Mip Cancun 2025 has announced that renowned creators, writers, and showrunners Leonardo Padrón and José Ignacio Valenzuela will headline its keynote program with a featured session focused on the evolving role of content creators in the global television and streaming landscape. Presented in partnership with TV Latina, the conversation will explore creative leadership in today’s competitive media environment. The fireside session is scheduled for Wednesday, November 19 at 17:00 in the Cancun Theater at the Moon Palace resort. Now in its 12th edition, Mip Cancun will run from November 18 to 21, 2025.
“I’m incredibly excited to have the opportunity to celebrate the creativity and achievements of Leonardo Padrón and José Ignacio Valenzuela on a globally significant stage like Mip Cancun,” said Elizabeth Bowen-Tombari, editor of TV Latina, who will also be moderating the session. “The journey of both professionals has been full of sacrifices, adventures, and lessons that will undoubtedly enrich the conversation and enhance the experience for attendees.”
“This keynote reflects our ongoing commitment to spotlighting the most relevant voices shaping the future of Spanish-language content,” said María Pérez-Bellière, Director of Mip Cancun. “Leonardo and José Ignacio embody the creative excellence, cultural impact, and global reach that define the spirit of Mip Cancun.”
Padrón is a screenwriter for film and television, poet, feature write, columnist, essayist, and interviewer. He has published more than 20 books, including poetry, chronicles, essays, interview collections, and children’s literature. In Venezuelan television, he has won over 25 awards for telenovelas such as "Amores de fin de siglo," "Contra viento y marea," "Cosita rica," and "La mujer perfecta," among others. His stories have aired on networks like RCTV, Venevisión, TV Azteca, and Univision. Since 2017, he has written for Televisa and Univision, including "Amar a muerte," "Rubí," and "Si nos dejan."
In 2022, following the successful debut of the first season of "The Marked Heart" ("Pálpito") on Netflix, he signed an exclusive three-year creative deal with the streaming service for series and films. Under this deal, the second season premiered in April 2023, followed by "Accidente" ("The Accident") in August of 2024. This title also became a global audience favorite on the platform. Most recently, it was revealed that the production second season, developed by Mar Abierto Producciones, just finished shooting and will roll out this year.
Valenzuela—known in the industry as ‘el chascas’—has a professional career spanning over 30 years, with five films released, more than thirty published books, numerous plays, and countless television productions, making him one of the most successful creators of his generation.
He began his career in Chile before going on to work with Televisa, Azteca, Telemundo, and Max. However, it wasn’t until 2021 that Netflix announced a three-year exclusive creative deal with him for series and film development. Through this agreement, he created "Who Killed Sara?" ("¿Quién mató a Sara?"), "High Heat" ("Donde hubo fuego"), and most recently, "Sisters' Feud" ("Las hermanas Guerra"), all of which reached top audience rankings on the global platform. Most recently, Valenzuela and Del Barrio Producciones signed a partnership to produce a telenovela about Peruvian cuisine, titled "Leche de tigre."
The 12th edition of Mip Cancun is set to welcome back a community of up to 1,000 delegates from over 40 countries, spanning buyers, producers and distributors from global studios and major players from across the Americas and globally to the world’s largest production hub for Spanish-language content.