Cutting Edge Group has signed financing deals for “Don Jon’s Addiction” and “Dead Man Down” in exchange for providing music services to the films.
Relativity picked up domestic rights to Joseph Gordon-Levitt’s feature directing debut “Addiction” for $4 million at Sundance. The film stars Gordon-Levitt and Scarlett Johansson and is produced by Ram Bergman and Nicholas Chartier. Chartier’s Voltage Pictures has foreign rights.
Neils Arden Oplev’s “Dead Man Down” stars Colin Farrell and Noomi Rapace, who was diercted by Oplev in the original screen adaptation of “The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo.” The producers are Neal Moritz and the film’s screenwriter J.H. Wyman, with IM Global financing. FilmDistrict will release “Dead Man Down” domestically on March 8.
“These films are great examples of how the best actors are doing smart indie films that have global appeal,” said CEG topper Philip Moross. “Everything we do at CEG is geared towards this model.”
CEG has invested in more than 200 films including “The King’s Speech,” “Drive,” “Looper” and “End of Watch” in exchange for music publishing rights. It handles scoring, clearances and music supervision in a film, then recoups from soundtrack and sheet-music sales; licensing and royalties from international ticket sales and TV deals; and rights in TV commercials.
Earlier this year, Cutting Edge raised $100 million in equity as part of a stategy to become the world’s predominant vertically-integrated film music services company. Moross and investor Wood Creek Capital announced on Jan. 7 the acquisition of film-TV soundtrack label Varese Sarabande Records.
