Weinsteins Announce New Film Backers

No longer able to rely on the hefty allowance supplied by Walt Disney Co., Miramax Film Corp. co-founders Bob and Harvey Weinstein announced financial alliances Thursday that they said would help jump-start their new entertainment venture.

During a conference call with reporters at the Cannes International Film Festival, the brothers said investment banking house Goldman, Sachs & Co. had agreed to help finance their emerging enterprise, now called Weinstein Co. They also said they’d struck a deal with Cablevision Systems Corp. to develop low-budget movies primarily for television and DVD.

Bob Weinstein said that 25 years ago, just after he and his brother launched Miramax, they bought their first movie in Cannes. He said he and Harvey now had a similar feeling of excitement.

“It’s like the same thing all over again,” Weinstein said.

Some Wall Street analysts and industry executives have questioned whether the brothers can raise enough money to flourish on their own after they officially leave Disney this fall.

In recent weeks, the Weinsteins have moved swiftly to put their company together. They have told potential investors that they hope initially to raise $1 billion.

After Thursday’s announcement, it remained unclear how close the duo was to achieving that goal -- and there remain plenty of skeptics.

Goldman’s Joe Ravitch, who joined the Weinsteins in the conference call, said his New York-based firm was making an equity investment and providing interim debt financing for the company, which will officially launch in October with “Derailed,” a co-production with Disney starring Jennifer Aniston and Clive Owen. But Ravitch declined to say how much money would be provided or whether Goldman would be the majority investor. Ravitch and the Weinsteins said more details would be disclosed in the coming weeks.

The Weinsteins also announced a partnership with producer Tarak Ben Ammar. His Paris company Quinta Communications is bankrolling three movies with a total budget of $185 million that the Weinsteins would market and distribute in North America.

Ben Ammar, who is well connected to key media and financial players abroad, said Weinstein Co. would not have to pay for domestic rights and that he envisioned making an investment in the company.

The deal struck with Cablevision unit Rainbow Media would provide the Weinsteins with an annual sum, estimated by one source at $15 million, to develop movies that mostly would be aired on TV or sold on DVD.

Both parties would share equally in any profit from the movies, which might include some theatrical releases.

Weinstein Co. also would become the new home video and foreign distributor for content generated by Rainbow’s cable networks and its IFC Films, which released such titles as Michael Moore’s documentary “Fahrenheit 9/11” with Lions Gate Entertainment Corp.

The deal enables the Weinsteins to build a library to generate cash flow. Under the terms of their separation with Disney, the brothers could not take the valuable Miramax library.