Anonymous Content España, ‘Patria’ Producer Alea Media Team on Series Based on Spain’s Deadly Toxic Oil Syndrome (EXCLUSIVE)

John Hopewell

2 December 2024 at 5:00 am·5-min read

Anonymous Content España, backed by Anonymous Content and Spain’s Morena Films (“Piggy,” “Below Zero”), is teaming with Alea Media to produce a series based on Spain’s 1981 Toxic Oil Syndrome, one of – if not the – deadliest case of food poisoning in modern-day Europe.

The still-to-be-titled series is the first project announced by Anonymous Content España, underscoring its ambition to “elevate local stories into premium television pieces that have a local impact with an international reach,” said its Managing Director Beatriz Campos.

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To achieve that, Alea Media is an excellent partner. It rates as one of Spain’s most successful and versatile of TV companies which has scored hits ranging from HBO Europe reconciliation tale “Patria” to Mediaset España war vet vs. drug gang drama-thriller “Wrong Side of the Tracks,” which ranked No. 1 in Netflix global non-English language charts over Feb. 26-March 3, and “Yo Adicto,” a Disney+ Spain addiction survival drama.

Led by ex-Studiocanal executive Campos, appointed its managing director this February, Anonymous Content España will drive the project with Alea Media founder Aitor Gabilondo leading the creative and writing process with his team at the company.

Given its subject, scale, multiple-perspectives and sense of social tragedy, the new series looks most aligned to “Patria.” Officially attributed to contaminated rapeseed oil, breaking out in May 1981, the Toxic Oil Syndrome epidemic affected 25,000 people, claiming up to over 4,000 lives, with thousands more affected, both physically and psychologically, up to this day.

The series will cover the 50 days between the death of an eight-year-old boy from unknown causes to the official statement identifying contaminated rapeseed oil as the cause.

The perspectives of a number of victims and their families will alternate with the heroic work of two paediatricians, attempting to explain and stem the epidemic, and those responsible for managing the crisis. It also explores the role of the wider society at the time.

“This tragedy has impacted multiple generations,” said Campos. “As a massive fan of series like ‘Patria’ and ‘I, Addict,’ I am extremely confident that Alea Media is the best creative partner to produce a groundbreaking series that will convey to audiences the true depth of the tragedy,” she added.

“This partnership with Anonymous Content, a media company so well established in the global market and behind such groundbreaking and interesting projects, is so important for Alea Media as we truly appreciate the desire to reach and make an impact in the international market,” said Sara Martín Rada, managing director, Alea Media.

A Tragedy Which Echoes Down the Decades

A focus on victims and their families creates, as Campos puts it, a “character-driven” series where “each of the journeys will have a very important weight,” she promised. Meanwhile, the two paediatricians and their teams introduce “ticking clock and thriller elements” as they “do absolutely everything in their hands to stop and find the cause of the poisoning.”

Their work will open up the series to a broader tragic resonance echoing down the decades. From May 1, 1981, when the first official victim died, doctors, not knowing the cause of the illness, had no idea how to treat patients.

On June 10, the Spanish government announced on late-night television that the epidemic was caused by contaminated cooking oil. In an article published by The Guardian entitled “Cover-Up,” Bob Woffinden calls the announcement “the prototype scientific fraud.” No scientific investigation, the series is unlikely to deliver a definitive answer as to the Syndrome’s cause. But it may raise doubts about the official version.

The series “fits perfectly with our editorial approach and the type of uncomfortable stories we like to tell,” said Alea Media’s Martín Rada. At the time, the Toxic Oil Syndrome exposed two tragedies: the poisoning and death of thousands of people, and the poor management of the calamity; elements that unfortunately still resonate in the world today.”

“At this stage of the project, we are very open to explore different financing models,” said Campos. “We see references as ‘Chernobyl,’ ‘It’s a Sin,’ ‘Mr Bates and the Post Office’ and ‘Patria’ as perfect examples on how we envision the project, and I am sure we will find the best home for it that allow us to achieve that local and global appeal.”

Anonymous Content: Its International Roll Out

The series is also a significant milestone in Anonymous Content’s international expansion, forged by partnership with best-in-class international partners to launch Anonymous Content Brazil, Anonymous Content España, France-based Anonymous Federation, Anonymous Content Nordic, U.K. based AC Chapter One, and a joint venture with Brouhaha Entertainment in Australia and New Zealand.

“We will bring any resources needed to support Beatriz, Aitor and the project, including assistance with packaging, financing, distribution and overall strategy on getting the series made and seen by a global audience. And of course, using all our creative auspices to make it the best series possible on an editorial level,” David Davoli, Anonymous Content president of international, told Variety. From early results around the world, that looks to be paying off.

Of recent projects from AC International, a division of AC Studios, Brouhaha’s “Boy Swallows Universe” was the big winner at the 2024 Logie Awards; AC Chapter One’s 2023 Jack Thorne miniseries “Best Interests,” bowed on BBC 1 to large, acclaim, with Sharon Horgan “magnificently ferocious as a mum in agony,” said The Guardian. Anonymous Content Nordic’s Netflix title “The Snow Sister” has just bowed. In the hopper are “Perfect Days” for Globoplay and Walter Salles’ doc series about iconic Brazilian soccer player Sócrates, both via Anonymous Content Brazil.

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