Cuenca Just Got Its First Sitcom — And It's Streaming Now

A Sitcom? Made in Cuenca? Yes, Really.

If someone told you a few years ago that Cuenca would produce a professionally shot comedy series with Hollywood-level cameras, 200+ extras, and distribution on Ecuador's biggest streaming platform — you'd probably have laughed.

Well, Chulla Vida is here, and it premiered this week on Ecuavisa Play.

The 7-episode miniseries is the first fictional series ever produced in Cuenca, and it's being hailed as a milestone for the city's — and Ecuador's — creative industry. The title comes from the popular Ecuadorian expression meaning roughly "you only live once."

What It's About

Four strangers who've each hit rock bottom end up living under the same roof in Cuenca. Gaspar (played by Pablo Balseca) is facing foreclosure after a painful personal loss and starts renting out rooms to keep his house. His new tenants: Claudia (Gabriela Menéndez), a privileged young woman forced out of her comfort zone after a breakup; Leo (Carlos Aguilar), a dreamer from Guayaquil chasing a career in sports radio; and Fausto (Maicol Mora Grijalva), a young con artist trying to escape his past.

Their forced cohabitation — set against the backdrop of Cuenca's festivals, power outages, scams, and daily chaos — pushes them to form an unconventional family built on solidarity rather than blood.

You'll Recognize the Locations

If you live in Cuenca, you're going to spend half the show pointing at the screen saying "I know that place." The series was filmed across 42 locations including:

• Parque Calderón
• Puente Roto
• Plaza de San Francisco
• And dozens more across the city

Ninety-five percent of the series was shot in Cuenca, with the remaining 5% elsewhere in Azuay province.

The Numbers Behind It

This wasn't a shoestring operation:

• Budget: Over $300,000 USD
• Crew: 69 people
• Filming: 30 days across 5 weeks (six days per week)
• Extras: 200+
• Post-production: 10-12 months
• Technical format: Shot in RAW with cinema-grade cameras and optics

Director Christian Rojas brings serious credentials — his documentary Huaquero premiered at Amsterdam's IDFA festival, and his short film Chigualo was Oscar pre-qualified in 2021.

What the Creators Say

Executive producer Pedro Luis Vintimilla isn't shy about his ambitions:

"Chulla Vida is a love letter to Cuenca and proof that our local stories have universal resonance."

"We are betting on a different narrative, away from violence and narcoculture. We believe that people need stories that inspire."

One detail that stands out: the creators deliberately preserved the local Cuencano accent and idioms in the dialogue rather than neutralizing them for a national audience. Vintimilla says, "We should take pride in our accents and internationalize them."

How to Watch

• Platform: Ecuavisa Play (ecuavisaplay.com)
• Episodes: 7 episodes, 19-26 minutes each
• Price: First episode is free. Full season is $14.99 during the launch week, then $19.99
• Language: Spanish (Cuencano dialect)

The creators are already eyeing international markets in Colombia, Mexico, and Peru — and a second season is possible depending on audience reception.

Why This Matters

Beyond just being fun to watch, Chulla Vida represents something bigger for Cuenca. It proves the city can produce professional-quality entertainment that competes on streaming platforms. For a city that's known internationally for its colonial architecture and retiree appeal, having its own cultural export in the form of a TV series is a new chapter.

And for expats? It's a chance to see the city you live in through the eyes of its own storytellers — power outages, scams, and all.

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Sources: El Mercurio, Primicias, Vistazo