For immediate release 

EUR 20 MILLION EVENT MOTION PICTURE ADAPTATION, THE RING

Munich, Germany (2003/09/23) - TANDEM COMMUNICATIONS and VIP Medienfonds are pleased to announce a € 20 Million event motion picture adaptation of Ring of the Nibelungs under the present working title: The Ring

Acclaimed and award-winning director, Uli Edel, (The Mists of Avalon, Last Exit to Brooklyn) and Emmy Award-winning producer Konstantin Thoeren (Peter the Great, Catherine the Great), have been signed for this € 20 Million project which will commence principal photography on November 17 th in Cape Town, South Africa. The Ring is written by Uli Edel together with Diane Duane and Peter Morwood based on a story by Bob Cochran (24, Attila). Co-produced by VFX-Oscar® winner Volker Engel (Independence Day, Godzilla) and his partner Marc Weigert (Independence Day, Muppets From Space) from Uncharted Territory. Production designer is Albrecht Konrad (Faraway, So Close, Aimée & Jaguar) who will be joined by costume designer Barbara Baum (The House of the Spirits, Aimée & Jaguar).

Based on one of Europe 's favourite classic tales, The Ring will draw from the unanimous appeal of the original saga of Siegfried the dragon slayer, which inspired The Lord of the Rings by J.R.R. Tolkien and Richard Wagner's opera cycle. Targeted at an international audience, this fantasy-adventure will captivate viewers with its story elements of universal, timeless appeal: the story of a simple swordsmith's son, who heroically saves his country time and again, not even knowing that he too is heir to a throne – set against the backdrop of a century-old curse that will overshadow the brave, young man's undying love to a beautiful woman.

Rola Bauer and Tim Halkin are executive producing for Munich-based TANDEM COMMUNICATIONS which will handle international distribution for the title. TANDEM has established itself in the international arena as both a production company and a worldwide distribution outfit. Having experienced rapid growth since its launch in 1999, the company can already look back on a solid track record of high-profile coproductions such as the long-running series Relic Hunter, mini-series Frank Herbert's Dune, action/fantasy film Sumuru and high-concept disaster movie P.I. -Post Impact. In the past two years, TANDEM COMMUNICATIONS has handled international television distribution on Lions Gate productions and its library. Currently, the company is distributing Sat. 1's fall event mini-series A Light in Dark Places (German title: Das Wunder von Lengede) and Discovery Channel's new feature-length CGI-documentary Dragons - A Fantasy Made Real, a project for which TANDEM is also co-producing.

TANDEM is proud to announce that Andreas Schmid and Andreas Grosch have come on board for The Ring as executive producers for VIP Medienfonds. VIP has been offering media funds since 2001 and has gained substantial film expertise through cooperations with various international partners during this time. VIP's established, international network of contacts to theatrical distributors and producers enabled projects like The Punisher with John Travolta and Monster with Charlize Theron to be greenlit and financed.

"The Ring" will be produced by TANDEM Productions "The Ring" GmbH & Co. KG (a subsidiary of TANDEM COMMUNICATIONS) and Film & Entertainment VIP Medienfonds (2&3) GmbH & Co. KG in association with Sat. 1, Channel Four and Columbia TriStar Home Entertainment.

TANDEM COMMUNICATIONS will be present at this year's MIPCOM, and MIFED.