Carlos M. Leon

The Team

Carlos M. Leon  - 
Producer, Founder and CEO

Carlos M. Leon was born in Havana, Cuba, in the summer of 1983. His family left the island, ruled by an oppressive regime and emigrated to the United States. From a very young age, Carlos showed an interest for the camera, electronic media and the arts. As a teen he self-taught himself to building websites and edit videos.

Not quite out of his teens at 19, Carlos packed his bags, took out a loan and without a vehicle or any acquaintances in the area moved across country to attend Full Sail University; one of the United States' top multimedia institutions located in Orlando, Florida. 

In 2003, he graduated with a degree in Film and Video and almost immediately began a production company from scratch. He began making websites and videos from the corner of a room in his parent's modest mobile home. Carlos placed his company's first advertisements on a local directory and with this small leap of faith, he began to acquire his first local clients.. It was also during this time that the first local television commercials were also produced and aired. This was the beginning of CML Productions.

At 21 he opened his first office on a major boulevard in his hometown. Just shy of his 23rd birthday in 2006, Carlos would use his talents to open up his first commercial production facility in North Hollywood, California called CML Studios.

At the same time, he launched a Spanish online entertainment channel from Universal City-Walk in Hollywood, California called "Gentevision". The online channel pioneered and covered some of the biggest Latin celebrities and events in Los Angeles, Miami and Puerto Rico including the Oscars and the Latin Billboard Awards. Other ventures includes a record label called "CML Music" with two signed artists and a model agency.

In a very short time, the first CML Studios grew from an empty warehouse with a couple of lights and a desk, into a full production facility with a range of multimedia projects with high-profile clients such as Sony, VH1, Fox Sports, Discovery Channel and NBC. Other national and international clients would soon hail from as far as the Netherlands, the United Kingdom and Dubai. 

In 2008, Carlos Leon, the Entrepreneur, Studio Owner and Producer was named one of "America's Best Entrepreneurs under 25" by BusinessWeek Magazine and suggested that he would be a important media developer by calling him a "media mogul in the making." He was published in countless publications around the world.

in 2009, he took an even bigger step by announcing the launch of his own building with a one year countdown and celebration. On October 10, 2010 (10-10-10) at midnight he launched the new CML Studios in Glendale, CA, a 10,000 square foot facility with full production capabilities. This includes a 55' Green Screen, 50' White Cyc, meeting rooms, production support areas, production offices for rent and much more. The celebration included the end of a one-year countdown with a show that included video presentations, artist performances, a bike crew and a dance team.

The second location has grown tremendously with clients from all over the world. some of the biggest brands in the industry and some of the biggest celebrities in film, music and television. The studio has also produced countless projects for many clients including commercials, music videos, industrials and photo campaigns.

In 2017, Carlos Leon expanded his production division by turning CML Productions into an ad agency. After months of resume submissions and a whirlwind of interviews, the new CML Productions Ad Agency was born. 25 freelance creatives that range from directors, producers, writers, composers, wardrobe stylists, editors, motion graphic artists, and branding experts are represented by the agency. 

The agency was launched at an event at the company headquarters that also coincided with the 10th anniversary of CML Studios, the production facility

Share by: