50-minute formats to be produced in Spanish.

It is already working on El Embarcadero, its first drama for pay platform Movistar+, from showrunner Alex Pina and Vancouvour Media. The latter was behind Atresmedia crime thriller La Casa de Papel, which has become a Netflix hit.

The streamer was also involved in last year’s major Atresmedia production La Catedral del Mar, which is now airing on flagship network Antena 3.