03/10/2005

An Italian private equity fund that invests entirely in the cinema has arrived. It is called CineFund I and has just recently received regulation approval from the Banca d'Italia.
Cinefund I will finance high quality Italian and internationally co-produced films that also have strong profit potential, acting as co-producers with a maximum investment share of one-third of the total investment. The fund’s goal is to produce five or six films a year and in order to achieve this, CineFund sgr, the company managing the Fund, aims to accrue between 50m to 70m euro. The projects to be financed will be chosen with the help of an advisory board made up of prominent foreign personalities from the world of cinema and culture.

Cinecittà Holding (whose primary shareholder is the Ministry of Culture) will provide an initial investment of 15m euro. The fund will receive mixed capital, both private and public. The public component will undersign shares with a right to return of capital but will not participate in the profits.
"The Italian film industry will benefit from this initiative, not only in terms of the availability of additional financing, but also in terms of professional growth and increased expertise," said Michael Martinelli, Managing Director of CineFund sgr. "The decision to entrust the fund to an investment firm with an eye towards profit is one way to use public money in an efficient manner with expectations of an elevated returns."

(Translated from Italian)