‘Mental’, the new Fox drama series that premiered with high ratings in
the U.S. last week was not filmed in Hollywood but in a studio in the
Colombian capital city of Bogota.
Producers chose to film the 13 episode drama series, set in the psychiatric department of a Los Angeles hospital, in a 1,500 meter square Bogota TV studio.
Why Bogota?
“Basically because of production costs,” Samuel
Duque, the vice president of Fox Telecolombia Production and Operations told El Colombiano.
“To make the show in Colombia costs about half of what it would cost to make it in an L.A. studio,” Duque said.
He added that the Bogota studio where ‘Mental’ was filmed is the largest television studio in Latin America.
The success of the series’ premiere in the U.S. was unexpected.
“We are surprised because it had 35 percent more of an audience than ‘House’ [another Fox hit series] did,” said Sofia Higuera, general manager of Fox headquarters in Colombia.
Fox executives expressed their contentment with how well the production of ‘Mental’ was executed. This combined with the series’ success may spell good news for the future of international productions in Colombia.
The production involved 75 foreign actors, as well as numerous Colombian translators, cameramen, make-up artists and other production crew.
El Colombiano suggested that ‘Mental’s’ success may herald the start of a flow of American productions to ‘Collywood’.