21-05-2025
Mórbido TV and Screen Capital Unveil Umbra, a Genre-First Streaming Hub for the LatAm Market (EXCLUSIVE)
Chilean investment firm Screen Capital has acquired Versatile Communications Inc. to launch the region's first multi-platform hub dedicated entirely to horror and fantasy content. With an initial $2.5 million investment from Screen Capital's Screen II Fund, the initiative marks a pioneering venture into specialized genre content with global ambitions.
Eduardo Caso, an industry vet and the driving force behind the popular Mórbido TV channel, is at the heart of this new endeavor. 'The fantasy and horror genre is among the most diverse in terms of subgenres worldwide, and it boasts a highly loyal audience. Once people become fans, they tend to remain deeply engaged,' he tells Variety of the new initiative's inspirations. 'In Latin America, there is strong demand for this type of content, yet production and distribution remain limited. This gap presents a significant opportunity to boost regional development in the genre, especially with the support of Screen Capital's investors. Together with [Morbido Group CEO] Pablo Guisa, we have been developing this idea for years, and now we finally have the chance to bring it to life.'
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The new venture's centerpiece is the creation of Umbra, a horror and fantasy content ecosystem that will include a FAST (Free Ad-Supported Television) channel, AVOD (Advertising-based Video on Demand), SVOD (Subscription Video on Demand) and the linear Mórbido TV channel. Subscribers will gain access to a comprehensive catalog, including classic films, original productions, series, podcasts, audiobooks and experimental formats.
The move also marks a significant expansion of Mórbido TV Entertainment SpA, now headquartered in Chile, where the company will oversee global operations focused on talent development, project acquisition and regional distribution.
'For Screen Capital, it is very attractive to be able to enter a market that we had not explored before but that we know has a high engagement among regional audiences,' says Edgar Spielmann, partner at Screen Capital and incoming board member for the new venture. 'Although it is considered a niche, the numbers are surprising, and it is one of the types of specialized content with the best performance in the region.'
Screen Capital, co-founded by Joyce Zylberberg and Tatiana Emden, is known for backing ventures that fuse technology and entertainment. The acquisition of Versatile Communications is the first investment from the Screen II Fund, which specifically targets such innovative intersections.
Mórbido's strong market positioning is further enhanced by partnerships with Grupo Mórbido, Mantícora Distribución and the Fantastic Pavilion of the Marché du Film at the Cannes Film Festival. These strategic alliances will feed into an exclusive and continuously refreshed content pipeline.
The initiative is targeting a lucrative demographic: adults aged 25–44 from upper-middle-class backgrounds, who demonstrate long-term loyalty and a willingness to consume horror and fantasy content across multiple formats.
With this investment, Screen Capital and Mórbido TV aim to transform the Umbra brand into Latin America's premier destination for horror and fantasy, setting new benchmarks in genre content distribution and creative development.
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