After the official announcement of a new partnership between Hollywood and Mexico, Mexican Foreign Minister Marcelo Ebrard celebrated the creation 1 million jobs in film production activities and launched a working group with executives from major studios and production companies to boost the production of new films and series in Mexico.

Expressing their broad interest, directors from six well-known film production companies — Disney, Netflix, Paramount, Sony, Universal, and Warner Brothers, and the Motion Picture Association — met with 50 Mexican mayors from 22 states, 17 state secretaries of economic development, and the secretary of state to learn about the benefits the region offers for the development of films.

The meeting, which took place at the Netflix headquarters in Los Angeles, California, was attended by the following executives:

1. Disney — Gieselle Fine, vice president of Global Public Policy Michael Lebovich and manager of Investment and Production Planning
2. Netflix — Pierre Vandoorne, director of Content and Studies for Latin America and director of Public Policy for Mexico, and Francisco Ramos, vice president of Content Acquisition for LA
3. Paramount — Keith Murphy, senior vice president of Government Relations and Legal Counsel
4. Universal — Yvette Estrada, director of Government Affairs
5. Warner Brothers — Jay Roewe, HBO vice president of Production and Jesse Saldivar, HBO director of Production and Finance
6. Motion Picture Association — Carla Sánchez Armas, general director for Latin America

“Day 1 of the new path that we are going to travel together with the Hollywood entertainment industry to grow the creative power of Mexico. We are part of a working group with Netflix, Paramount, HBO, Walt Disney Company, Warner Bros, NBC Universal, and the Motion Picture Association with 50 mayors, 17 States of the Republic, and the Secretary of Foreign Affairs (SRE). More productions, more jobs and well-being in Mexico,” Ebrard wrote on Twitter.

Día 1 del nuevo camino que vamos a recorrer juntos con la industria del entretenimiento de Hollywood para hacer crecer la potencia creativa de México !! pic.twitter.com/NJCA6sUxni

— Marcelo Ebrard C. (@m_ebrard) February 28, 2023

A lucrative bet on Mexico

According to Forbes, the meeting served to establish a fresh outlook on the film and TV industry in Mexico, which has been described by the Motion Picture Association as an essential player in the streaming platform market, especially in exports. 

In addition to congratulating public officials for their respective presentations before Hollywood executives, Ebrard also highlighted the importance of the Treaty between Mexico, the United States and Canada (T-MEC), which has been a fundamental tool for the industry in the protection of intellectual property.

The SRE also highlighted how the creative industries contribute close to 54,000 million pesos directly to the country, and 42,000 million pesos indirectly.

After the meeting, the parties agreed to continue the integration while seeking to join the High Level Economic Dialogue (DEAN) between Mexico and the United States, which, they said, will facilitate coordination between authorities from both countries to promote growth in the film and entertainment sector.