Jackson Walker recently celebrated with its clients the opening of Words and Pictures, a feature film starring Juliette Binoche and Clive Owen that was produced by Latitude Productions and Lascaux Films. After premiering at the Toronto Film Festival in September, the film opened in New York, Los Angeles, and San Francisco on May 23 and is scheduled for nationwide release on June 6.

Jackson Walker’s Entertainment Law section represented Latitude Productions and Lascaux Films in a variety of legal matters related to the financing, production, and distribution of the film. Words and Pictures is the latest in a number of successful film projects the firm has been involved with over the past few years, including:

• Life Itself (Latitude Productions and Lascaux Films), starring Morgan Freeman and Diane Keaton, scheduled for 2014 release
• The Starck Club (M3 Films, Lascaux Films), premiered at 2014 Dallas International Film Festival
• Believe Me (Lascaux Films), premiered at 2014 Dallas International Film Festival
• A Walk Among the Tombstones (The Traveling Picture Show Company), starring Liam Neeson, in post-production, scheduled for 2014 release
• The Quiet Ones (The Traveling Picture Show Company) premiered in Los Angeles in April, released nationwide in May
• Divine Access (The Traveling Picture Show Company), starring Billy Burke, just wrapped shooting in Austin
• Stanley Marcus (M3 Films), in production
• All for Love (The Traveling Picture Show Company), in pre-production
• Cry (New Trick Flix), screened at Dallas International Film Festival in 2013

In addition to Mr. Waks, Jackson Walker attorneys Monica Pace Messick, Pete Hyndman, and Emilio Nicolas have assisted with the representation of clients in the various film projects listed above.

Jackson Walker provides a full range of services to clients in the film industry, counseling both newcomers and veterans through all stages of financing (debt and equity), production, distribution, and marketing. Members of the Entertainment group also provide guidance on the formation of business entities, securities law compliance, and obtaining available grants and tax incentives. On the production side, Jackson Walker attorneys handle the legal matters involved in hiring cast and crew members, union and guild compliance, waivers and releases, licensing – in short, everything that goes into making a movie. Attorneys also provide legal advice on commercialization and distribution, including the myriad licensing and merchandising deals that are now part of the motion picture industry. In addition to working on individual films, Jackson Walker represents numerous multiple-picture film funds in Texas and California.

While Jackson Walker has maintained a robust Entertainment practice for decades, the group has seen increased activity in recent years with the emergence of Texas as a hot spot for both film production and finance.

“We have witnessed a blossoming of film finance in Texas, and even more particularly in the Dallas-Fort Worth area,” said Mr. Waks. “We have a very vibrant film finance community here, and we are proud to be able to serve that community and play a role in the exciting work that’s being done.”