Major Distributor Must Pay Big for Breeching Contract in History Making Case LOS ANGELES, July 21
LOS ANGELES, July 21 /PRNewswire/ -- 30 year veteran filmmaker Suzanne DeLaurentiis (DeLaurentiis Productions) and executive producer Jeffery Tott have prevailed in a landmark case brought against ThinkFilms regarding the theatrical release of their film 10(th) & WOLF. The star studded film featured such notable talent as Dennis Hopper, Giovanni Ribisi, James Marsden, Val Kilmer and Leslie Anne Warren. 10(th) & Wolf currently reigns as one of the most expensive independent films ever made. Understandably, Ms. DeLaurentiis and Mr. Tott chose to take their case to court, claiming that in an effort to expedite the film's DVD release the distributor failed to promote or advertise the theatrical release as agreed in their contract, which resulted in gross box office losses. A Canadian Court validated that claim yesterday as the producers were awarded on all counts. It took more than two years after the film's theatrical release for the case to end, awarding Ms. DeLaurentiis and Mr. Tott a substantial settlement. "While the settlement is nice, we feel that what is more important is that we have won a moral victory for independent filmmakers everywhere," Mr. Tott concludes.
(Photo: http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20090721/LA49718)
Ms. DeLaurentiis spent years developing the script and attaching A-list talent to the project, which Mr. Tott financed. Under the terms of their distribution agreement ThinkFilms committed to utilizing broad resources to provide large-scale promotional advertising for the theatrical release, which they neglected to do. Ms. Delaurentiis and Mr. Tott surprised ThinkFilms by undertaking the seemingly unimaginable task of bringing their case to court. In doing so the partners hoped to shed light on the plight of many independent companies; "Some distributors operate in breach of their original contracts under the assumption that independent production companies do not posses the financial means to sustain any sort of lengthy legal battle." Says Suzanne DeLaurentiis, "I have worked with several of the leading distributors and have never come across this type of situation before."
SOURCE DeLaurentiis Productions
