Spain's Grupo Planeta has launched new documentary production-distribution label "Planeta D" to be overseen in the group's Barcelona headquarters by former Media Park executive Jonathon South.

Capitalising on the current popularity of documentaries in Spain, Planeta envisions the new division as "the brand of reference of documentaries of prestige in Spain."

Planeta D will produce and back "ambitious" documentary projects both locally and internationally, distributing in Spain theatrically and on TV and video/DVD.

The company already has an output deal for the catalogue of documentaries of Germany's ZDF. It also has video/DVD rights to Jose Luis Guerin's Work In Progress (En Construccion), the winner of this year's first-ever Goya Award (Spain's Oscar equivalent) for best documentary, and Jaime Camino's The Children Of Russia (Los Ninos de Rusia), which is set to screen in the Panorama section at Berlin.