Mexican filmmakers' unusual offer

Three prominent Mexican directors and two lesser-known ones are quietly shopping themselves to Hollywood in an all-or-nothing, five-picture deal.

The price tag: as much as $100 million.

Merging their talents and newfound clout are Guillermo del Toro, Alfonso Cuaron and Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu, who, in taking this initiative, are seeking the kind of creative control and ownership over their work that few filmmakers enjoy.

Studios are being asked in the unprecedented proposal to bankroll five movies, at least two of which are expected to be in Spanish. Typically, studios greenlight only one movie at a time.

In addition, not all of the films will be from the threesome behind such acclaimed films as "Pan's Labyrinth," (Del Toro) "Children of Men" (Cuaron) and "Babel," (Gonzalez Inarritu), a best-picture Oscar nominee.

One of the lower-profile directors is Alfonso Cuaron's younger brother, Carlos, co-writer of the independent hit "Y Tu Mama Tambien," whose planned soccer drama "Rudo y Cursi" is being offered in the package and would mark his feature directing debut.

The other director is Rodrigo Garcia, who made Sony Pictures' upcoming drama "Passengers" and directed episodes of cable TV shows such as "Six Feet Under" and "Big Love." His father is Nobel Prize-winning novelist Gabriel Garcia Marquez.

Over the last several weeks, the directors' respective agents have been talking up the "five-pack" proposal to a select group of equity funds and studios where the directors have strong ties, including Universal Pictures, Paramount Vantage and Warner Bros.

As of last weekend, Universal was the front-runner; the other studios had concluded that the asking price was too onerous.

Studio executives and agents involved in the deal, who declined to comment for confidentiality reasons, cautioned that the proposed transaction was complex, with a lot of moving parts that were still being coordinated.

The deal highlights the tight relationship among the three better-known filmmakers, who have been friends for years, often work together and actively promote one another's movies. Cuaron and Del Toro have produced each other's films. During this year's Oscar season, the directors hosted parties and screenings for one another's nominated films.

Another unusual characteristic of the deal is the temporary alliance of three powerful rival talent agencies, Endeavor, William Morris Agency and Creative Artists Agency, which regularly fight for business and poach one another's clients. Gonzalez Inarritu recently defected from Endeavor to CAA.