Oscar Alonso Named Lazona Pictures Distribution Chief

Veteran international sales agent Oscar Alonso, one of Spain’s most well-known and respected directors in foreign markets, has joined Madrid-based Lazona as head of distribution for its domestic distribution company, Lazona Pictures.

A major producer on the Spanish film scene, Lazona was behind “The Spanish Affair,” the highest-grossing national film in Spanish history, which earned €55.2 million ($59.7 million) in theaters in 2014.

Lazona also produced Enrique Urbizu’s “No Rest for the Wicked,” which won six Spanish Film Academy Awards in 2012, including Best Film, as well as auteur hits such as the 2017 Toronto winner “El Autor,” directed by Manuel Martín Cuenca, and the flagship Spanish television series with Movistar Plus+ “Gigantes” (2017-18), also produced by Urbizu.

A former CEO of Madrid-based Latido Films, one of the world’s top Spanish-language film sales agents, Alonso joined Latido in 2005, serving as festivals manager — and sales manager in his absence — before being named Latido’s head of acquisitions in 2019.

Now he can leverage his wealth of experience in his new position at Lazona.

“Oscar has worked in the past with both established directors such as Carlos Saura, Javier Fesser, Rodrigo Sorogoyen and Juan José Campanella, and has helped new directors gain recognition in international markets, such as Galder Gaztelu-Urrutia, David Pérez Sañudo or Alauda Ruiz de Azua,” said Lazona CEO Gonzalo Salazar-Simpson. “With his appointment at Lazona Pictures, we believe that Spanish audiences will appreciate this balance between recognizable voices and future references.”

“He is a professional with a long career in the industry and a great reputation in the European and international film industry. We have known him for years and, given his skills, he is the ideal person to take the helm of Lazona Pictures,” added Luis Ferrón, who joined Lazona last year to expand its production capabilities.

Alonso sees Lazona Pictures and Lazona Cine, its production arm, as a two-way street. “I have to be in touch with sales agents year-round, so I can be supportive and work hand-in-hand with Lazona Cine’s production department when I’m looking to sell Lazona productions internationally. It’s about cultivating relationships that can go both ways,” Alonso said. Diversity.

Lazona Pictures, which will launch in 2023, plans to selectively acquire six to eight films a year to give itself enough time to really focus on all of them and find ways to reach different audiences, Alonso said.

He added that first-year acquisitions will be dominated by “dramas (which can be uplifting and shed some light on post-conflict events, rather than those that are deeply shocking) and psychological thrillers, mainly European.”

As part of one of the trends in European cinema and beyond, Alonso will look at films that combine original inspiration with the involvement of a wider audience.

“The gap between festival darlings and bigger commercial biggies is widening in the Spanish market (and elsewhere). So we want to help fill that gap with titles that have filmmakers with a voice, but always with an audience in mind, that can both entertain and tell stories that stay with you after you leave the cinema,” Alonso said.

“More specifically, we can focus on female audiences in urban areas. It’s encouraging that more and more adult segments are constantly coming back to cinemas,” he continued.

“In general, we look for stories that we think can evoke empathy and, no matter how diverse they are, take viewers on an unfamiliar journey where they can still relate to their own feelings and experiences,” Alonso said. “We also need films that feel fresh, whether it’s the narrative, the tone, the points of view…”