GV Films - Studio Cities

GV films, a leading media company, today said it would build 'studio cities' in 23 tier-two cities in south India in the next three years. Each costing Rs 20 to 40 crores, it would have five screens, shopping malls and food courts, S Venkataramani, Vice President, G V Films, told a press conference.

The first one, which is completed, would be opened soon at Thanjavur, he said.

Total cost of the project would be around Rs 700 crore and funding would be done through internal generation, he said

The company had won the prestigious Seoul Drama award, considered to be the Oscar for television serial, for its three dimension television sop 'Mayavi', the first to be won by an Indian company, he said.

It was selected from over 130 entries, he said.

The company planned to dub the serial in other Indian and foreign languages, he said adding that it was negotiating with foreign producers for joint production of animated TV serials.

GV Films - 8000 English Movies

In the biggest library buyout in the Indian entertainment space, GV Films is effecting a $43.56-million (Rs 175 crore) acquisition of around 8,000 Hollywood titles from Pinewood Films, an investment arm of a UK based distributor. 

On April 30, GV raised $40 million through GDRs listed on the Luxembourg exchange to fund the acquisition. The process was managed by Zurich-based Bremer Bugmann Seiler Capital Partners AG and Bank of New York. 

A company official said the deal has been confirmed, while verification of the tittles were currently on. The company, which has produced some of the biggest blockbusters in the South Indian film industry, said the deal covered the worldwide Internet, DVD and cinema rights, which featured Hollywood titles from the 1940s to the late 1970s. 

Some of the notable titles in the library include Sherlock Holmes And The Secret Weapon (1943), Attack Of The Monster (1969), Murder On Flight 502 (1975), Clashes Of The Ninja (1986), Ghost (1963) and Murder With Music (1941). 

It is believed that the impending acquisition would strengthen GV’s nascent webcasting business, which already has rights for 6000 Indian tittles. The first listed domestic entertainment company is betting big on its webcasting business along with the Studio City project, which involves setting up of multiplex, retail gallery and budget hotel across 23 locations, to bounce back from a difficult phase following the death of its original promoter some years back. 

GV has mainly been a production and distribution entity with Tamil blockbusters directed by Manirathnam—Nayagan, Anjali and Dalapathi—to its credit. The company also forayed into television production with a 3D offering Mayavi currently airing on Jaya TV .Earlier this year, GV announced Bollywood foray after roping in Anees Bamzai.