3rd Annual FILM FINANCE FORUM EAST Capitalizing on Viable Film Investments and Fund Opportunities Park Central Hotel | New York, NY USA September 14 - 15, 2011
DAY ONE: FINANCIER PERSPECTIVES WEDNESDAY | SEPTEMBER 14, 2011
8:00 - 9:00 am Registration and Continental Breakfast
9:00 - 9:30 am Welcoming Remarks: The Rich Rewards of a Risky Business Opening Speaker: Peter Bart, Vice President & Editorial Director, Variety
9:30 - 10:45 am Considering the Film Business as an Asset Class in the Current Market -Are investors putting their money in film today - if so - who are the main players? -Why are these investors putting their money into film? And where? -What are the rewards/pros of film investment? -What are the risks/cons of film investment? -Where is the industry heading as an investment vehicle?
Moderator: Isaac Palmer, Managing Director, MESA Panelists: Rafael Fogel, Partner, Falcon Investment Advisors, LLC Brian DeCenzo, Vice President, Goldman, Sachs & Co. James Clayton, Chief Executive, Ingenious Media Investments Joe Woolf, Head of Media and Entertainment Finance, One West Bank Amir Malin, Managing Principal, Qualia Capital
10:45 - 11:15 am Networking Break
11:15 am - 12:30 pm Working with Studios: Exploring Equitable Co-Financing Opportunities Today's tent pole co-financing transactions are beginning to demonstrate significant differences from historical transactions, hence, this session will address how this landscape is becoming increasingly favorable for investors, negotiating studio distribution terms, and addressing how financiers have been able to realize recent success in a historically risky market.
Moderator: Terrence L. Dugan, Partner, Morgan Lewis Panelists: P. Clark Hallren, Managing Partner, Clear Scope Partners Jason Sklar, Vice President, Entertainment Industry Group, J.P. Morgan Marshall Sonenshine, Chairman and Managing Partner, Sonenshine Partners Patrick Russo, Founding Principal, The Salter Group Stephen Kovach CFA, Co-Founding Partner, Vine Alternative Investments 12:30 - 1:30 pm Networking Luncheon 1:30 - 2:45 pm The Independent Vehicle: Evaluating Individual Film Projects and Start-up Companies -Evaluating a film's economic value -Taking risk mitigated measures to increase upside -Assessing potential domestic and international sales -The
value of investing in one or more of the following stages/company
types: Development; Production; Distribution; and P&A
Moderator: Michael Hansen, Managing Director, Three Point Capital Panelists: Teddy Schwarzman, Principal, Black Bear Pictures Milan Popelka, Chief Operating Officer, FilmNation Ian Stratford, Partner, Gray Krauss Des Rochers LLP John Hadity, President and Chief Executive Officer, Hadity & Associates Omar Haneef, Chief Investment Officer, Lleju Productions and Films
2:45 - 3:45 pm Utilizing Capital Markets: Structured Finance Options Although securing capital continues to be challenging, banks are coming back to this sector once again. This session will address what structured financing options are available in the current market and what debt financing trends are emerging to get deals done today.
Moderator: Jay Cohen, Head of Film Financing and Packaging, The Gersh Agency Panelists: Joseph N. Cohen, President, American Entertainment Investors Sebastien Raybaud, Managing Director, AntonCapital James Belfer, Founder/Producer, Dogfish Pictures Peter Bevan, Principal/Executive Producer, Entertainment Motion Pictures Daniel Katz, Investor, Guggenheim Partners Christa Thomas, Managing Director and Senior Film Advisor, Sports and Entertainment Group, SunTrust Bank
3:45 - 4:00 pm Coffee Break
4:00 - 5:00 pm A Closer Look at Technology Developments: Special Effects, 3D and Beyond
Moderator: D. Jeff Andrick, Owner, XL.Ent Media Panelists: Kat Popiel, Head of Content and Community, IndieGoGo Kenneth Kleinberg, Partner, Kleinberg Lange Cuddy & Klein LLP Douglas Trumbull, Producer/Director, Trumbull Ventures 5:00 - 7:00 pm Networking Reception
DAY TWO: PRODUCER PERSPECTIVES THURSDAY | SEPTEMBER 15, 2011
8:00 - 8:30 am Continental Breakfast
8:30 - 9:30 am The Art of Structuring a Deal: What Producers Need to Know in Today's Market -Pre-package/business plan: talent, script, budget and forecast must haves -Risk mitigation essentials: completion bond, soft monies, pre-sales, and revenue collection -Equity and debt structures: from gap to P&A and everything in between -Additional financing through music and post-production partners
Moderator: Joseph Chianese, SVP, Tax, Production Planning & Business Development, Entertainment Partners Panelists: Fred Milstein, Managing Director, Aon/Albert G. Ruben Insurance Services David Acosta, Senior Vice President, Entertainment Department, City National Bank Dominic Ianno, Chief Executive Officer, Indomitable Entertainment Rebecca Roffey, Director, Protocol International Andrew Hurwitz, Partner, Schreck Rose Dapello Adams & Hurwitz
9:30 - 10:30 am Co-Production Strategies: Identifying and Negotiating US and International Partnerships This session will address how to identify the right partners and locations for enhanced incentives, work out financial structuring, distribution territories, agreements, and accounting practices, among many other issues when working on co-productions in the current environment.
Moderator: Jeff Begun, Production Executive, The Incentives Office Panelists: Ted Hope, Producer, Double Hope Films Randall Emmett, Co-Chair, Emmett/Furla Films Harris Tulchin, Owner, Harris Tulchin & Associates Pat Swinney Kaufman, Executive Director, New York State Governor's Office for Motion Picture and Television Development Lloyd Kaufman, President, Troma Entertainment
10:30 - 10:45 am Networking Break
10:45 - 11:45 am Strategy Panel: Fundraising Against All Odds This group of speakers will share their recent experiences with fundraising challenges and how they overcame them in the midst of a global economic turmoil. For example, when the financing on Stephen Frears' new drama 'Lay The Favorite', starring Bruce Willis, fell apart twice, producer Anthony Bregman and his team faced a race against time to re-assemble and refinance the project and keep the director and all the cast on board. How'd they do it?
Moderator: Phil Fier, Principal, Focus Advisory Services Panelists: Anthony Bregman, Founder/Producer, Likely Story Celine Rattray, Partner, Maven Pictures Benji Kohn, Partner/Producer, Paper Street Films
11:45 am - 12:30 pm Closing Keynote Conversation: Lessons Learned in Generating Returns for Filmmakers and Financiers
Keynote Host: Robert Stanley, Co-Founder and Co-Managing Partner, Evolution Media Capital Keynote Speaker: Stuart Ford, Chief Executive Officer, IM Global AGENDA SUBJECT TO CHANGE.
We are currently finalizing the detailed agenda for this program. Please join our mailing list to receive updates: