Criteria Films · Panama, since 2010
Stories, made film.
Explainers, series, documentaries, ads and shorts for institutions and brands with something to say.
Tell us about your filmCriteria Films reel
We’ve worked with
Selected work
Behind every film there’s a story. What’s yours?
They have a unique ability to transform an idea or a written word into visual masterpieces that educate and engage audiences across cultural and geographic boundaries. Perhaps the greatest indicator of the quality of their work is the fact that we have been working together for more than a decade.
Originals
Productions of our own.
We push our creativity to the limit with our own productions, where we test techniques and tools before they ever reach your projects.
See Criteria Originals
Why us
What you get working with us
Experience
Twenty years solving what your team needs.
Founded in Panama in 2010. Since 2015, the Bertelsmann Foundation North America’s animation studio.
Method
You know what happens at every stage, and nothing moves without your sign-off.
Script and storyboard approved before production. The same five stages on every film.
Storytelling
Dense topics, told so they’re understood and remembered.
Our films have 1.5 million views on the Bertelsmann Foundation’s channel.
YouTube, September 24, 2026
Adaptability
One production for every audience, language and format.
Explainers, series, documentaries, ads and shorts. GAPP: one program told to three audiences from the same footage.
Transparency
You know what it costs before you ask, and how we make it.
Our rates are published and the same for every client: you see them before you write to us. And we say where we use AI.
One published rate. You know what the film costs before you ask.
You send the material or the idea. We turn it into a finished film, and your team approves each step. Multiply the minutes by the rate and you have the budget. With more minutes, or an annual bundle split across films, the rate drops to US$1,200 from 6 minutes and to US$1,050 from 16.
See all rates and conditions →Each minute includes
- Script written from your material or idea
- Storyboard your team approves before production
- AI animation or edit, music and mix
- AI voice-over in one language
- Two rounds of changes at each stage you approve
The process
The same five stages, every film
Brief
You send the material or the idea, who it’s for and the length you need.
Script
We write the script and you approve it.
you sign off here
Storyboard
The storyboard: the look of the film, frame by frame. You approve it before we produce anything.
Production
Animation, edit or shoot, music and voice-over, following the approved storyboard.
Post-production
Mix, color and versions for every language and format. You review the cut, we adjust, then deliver.
Who directs
Every film has a director behind it, not a button
Juan Pablo de Gamboa directs every Criteria Films project. He has spent 20 years directing documentaries and institutional films for UNICEF, the IDB and the Bertelsmann Foundation, among others, and founded the studio in Panama in 2010.
At Criteria, AI is there to make more with the same budget, not to invent people or numbers: a person checks every figure against your source, and your team approves the script before a single frame is animated.
Juan Pablo de Gamboa · Director, Criteria Films
What people usually ask
What kind of films do you make?
Explainers, animated series, documentaries and documentary animation, leader profiles, brand films, ads and shorts. If your story needs to be understood and remembered, we’d love to tell it.
Can you keep it confidential?
Of course. Drafts and unpublished material are used only to make your film, and we’re happy to sign an NDA if you need one.
How long does it take?
We set the calendar together, counting from the day you send the material. A 2–3 minute film usually takes 3 to 4 weeks. In a hurry? We can do it in under two weeks with a rush fee.
What do I need to get started?
Just your material (a report, notes, interviews, whatever you have) and the date you need the film by. We write the script from there, and you approve it before anything moves.
What happens after I order?
Nothing is charged when you send it. Within one business day we get back to you to confirm the material, scope and dates, and we agree on how you’d like to pay. The price is locked once you approve the script.
I’m not sure yet what I need. Can we talk first?
Of course. Book a 20-minute call or message us on WhatsApp, and we’ll figure it out together. Talking costs nothing and commits you to nothing.
What about AI?
We use it in almost every step so your budget goes further, and we always say so. What we don’t do is generate realistic images of people or make up data: a person checks every figure against your source, and nothing is animated until you approve the script.
Which languages?
Any language you need. From the same production we make a dubbed version or add subtitles, with an AI or human voice. They’re listed in the rates, under “Languages and formats”.
Can I get versions for social media?
Yes. From the same film we cut vertical, square, teaser or silent versions, so you don’t pay for a new production for each channel.
What if I need more changes?
Each stage includes two rounds of changes. If you need more, we quote them for you before making them. And if you spot a wrong figure in the film, we fix it for free, even after delivery.
I already have footage. Can you edit it?
Happily. Ask for “Editing only”: we review your material, pick the best of it and turn it into a finished film.
Can you film too?
Yes. We have crews of 2, 4 or 7–8 people, with camera, light and sound included. Travel, locations and talent are quoted separately.
What will I receive?
Your film in HD 1080p, ready to publish. If you need 4K or another file format, like ProRes, just ask: it’s in the rates.
Do you work with organizations outside Panama?
Yes. We work remotely with teams in other countries and bill in US dollars from Panama. Panamanian VAT (ITBMS) is only added if your organization is in Panama.
Who owns the film?
We agree on the rights with you in the proposal, before we start, so there are no surprises later.
Tell us about your film
A few lines are enough. We’ll reply with a price and a proposed calendar.
Rather talk it through?
Not yet?
See how other projects turned out
Full case studies: what was asked, what we decided and what happened next, with a source for every figure.
Bertelsmann Foundation and Aspen Ministers Forum · 2021–2025
Five years of crises, told by the people who lived them
11×
the views of a typical 2024 video on the channel, for the Bobi Wine episode (63,712)
See the case →
Bertelsmann Foundation · 2024
A series people looked for, watched and argued about
10×
the views of a typical 2024 video on the channel, for the Electoral College film (55,962)
See the case →
Bertelsmann Foundation and PERIL (American University) · 2020
A film that changed what its viewers thought
512
U.S. adults watched the full film and took the same survey before and after
See the case →