The woman behind “Fearless Heart”

A conversation
Written By Chioma Onyema

In Conversation with: Marcela Citterio

Argentinian award-winning screenwriter, showrunner, and creative behind some of the biggest Spanish series. She’s a two-time EMMY nominee who writes shows featured on some of the biggest streaming platforms, including Netflix and Hulu. She talks about her career path, writing for the big screen, and future plans, Enjoy this encouraging, and gratifying read.

 
 

M: Very interesting things are coming, I started an editorial two years ago and the objective of it is to get every book I can on the big screen. For example, if you write a book and I love the story, I’ll publish it with my publishing company (Orlando Books) and try to pitch it to streaming platforms like Amazon prime, Netflix, Apple TV.

C: Love this idea so much, turning books into tv.

"Lady Voyeur" by Marcela that is also a Netflix motion tv series.

M: I think this is a great opportunity to showcase talent. Not just my stories, but others too. I decided to start my publishing company because my daughter started to write and I’d like to help her and other talented writers alike to have great careers. My goal is to publish stories that everyone around the world can access. Now, my company has reach in Argentina, Uruguay, and Chile.

M: I also have new propositions to tell stories in one-minute episodes you can watch on your phone. It’s very interesting because you have to feel the story and get the essence of it in just a minute! It’s a system that’s working really well in the US.

C: Do you mean episodes you can view on TikTok and Instagram reels?

M: Yes, the viewer would be able to see it on apps like TikTok - one minute per episode! I think the audiovisual world is changing a lot. It would inevitably spur different exciting things like this.

C: This is amazing. You’re helping other writers transform their stories to physical books and tv shows for a broader audience.

^ some of the motion pictures Marcela has written

M: Exactly! I have authors, some are new voices, some are more known, and the idea is to take those books to the screen. The screen can be a platform, a theater or even a phone! I think this is the best way to start stories. I admire Reese Witherspoon for instance, who is transforming books into tv shows.

C: Have you seen Little Fires Everywhere?

M: Yes! I think that was her first book she turned into a movie! I have 19 titles published and I hope to see these on the screen.

C: I hope so too, I miss watching your shows.

M: Thank you!

C: What inspired the series Corazón Valiente (Fearless Heart)? - side note, this is my favorite tv show.

M: I wanted to show that the idea of the “weaker sex” is false. Women are really strong. This is especially a very important topic in Latin America. I thought it was fitting to have the women play bodyguards. Women are very brave, and I wanted to show that. Women have a lot of heart, so I added that into the title.

Behind the Scenes of Fearless Heart

C: Why was it important to you to add the drugtrafficking story line halfway through the show?

M: I didn’t want to make a narco show, I wanted to add a touch of that unfortunate reality in countries like Colombia, and Mexico. It’s not a narco show but I really wanted to incorporate that very real aspect of life into it as well. 

C: For the love stories in the show, you demonstrated some of the not so palatable sides of love. You illustrated jealousy for instance and what that does to a person, like with Fernanda (one of the principal characters). Her story was so sad. 

M: I love Fernanda because when I was writing more about her, I realized she had many reasons to be bad. She was mistreated terribly by her father. She was different, and had her gray sides, despite her being bad. I liked how every storyline was different because that allowed me to play around with the story, I could never get bored writing them!

C: It’s so great hearing your vision. I was going to ask you about your career as well. What’s your story? When was the moment you discovered that you wanted to be a writer for television? 

 
 

M: I always had a penchant for writing, I wrote all the time at home. When I studied theater, my professor asked me to write a story of an imagined character. After doing so, he told me I wrote better than I acted! He then showed me a TV script when I was 16. Up until then, I had never seen a script before. When he showed it to me, I fell hopelessly in love with it. After which, I started to write scripts at home and tried to show them to everyone to read it. I went to TV channels or theaters and gave them to actors. Then one day while working in a pizza restaurant, I was waiting a table when I saw a TV script by a customer. I discovered the customer TV producer! I told him I wrote for TV as well, and he asked to read my material. I showed them to him and shortly after, I started working on set. Since then, I’ve always worked in Television. When I made two successful shows in Argentina (Amor en custodia, Patito Feo), I took a trip to Miami in 2010 and I went to a production event and met with Telemundo (one of the biggest distributors of Spanish Television) - That was when I started my professional relationship with them. They contracted me at first for Aurora, and after that, Corazón Valiente. This gave me and my work much international recognition.  

C: Your story is truly incredible, your grit worked out really well. Thank you so much for sharing this with us.

M: Thank you!

Chioma Onyema
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