StudioCanal pacts with Hollywood producers

Bonds with Spyglass, Dark Castle and Original Films

By JOHN HOPEWELL, ELSA KESLASSY

PARIS -- Gallic mini-major StudioCanal is forging production partnerships with a trio of high-profile Hollywood shingles: Gary Barber and Roger Birnbaum’s Spyglass Entertainment, Joel Silver’s Dark Castle and Neal Moritz’s Original Films.

Among the pics these pacts have yielded are "The Tourist" and "Leap Year," with the former now being produced by GK Films and the latter at Spyglass, and Dark Castle’s "Unknown White Male" and "The Losers."

At Original, Moritz and StudioCanal have "Escape From New York" and "Cliffhanger 2" in development.

On Anand Tucker’s "Leap Year," starring Amy Adams and Matthew Goode, StudioCanal has taken all rights to France, the U.K. and Germany.

StudioCanal owns production-distrib divisions in all three territories — U.K.’s Optimum Releasing, Germany’s Kinowelt and StudioCanal itself in France.

With "Tourist," which Graham King’s GK Films is producing, financing and distributing, StudioCanal owns the original property, 2005 French thriller "Anthony Zimmer." It co-financed development with Spyglass and is co-financing against rights to France, the U.K. and Germany.

"We have a very close relationship. We bring properties to Gary Barber, he brings projects to us for co-financing and distribution in our territories in Europe," said StudioCanal prexy Olivier Courson. "It’s a win-win partnership."

StudioCanal’s Hollywood partnerships will allow the Gallic mini-major’s European distribution ops access to high-profile titles distributed domestically by Hollywood studios. That’s a major plus for distribs such as Optimum, which works in the difficult U.K. market.

But StudioCanal also brings a lot to Hollywood’s table.

"Olivier and his team have transformed StudioCanal into a leading independent European distributor," said Barber, Spyglass co-chairman and CEO.

European distribution muscle is increasingly significant.

Combined B.O. gross of just France, U.K. and Germany was $4.4 billion in 2008, against $9.0 billion for the U.S. The strengthening Euro will forseeably drive up Europe’s dollar-value B.O. grosses in 2009.

"We are a unique partner for U.S. producers and even studios," Courson said. "We have the biggest film library in Europe. We’re the only European company able to release a film directly in Europe’s three biggest markets. And we belong to one of Europe’s biggest media groups."

Helmer Serge Siritzky, director of France’s "Ecran Total," said StudioCanal’s distribution infrastructure in France, Germany and the U.K. is making "a European major."

With Silver’s Dark Castle, StudioCanal is structuring Jaume Collet-Serra’s upcoming "Unknown White Male" as a European co-production with StudioCanal as the lead European partner.

Set to shoot in Berlin, the film, toplining Liam Neeson and January Jones, is a high-concept psychological thriller — " ‘Bourne’ meets ‘Taken’ " — according to Courson.

StudioCanal has also taken France and the U.K. on Warner Bros./Dark Castle’s "Losers," a DC/Vertigo comicbook adaptation, now in post-production. Pic stars Jeffrey Dean Morgan, Chris Evans and Jason Patric.

Teaming with Neal Moritz, StudioCanal is financing "Cliffhanger 2," announced at Cannes and now in development, with Moritz producing.

Moritz is already developing an $80 million-plus remake of "Escape From New York" for Warner Bros.-New Line. Both "Escape" and "Cliffhanger 2" are based on StudioCanal properties. StudioCanal retains European rights on "Escape."

In another U.S. incursion, StudioCanal has taken worldwide rights to "Cotton," a horror movie produced by Eli Roth for Strike Entertainment.

"It’s a very reasonable budget, very frightening and very well done," said Courson.

Meanwhile, StudioCanal is also ramping up its production operations in Europe.

"We aim to make films which are very strong in their local markets and also have a strong appeal for international," said Courson.

With healthy financials — an operating profit margin of 14% in 2008 off $594 million in revenues — StudioCanal has the muscle to produce local films with international potential at $15 million-$30 million, a budgetary range that Hollywood is increasingly forsaking.

At the AFM, Harold Van Lier, StudioCanal’s exec VP of intl. sales, will introduce to buyers "Attack the Block," the directorial debut of Joe Cornish, co-writer of Steven Spielberg’s upcoming "The Adventures of Tintin: The Secret of the Unicorn."

Pic is first fruit of a three-pic co-financing and co-production deal just inked between Optimum and U.K. production house Big Talk Prods. ("Shaun of the Dead").

StudioCanal is also pre-selling helmer Rowan Joffe’s $10 million-$12 million adaptation of Graham Greene’s classic novel "Brighton Rock," starring Sam Riley and Helen Mirren and produced by Paul Webster, and Catalan historical actioner "Bruc," directed by Daniel Benmayor and produced by Edmon Roch.

In France, StudioCanal and Eric Heumann’s Paradis Films are co-producing Bertrand Tavernier’s "The Princess of Montpensier," a 17th century political love story based on true events.

In advanced production, the 13 million euro ($19.5 million) costume drama boasts strong young ensemble cast of Lambert Wilson, Melanie Thierry, Gaspard Ulliel, Louis Garrel, and Gregoire Leprince-Ringuet.

The tale of three Algerian brothers who immigrate to France during the Algerian war of independence, Rachid Bouchareb’s "Outlaw," is in post.

Budgeted at $30 million, "Outlaw" is co-produced with Jean Brehat’s Tessallit.