Mumbai: MIPCOM 2012 at Cannes saw the crossover of a couple of big names from films to television. Iconic independent film producer/distributor Harvey Weinstein and Oscar-winning writer/director Jane Campion made their debt appearance at the annual event announcing their foray into television.

Attending his first MIPCOM, Weinstein unveiled The Weinstein Company‘s plans to expand in television production and distribution with the likes of epic drama series ‘Marco Polo,‘ reality series ‘Supermarket Superstars‘ and documentary series ‘Seal Team Six.‘ And he chose MIPCOM to unveil a new initiative - the World Dance Awards - a live TV show conceived by dancing wizard Michael Flatley.

Like Weinstein, Campion is more used to attending the Cannes Film Festival. So 2012 was her debut appearance at MIPCOM to discuss her first foray into television via drama series ‘Top of the Lake‘, starring Elisabeth Moss, Peter Mullan and Holly Hunter.

Explaining his strategy, Harvey Weinstein told his audience, "TV is such an exciting area at the moment and movies are shrinking to some extent. So it‘s the right time for us to get into TV in a big way."

Attending MIPCOM to present ‘House of Cards‘ to potential buyers, American actor, director, screenwriter and producer Kevin Spacey noted, "When you look where the most interesting plot lines, storylines and characters are, it‘s in television."

House of Cards is the re-make of the classic 1990 British mini-series. The US version will be set in the backdrop of electoral politics. The British version had explored the merciless underside of British politics at the end of the Thatcher era.

The four-day MIPCOM is the annual global market for entertainment content across all platforms. Every year, the industry‘s international heavy hitters - from TV and film - converge in Cannes to create a new world of entertainment.

Major companies and household names from the film and internet world lined up alongside their television counterparts for one of the biggest MIPCOMs ever. MIPCOM 2012 cemented a coming together of all sectors of the entertainment business.

As many as 12,900 delegates from 104 countries, including 4,400 buyers, negotiated and networked their way throughout MIPCOM 2012. Of those buyers, over 500 were making dedicated VOD (video on demand) acquisitions, according to a statement by MIPCOM.