Weinstein visits Berlin, Miramax takes 'Italian'
Also catches glimpse of 'Heaven'
With Miramax presenting "Malena" and "Chocolat" in the main competition, company also swooped in for the first two big acquisitions of the fest, picking up Danish crowd-pleaser "Italian for Beginners" and Belgian Oscar entry "Everybody Famous!"
Weinstein himself showed up at the Berlinale for just the second time. His one-night stopover in the city also enabled him to catch up with a cut of Tom Tykwer's "Heaven," one of Miramax's upcoming Euro movies, which is currently in post.
Miramax outbid USA Films to snap up North American rights to Lone Scherfig's "Italian for Beginners," the latest Dogma pic, which is being sold by Trust Film Sales. Pricetag is widely rumored to be about $600,000.
Company insiders said that Miramax is also pursuing rights in Latin America and sees the pic as a strong candidate for a remake.
The film, which premiered Friday in the main competition, is the popular hit of the Berlinale so far. Deal was negotiated Saturday by acquisitions execs Agnes Mentre and Elizabeth Dreyer. Weinstein first screened the pic after the ink was dry.
The romantic ensembler concerns a group of Danes who find love at an Italian evening class.
The acquisition of Dominique Deruddere's "Everybody Famous" from French sales company Mercure was a lower-profile deal. Miramax believes the pic, which screened in the market, has a strong chance of an Academy Award nomination.
Meanwhile, both "Malena" and "Chocolat" played strongly to the fest audience, buoyed by the presence of Monica Bellucci and Giuseppe Tornatore for the Italian pic, and Juliette Binoche, Lena Olin and Lasse Hallstrom for "Chocolat."
Miramax Intl. also had its customary high profile at Berlin, with president Rick Sands hawking current productions "A View From the Top," "Jay and Silent Bob," "The Hours" and "Accidental Spy" to distribs in Germany, Scandinavia and Benelux.
Elsewhere in the festival, controversial Gallic director Catherine Breillat braved critical flak for her latest film, "Fat Girl," a tale of fumbling teenage sexuality that leads to rape and murder.
John Boorman's "The Tailor of Panama" won applause for its solid craftsmanship at its first press screening, but many doubt its potential to earn big worldwide grosses for Sony.
