Teutons dominate Mifed
Kinowelt leads charge
Companies such as Kinowelt, Helkon, Splendid and Senator dominated the sales action, battling for rights and paying record sums for hot pics during the six-day indie bazaar.
These players, newly invigorated by successful IPOs at home, also have their sights set on international empire-building.
The corridors of the Fiera di Milano buzzed with talk of German distribs looking for opportunities to buy into their French or Italian counterparts, seeking stakes in the leading sales companies or setting up international production ventures.
Kinowelt deal wave
Kinowelt led the way by investing in Alliance, becoming an equal partner in the Canadian outfit's U.K. distribution arm. Kinowelt also bought Switzerland's Rialto; it's close to deals with distribs in Hungary and Poland, where it has already been buying rights.
Splendid's acquisition of a 49% stake in L.A.-based Initial Entertainment earlier this year led directly to IEG unveiling the market's biggest pic, the $90 million Martin Scorsese epic "Gangs of New York."
French distribs such as Pyramide and Bac have received multiple approaches from Germans with fistfuls of Euros to invest.
Italy also looks like prime territory for new ventures after the effective collapse of its leading indie, Cecchi Gori, but the Germans are reportedly nervous about getting bogged down in the Italian film industry's byzantine internal politics.
Teutons drive market
Meanwhile, German rights acquisitions are driving the market, providing immediate comfort for sellers who are struggling in some other key territories, but also triggering mounting anxiety about the fallout if the German bubble bursts.
"Without Germany this market would really be in trouble," said one veteran banker, adding ominously, "It can't last."
Even the German distribs themselves are getting concerned about spiraling prices, and some are choosing to sit it out until the current frenzy calms down. CLT/Ufa, for example, picked up pics for its distribs in France and Benelux, but nothing in Germany.
Helkon, Advanced and Highlight also took refuge in their existing output deals, cherry-picking just one or two acquisitions.
"Why should I buy from the sales companies now, at these high prices, when I can buy later from the banks when they get desperate?" commented one German distrib, cynically reflecting the oversupply of pics in an increasingly selective market.
The problem is that the market is now dependent on getting 15%-20% of the budget out of Germany -- a dangerous addiction which may not be sustainable in the long term.
Richest German deal of Mifed, as a proportion of budget, is understood to be Constantin's $4.5 million pick-up of the $15 million USA Films comedy "One Night at McCool's."
That pic was an example of how fierce the competition has become in Germany, with 11 offers made and five seriously considered by Good Machine Intl. Kinowelt, which has been GMI's primary distrib in Germany, made no secret of its fury at being beaten to the deal.
Hot pics
Other pics which attracted intense German bidding included Buena Vista Film Sales' "Family Man," which Kinowelt did secure for $8 million, against a rival $6 million offer from Tobis.
Tobis took "Honest" from Pandora, while Prokino bought Intermedia's "Whipped." Miramax split its slate, as usual, between Kinowelt and Senator, but also made its first sale to Constantin with "Impostor."
Helkon picked up two films from Overseas Film Group and "Onegin" from 7 Arts. Splendid bagged eight titles from PM Entertainment and two from Curb.
Confusion reigned about the destination of Icon's Mel Gibson starrer "What Women Want," with several contradictory rumors flying about.
Germany's Kirch Group confirmed that it is in negotiations to acquire the $70 million project through its Eureka alliance with Mediaset, but sources close to bullish new buyer Cinemedia also claimed to have secured the pic.
After Germany, Spain looks the most buoyant territory for acquisitions, although distribs are complaining that they (along with the Germans and the French) are being overcharged by sellers trying to compensate for the weakness of other territories, notably Korea.
Last and virtually least at Mifed was the U.S.; not a single significant American sale was closed.
U.S. buyers were, however, showing interest in "Gangster No. 1," GMI's Dogma pic "The King Is Alive," Summit's "Memento," the Sales Co.'s "Love, Honor and Obey," Canal Plus' gay samurai title "Gohatto" and Christa Saredi's "Luna Papa."
(John Hopewell and Sharon Swart contributed to this report.)
