YouTube boss tips YouTube-born films for awards run
Films and series born on YouTube will soon be chasing Emmys and Oscars, according to the platform's boss in Europe.
Pedro Pina, vice president of YouTube for Europe, the Middle East and Africa, made the call at IberSeries in Madrid, Spain, in a session moderated by Deadline Deadline. His keynote at IberSeries & Platino Industria 2026 was billed as “YouTube: A Strategic Partner for the Audiovisual Ecosystem,” according to a preview The Hollywood Reporter.
Pina pointed to two titles from this year. He said Obsession and Backrooms both came from YouTubers and were tremendously successful. He expects more YouTube-originated examples to enter the awards conversation in the next years, across television’s Emmys and film’s Oscars.
Backrooms is the horror feature built from a YouTube horror series Philstar. It stars Chiwetel Ejiofor and Renate Reinsve, with Ejiofor playing a furniture shop owner.
The pitch was simple. Pina described YouTube as an open platform where any movie release model works. Some films will open in cinemas first, then move through other distribution windows before going global. Others will launch around the world at once on YouTube.
Gianluca Curti joined Pina on stage in Madrid. Curti is chief executive of Italian independent studio Minerva Pictures. He discussed plans to keep building a slate of feature films that will premiere on YouTube.
Pina also referenced recent comments from Disney co-chair Dana Walden about YouTube helping to build fans and communities around its content. Broadcasters gave their own examples in the same sessions. Portuguese public broadcaster RTP discussed partnering with YouTube on UEFA Nations League and Women’s Champions League coverage.
3Cat outlined a similar link between streaming and YouTube. 3Cat is the digital arm of Catalan broadcaster TVC. It discussed coordinating the recent launch of a streaming platform, known in the industry as OTT, with new dedicated strands on YouTube.
What makes this stand out is the route to the screen. For viewers, it means a short made for phones can now sit beside a cinema premiere, then reappear in awards season a year or two later.
The Madrid appearance follows an intervention in August, when Pina argued against giving prominence to British broadcasters on digital services Deadline.
