The Weinstein Company, The Gotham Group, and the Chungcheongnam-do Government of South Korea Announce Broad Strategic Alliance Focused on Animated Feature Production

The Weinstein Company, The Gotham Group, and the Chungcheongnam-do Government of South Korea Announce Broad Strategic Alliance Focused on Animated Feature Production

NEW YORK, June 28 /PRNewswire/ -- The Weinstein Company, The Gotham Group, and the Chungcheongnam-do government of South Korea announced today that they have joined forces as part of an extensive strategic relationship to produce, and distribute animated feature films. The announcement was made jointly today by The Weinstein Company co-chairmen Bob and Harvey Weinstein, The Gotham Group's CEO/Founder Ellen Goldsmith-Vein and Chungcheongnam-do Governor Lee, Wan-gu. The parties were brought together, and the deal was structured by, Jon Vein on behalf of The Gotham Group, and Mariel Clemensen of Clemensen Capital. The financial terms of the deal were not disclosed.

As part of this relationship, The Weinstein Company has also entered into a multi-year first look deal with The Gotham Group, the premier management firm representing animation and family entertainment talent and content.

The projects produced by the venture will be based on work from The Gotham Group's clients, in addition to outside sources. The Weinstein Company, the Media Center of Chungcheongnam-do, and The Gotham Group will serve as producers on all films in the venture. The animated features will be principally co-produced in the Chungcheongnam-do Province of South Korea, including at the state-of-the-art animation facilities at The Media Center of Chungcheongnam-do. The Weinstein Company will handle worldwide distribution on all titles produced pursuant to this relationship, with the Chungcheongnam-do government of South Korea providing support in certain Asian markets.

"This is an innovative and exciting deal to be a part of and we are glad to be working with some of the best animators and animation companies in the business," said The Weinstein Company Co-Chairmen Harvey and Bob Weinstein. "The beauty of animated film is that it speaks to all audiences around the world and transcends language, age and cultural barriers."

"We're very excited to have the opportunity to work with great storytellers, and to be in business with powerful and innovative partners," said The Gotham Group CEO Ellen Goldsmith-Vein. "Animated family fare has proven to be a driving force in the entertainment business and we're committed to telling great stories for the entire family."

Hee Sup Kim, Chief Manager of Media Center of Chungcheongnam-do, said: "Korea and its animation production companies have been at the center of the television animation business for years but have outsourced jobs only to this point. Now we want to extend further to the animated theatrical film business by being co-producer with prominent partners in the U.S. Ensuring our access to the best content and talent from the East and West, as well as the best marketing and distribution will provide a solid foundation to make Chungcheongnam-do's animation studios a world class source of animated content."

"We believe this deal is a milestone for Korean animation studios," said Clemensen Capital CEO, Mariel Clemensen. "We are thrilled to extend our expertise to support cross-border feature animation through this partnership with The Gotham Group, The Weinstein Company, and the Chungcheongnam-do government."

ABOUT THE WEINSTEIN COMPANY AND DIMENSION FILMS

The Weinstein Company (TWC) was created by Bob and Harvey Weinstein, the brothers who founded Miramax Films Corporation in 1979. TWC is a multi-media company that officially launched on October 1, 2005. Dimension Films, the genre label that was founded in 1993 by Bob Weinstein, is also included under the TWC banner.

Upcoming films to be released by The Weinstein Company and Dimension Films include: Michael Moore's "SiCKO" which recently premiered at the Cannes Film Festival and has quickly become one of the most talked about movies the year; the romantic comedy "Dedication" starring Billy Crudup and Mandy Moore; the heartfelt drama "Grace Is Gone" starring John Cusack; and Wong Kar Wai's "My Blueberry Nights" starring Norah Jones. Upcoming Weinstein Company films to be domestically distributed in theaters by MGM include "The Nanny Diaries," based on the NY Times No. 1 best-selling satirical comedy, starring Scarlett Johansson and Paul Giamatti; Rob Zombie's reinvention of "Halloween" starring Malcolm McDowell and Brad Dourif; and "1408" adapted from the terrifying short story by suspense master Stephen King starring John Cusack, Samuel L. Jackson, and Mary McCormack.

During the Weinsteins' tenure at Miramax Films the company released some of the most critically acclaimed and commercially successful independent feature films which received 249 Academy Award(R) nominations and won 60 Oscars(R), have generated billions of dollars in worldwide box office receipts and billions more in home video sales. In its history, Dimension Films has released some of the most successful franchises including "Scream," "Spy Kids" and "Scary Movie."

ABOUT THE GOTHAM GROUP

Recognized as the powerhouse management firm in the animation industry with ties to an enormous amount and variety of creative content, The Gotham Group's current feature film production slate includes the "The Spiderwick Chronicles," for Paramount and Nickelodeon Movies, based on the best-selling series of fantasy books created by Gotham clients Tony DiTerlizzi and Holly Black; "Simon Bloom, The Gravity Keeper," with Gary Ross attached for Universal; "The Devil You Know," with Shawn Levy attached to direct and written by Gotham clients Steve Bencich and Ron Friedman for 20th Century Fox; "The Overachievers" with Shawn Levy's 21 Laps banner; and "Creature Tech," based on client Doug TenNapel's graphic novel and set up at New Regency with "Forrest Gump" producer Wendy Finerman. The Gotham Group boasts a roster of over 250 top directors, writers, producers, illustrators, artists and content creators, providing a full range of services in both live action and animated feature film and television including packaging, corporate consulting, strategic career planning, children's programming, prime time television series, and animated and family entertainment content for emerging new media. Gotham Group is also executive producing, along with Aardman Animations, the animated series "Creature Comforts" on CBS. The firm represents publishing houses, comics producers, and live action writers and leading directors including Malia Scotch Marmo, David Gordon Green, Christopher Cleveland & Betina Gilois, and Henry Selick.

ABOUT CHUNGCHEONGNAM-DO

Chungcheongnam-do is located in the central part of the Korean peninsula, neighboring Gyeonggi-do on the north, Chungbuk on the east. It borders the West Sea on the west with a population of two million.

After choosing 'Cultural Industry' as the leading industry for future development of the province, Chungcheongnam-do established its Media Center in 1999, and has made consistent efforts to promote and support the media and contents businesses by investing approximately $40 million. Currently, there are 18 colleagues teaching animation curriculum at the Media Center.

ABOUT CLEMENSEN CAPITAL

Clemensen Capital has specialized in investment banking related to North Asia since 1998. With its large network of global investors coupled with experience and expertise, Clemensen Capital has been at the center of a wide range of investments and private equity funds in the region. Entertainment finance and Digital Media investments have been a special focus in recent years.

First Call Analyst:
FCMN Contact:
Web site: http://www.chungnam.net
http://www.ctp.or.kr

Source: The Weinstein Company

CONTACT: Sarah Rothman, +1-646-862-3823, Sarah.rothman@weinsteinco.com,
or Julie Cloutier, +1-646-862-3825, Julie.cloutier@winsteinco.com, both of The
Weinstein Company; or Maggie Begley of Maggie Begley Communications for The
Gotham Group, +1-310-301-9964, cell, +1-310-749-3055, mbegley@aol.com; or Hee
Sup Kim, Chief Manager of ChungNam Media Center, +82-11-367-2883,
Kamja@ctp.or.kr; or Sung Bae Kim, EVP, Entertainment Finance of Clemensen
Capital, +82-11-239-0540, sbkim@clemensen.com

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Profile: International Entertainment