Our story Juan Luis Malpartida
More than forty years of work told in chapters: from the first domestic animals to the series all of Spain has watched.
Who we are
Behind Malpartida Productions there is a family and, at its head, Juan Luis Malpartida.
By his side we have worked with insects, reptiles, birds, domestic and farm animals, big cats, primates and many other animals, always with the same idea: animals are part of the family.
Chapter 01 Childhood
At home they dreamed of another career for him: police officer, civil servant or pilot. But from childhood his place was with animals. He took in injured dogs, cats, tortoises, eagles and even wolves, and cared for them until they recovered.
I have lived for animals for as long as I can remember.
Chapter 02 Youth
His first working companions were horses. With them he put on charity shows for Cáritas and the Red Cross and, at just 18, moved to Madrid with all his animals to run a television programme.
There, Teresa Rabal saw his photos with horses and brought him onto La Guardería. Later came El juego de la oca, Ankawa, El Hormiguero and Animales en familia.
Chapter 03 The most pampered
Gina was born by our side, and Juan Luis raised her at home, bottle-feeding her like a daughter. She was always the most pampered of the family.
She had a special gift with children with autism, who opened up with her in a remarkable way. We still remember a little boy who, when saying goodbye to Gina, spoke his first words to ask if he could stay with her a little longer.
Gina left us in July 2022, aged 24, peacefully and in Juan Luis’s arms.
It is as if a child had left us.
Chapter 04 Lifelong companions
Two inseparable stars: a lion and a Bengal tiger who were raised together and lived together all their lives, always with Juan Luis between them.
Zampabollos, the lion, “Zampo to his friends”. He appeared alongside Iker Casillas in his Groupama advert and knew exactly who was family: with Juan Luis he was a gentle giant; with everyone else, the roaring photo says it all.
Cencerro, the tiger, “Cerro to his friends”, was the complete opposite: so good-natured and gentle that, with Juan Luis by his side, he would let anyone come close.
Chapter 05 Today
Today, MundoPark is home to more than a thousand animals. Juan Luis is still the soul of Malpartida Productions, and those of us in the family’s new generation carry on his way of working.
To me, they are like my children.
