Three high profile big budget feature projects fromMichael Mann, Sam Mendes and Gary Ross have been shortlisted for considerationby the investors of Hannover Leasing's (HL) second Montranus media fund at ameeting in Munich next week (December 17).

After consulting with film industry experts, theMunich-based fund has put forward three projects with total provisional budgetsof over $320m: Michael Mann's $120m big-screen version of the cult TV series MiamiVice; Gary Ross' $ 107.95m romantic comedy Dog Years; and SamMendes' $ 95.2m Gulf War drama Jarhead.

According to HL, Ross' comedy, set at Christmas in NewYork and starring Ben Stiller, would begin shooting in January/February 2005and be released in North America for Christmas 2005.

An early 2005 shoot is also planned for Mendes'adaptation of Anthony Swofford's bestselling autobiography about his life as aUS Marines marksman during the last Gulf War. Starring Jake Gyllenhaal andscripted by Apollo 13's William Broyles, principal photography on Jarheadis scheduled over 63 shooting days in California and Mexico with atheatrical release in the second half of 2005.

Meanwhile, an April start has been slated for productionon Mann's feature version of the series he initiated and produced in the 1980s.Jamie Foxx - who recently appeared in Mann's Collateral - and ColinFarrell have been chosen to play the parts of Ricardo Tubbs and Sonny Crockettwhich were immortalised in the original series by Philip Michael Thomas and DonJohnson.

The second Montranus media fund was launched in Septemberto raise at least Euros 230m to invest in a number of feature films byUniversal Studios, and each project has been assigned to a single-purposeproduction company - such as Motion Picture ETA Produktionsgesellschaft mbH& Co. KG for Miami Vice - for the fund to monitor their developmentand production.

The fund acts as investment vehicle for Germanhigh-earners who want to reduce their tax bills. Local investors must invest aminimum of $30,000, and the fund will cover the entire costs of the Universalfilms.

To date, HL has initiated and placed eleven media fundsin the market with an overall investment volume of over Euros 1bn, withparticipation in such films as Rush Hour II, I Am Sam and the second andthird instalments of The Lord Of The Rings trilogy .

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