Sundance Institute today announced a new program to connect its artists with audiences by offering access to top-tier creative funding and marketing backed by the Institute’s promotional support.  These essential services will act as building blocks for future program components which aim to provide filmmakers access to a broad and open array of third-party digital distribution platforms. Adding to the nonprofit Institute’s acclaimed programs for Screenwriters, Directors, Film Composers, Producers and Theatre artists around the world, the new services were developed based on research and input from filmmakers, industry advisors, its Technology Committee and its Board of Directors, including President Robert Redford. The creative funding component was announced today with Kickstarter, the largest platform in the world for funding creative projects.

Curtis advised Germany-based Versorgungswerk der Architektenkammer Baden-Württemberg – the Baden-Württemberg architects’ pension fund – in connection with its investments in two real estate funds – Paramount Group Real Estate Fund IV, L.P. and Paramount Group Real Estate Fund V, L.P. – with an aggregate transaction value of US$ 45 million.

DLA Piper is advising the US cosmetics group Avon on the sale of its German head office to the property fund Captiva Capital Partners III ELP (Captiva). The 115,000 m2 site in the Munich suburb of Neufahrn with a total of 48,000 m² of floor space was sold off as part of a sale and leaseback transaction to the fund managed by Natixis Capital Partners (NCP) and completely leased back by Avon at short notice.

Simpson Thacher recently represented the underwriters in two public offerings of Avago Technologies Limited ordinary shares by Avago’s principal shareholders:

International law firm Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer LLP has advised Gas Natural Capital Markets, S.A., a subsidiary of the Spanish Ibex-35 company, Gas Natural SDG, S.A. (“Gas Natural”), on an issue of new notes with an aggregate principal amount of €600m under its €10bn EMTN programme guaranteed by Gas Natural.

Olswang has advised Pathé on a long-term strategic alliance with Twentieth Century Fox. The deal will see Twentieth Century Fox exclusively handle Pathé UK’s theatrical, video and pay television distribution activity.

Paul, Hastings, Janofsky & Walker, a leading global law firm, announced today that the firm is advising social network service Facebook Inc. on the acquisition, leasing, and development of the company’s new global headquarters in Menlo Park, Calif. The complex deal for the one million square foot former Sun Microsystems campus involves the assignment to an investor of Facebook’s agreement to purchase the site from Oracle Corp., and the agreement of the investor to lease the entire property to Facebook following the closing.

The Firm recently represented the underwriters, led by Merrill Lynch, Pierce, Fenner & Smith Incorporated and Deutsche Bank Securities Inc. and co-managed by Piper Jaffray & Co., Morgan Keegan & Company, Inc. and ThinkEquity LLC, in connection with the underwriting of the initial public offering of common stock by NeoPhotonics Corporation (NeoPhotonics).  The offering of 8,625,000 shares, which includes the shares that were sold pursuant to the over-allotment option exercised by the underwriters, raised $94,875,000 in gross proceeds.  NeoPhotonics’ shares are listed on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol “NPTN.”

Appleby advises O3B $1.2bn (£700m) funding for a series of satellites to support super-fast broadband connections to Africa and other emerging markets named as “the fibre in the sky”.

Today, Womble Carlyle attorneys John Sweeney, Sky Woodward and Kevin Mattingly filed an amicus curiae brief in the U.S. Supreme Court in American Electric Power Company, Inc., et al., v. State of Connecticut, et al, a landmark environmental regulation case. The brief was filed on behalf of DRI – The Voice of the Defense Bar. Sweeney serves as a National DRI Director and as Immediate Past Chair of DRI’s Climate Change Litigation Task Force.