Brett Ratner in Cannes: ‘Television is obviously the future’

Brett Ratner On RatPac As Filmmakers’ Guardian Angel & How “The Middle Has Fallen Out” At The Box Office – Cannes

by Anthony D’Alessandro | May 19, 2017 5:57am | Brigitte Lacombe “My dream as a kid was to make movies and I never imagined I’d have my own company and business,” filmmaker Brett Ratner said today about his film finance label RatPac Entertainment. The comments came during Winston Baker’s eighth annual Cannes Film Finance Forum. Since launching RatPac five years ago, Ratner is an anomaly in the business, a savior not just for the major studios but more so for filmmakers when their films are in need of cash — read Alejandro González...  read more

Dealmaker Spotlight: Susan Williams

Susan Zuckerman Williams, Partner, Loeb & Loeb LLP Susan Zuckerman Williams is a force of nature. As one of the most influential entertainment lawyers in America, according to The Hollywood Reporter, Ms. Williams routinely advises clients on the financing, investing and distribution arrangements for motion pictures, television and new media. Over the past several years she has handled more than $2 billion in transaction value, including major independent production companies involved in complex distribution and co-financing agreements... read more

Video on demand has forever changed the film acquisitions game. So what will happen at Cannes this year?

Access to the marketplace is no longer exclusive. And as a result, filmmakers can get their films in popular marketplaces without a traditional distributor. What does this mean for traditional movie buyers and sellers? And how are the top dealmakers surviving and thriving in this rapidly changing marketplace? Learn more about the panelists who will be joining our discussion at Cannes to address these critical questions.   Tamara Birkemoe, President and Chief Operating Officer, Foresight Unlimited Tamara Birkemoe serves as President and... read more

David Linde and Stuart Ford to Keynote at Winston Baker’s International Film Finance Forum in Cannes on May 13

LOS ANGELES, April 28, 2016 | PRNewswire | Winston Baker, the leading global producer of film finance conferences, will be presenting the 7th Annual International Film Finance Forum and addressing the theme of “Exploring Global Strategies for Film Financing, Risk Mitigation and New Distribution Avenues” on May 13, 2016 at the InterContinental Carlton Hotel in Cannes, France. The notable speaking faculty will include keynote conversations with David Linde, Chief Executive Officer of Participant Media and Stuart Ford, Founder... read more

Global strategies for film financing and distribution tackled at Cannes

by Birgit Heidsiek | 18/05/2015 | CANNES 2015: The Annual International Film Finance Forum brought together leading producers, financiers, distributors and sales agents At the sixth Annual International Film Finance Forum in Cannes, which was presented by Winston Baker, speakers addressed global strategies for film financing and distribution in the on-demand era but also offered some advice for producers. Danish director Lone Scherfig (An Education [+]) pointed out in her opening speech that she doesn’t like traditional test screenings.... read more

Finance panel: Friends in high places

16 May, 2015 | By Geoffrey Macnab | Billionaires in the film business are given a bad rap. That was the consensus from a panel with the provocative title, Is It Real Movie Money Or Just Another Big Yacht Passing?, at the 6th Annual Winston Baker Film Finance Forum on Friday afternoon in Cannes. A high level panel including Micah Green, Co-head Film Finance and Sales Group CAA, Mark Hutchison, Partner NKSFB and Bill Lischak, Co-President, Oddlot Entertainment, pointed to the transformative role played by “high net worth individuals” in today’s...  read more

CANNES: Top Executives Demystify China’s Growing Film Market

MAY 15, 2015 | 11:34AM PT | Patrick Frater Asia Bureau Chief Demystifying China’s growing film market was the key task of senior executives assembled Friday in Cannes at a finance summit conference. The annual event is organized by Winston Baker and sponsored by Variety. “China’s BO market potential is a mystery, but the way that the system operates is not,” said Jeffrey Chan, COO of Bona Film Group. “With the exception of the import quota, the distribution system is basically the same as everywhere else.” Producer David U. Lee, head of Leeding...  read more

Winston Baker Announces Lineup for International Film Finance Forum in Cannes

Seth Kelley @SethMKelley Variety Winston Baker has unveiled the lineup for its sixth annual International Film Finance Forum, sponsored in part by Variety, to coincide with the 68th Cannes Film Festival. The forum, which takes place on May 15 at the Carlton hotel in Cannes, will feature top entertainment industry professionals including directors, producers, financiers, agents and executives. Featured events during the half-day program include a panel on digital strategies and a director’s keynote panel with Lone Scherfig (“An Education,”... read more

Winston Baker Celebrates Seven Years and Hosts Top Producers at Film Finance Forum in Cannes

Los Angeles – (Broadcasting & Cable: The Wire) – May 5, 2015 – Today, Winston Baker, the leading global producer of entertainment finance conferences, celebrates its seventh anniversary and has announced their “6th Annual International Film Finance Forum” lineup. Winston Baker will host this momentous event on May 15, 2015, during the 68th Festival de Cannes at the prestigious Carlton Hotel located on the Boulevard de La Croisette in Cannes, France. “One of our recent keynotes, John Sloss, the founder of Cinetic Media, said it...  read more