‘One Hundred Years of Solitude’: How Netflix brought the imaginary town of Macondo to life
How do you bring to life a town that never existed, yet shaped Latin American literature forever? Netflix’s adaptation of One Hundred Years of Solitude takes on that challenge by building the fictional Macondo entirely in Colombia, the homeland of Nobel Prize-winning author Gabriel García Márquez. The show, spanning two seasons, is produced in Spanish and supported by the author’s sons. From its opening scene to its final details, the story immerses viewers in the world of the Buendía family, whose lives echo the novel’s themes of memory, love, loss, and time.Production designer Bárbara Enríquez recreated Macondo with remarkable care, building full-scale towns to reflect the shifting eras of Colombian history. From bamboo huts to elegant colonial homes, the sets evolve with the storyline. Magical realism is treated with subtlety — supernatural events are embedded in the ordinary, just as Márquez intended. Props like the legendary block of ice or Melquíades’ Sanskrit manuscript are crafted with precision. Even the Buendía house becomes a character, its atmosphere shifting with the family’s emotional states.Two versions Macondo were built in Alvarado, a town in the Colombian Andes, to show the passage of time as the town prospers. Mauro González/NetflixCostume designer Catherine Rodriguez combined historical research with creative interpretation, sourcing antique materials and collaborating with Indigenous artisans. Characters’ wardrobes grow with them, reflecting their personalities and the town’s transformation. Through meticulous set design and costume work, the series honors the legacy of García Márquez while inviting new audiences to experience his world. As Enríquez says, the show is both a tribute and a bridge — leading people back to the novel or inspiring them to read it for the first time.
