BILLION DOLLAR GRAB

PIONEERING independent film company, Miramax, founded by publicity hounds, Harvey and Bob Weinstein in 1979, is apparently up for sale, again.  Miramax, which owns the rights to hundreds of Hollywood films including "Pulp Fiction" and "The English Patient," is exploring its profiteering options. 

The Santa Monica based company is currently held by an investor group including Qatar Holding and investment firm Colony Capital, which purchased the company from Disney in 2010 for $660 million.

While the company is best known for both its Oscar seeking trickery and its extensive cash cow film library, Miramax has recently started to distribute new movies ("Mr. Holmes") and also ventured into TV production with a Spanish/Latin market oriented series based on Robert Rodriguez's film "From Dusk Till Dawn."   Insiders say, the pricetag is in the billion dollar neighborhood.  OF COURSE.

Weinstein Buys World Rights

From Cannes - The Weinstein Company featuring uber Hollywoodteurs Harvey and Bob Weinstein has won a quiet but fevered bidding battle for worldwide distribution rights to the next and still untitled film from Paul Thomas Anderson. With production set for June 13th, starring Philip Seymour Hoffman and Joaquin Phoenix - the Weinstein are probably already mapping out their Oscar 2012 strategies. This Anderson's first lensing since Oscar winner There Will Be Blood with {talent rather than red carpets, random twits, fb posts, unauthorized sex tape leaks} Daniel Day Lewis.

The project was auctioned off last week at CAA Hollywoodteur headquarters. While Hoffman and Phoenix are locked in, actresses are holding their tresses as Anderson continues to eye femme leads Madisen Beaty (The Curious Case of Benjamin Button), Amy Adams, The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo's Lena Endre and the often overlooked yet phenom Laura Dern.

This is "The Master" project that Anderson has been working on for some time now. Hoffman stars as a man who returns after witnessing the horrors of WWII and tries to rediscover who he is in post-war America. In his new journey he creates a belief system that captures and rallies other lost souls.

The film is fully financed by Megan Ellison's Annapurna banner. Ellison is rapidly emerging as a godsend to Hollywoodteur indie auteur projects, as she enables Anderson to make the movie in the $35 million budget range after Universal stepped away.