The Malta Film Commission is launching the first Mediterrane Film Festival, a new annual event dedicated to the celebration of cinema and creativity.
Scheduled for 25-30 June, the festival will take place in Valletta, Malta’s capital, and other locations around the country. The aim of the festival is to serve as a platform for Malta to continue building its film brand image worldwide and attract more film-related business to the islands.
Notable films shot in Malta in recent years include Ridley Scott’s ‘Napoleon’, Terrence Malick’s ‘The Way of the Wind’ and Colin Trevorrow’s ‘Jurassic World Dominion’.
The programme, to be revealed during the Cannes Film Festival, will feature films from each of the nine MED9 nations (an alliance of nine Mediterranean Union and Southern European member states: Croatia, Cyprus, France, Greece, Italy, Malta, Portugal, Slovenia and Spain). The screenings will be open to the public, and the featured films will compete for various prizes.
Participants will include Maltese and international filmmakers, actors, crew members, studio executives and producers. In addition, there will be representatives from industry professionals, including the offices of the Mediterranean Film Commissions, the British Film Commission and Hollywood studio executives.
Malta. Capital of Mediterranean cinema
Film commissioner Johann Grech said: “The size of our country never deterred us from dreaming big. The Mediterrane Film Festival will bring together the nine unique Mediterranean nations to celebrate the power of togetherness; the power of creativity; the power of opportunity. Because alone we are small, but together we are better.”
Malta’s Minister of Tourism, Clayton Bartolo, added: “Our shared love for art and storytelling transcends borders, creating a beautiful tapestry of diverse cultures, united in our passion for film. It is in this spirit of togetherness that we look forward to building a bright future for the Maltese film industry, hand in hand with our Mediterranean partners.”
The Mediterrane Film Festival represents a unique opportunity for Malta to strengthen its presence in the film world and attract more productions to its beautiful islands. In recent years, Malta has proven to be an ideal location for the shooting of major international productions, thanks to its natural beauty, its well-preserved historical architecture and its strategic position in the Mediterranean. This new film initiative, in collaboration with Mediterranean and Southern European partners, could lead to further growth opportunities for the Maltese film industry.
Tax incentives and financial support for film productions in Malta
The Government of Malta recently updated the cash rebates for filmmakers, making the financial guidelines more attractive to the film industry. Productions that meet the cultural requirements are eligible for a rebate of up to 40 per cent of eligible expenditure.
Eligible productions are required to submit a provisional application to the Malta Film Commission, including a detailed projection of the Maltese production budget. Reimbursement is granted upon completion of filming and receipt of the audit report and after final review by the Commissioner, cash reimbursement is forwarded to the qualifying production no later than five months from the date of receipt of the production expenditure submitted to Malta.
Creative Malta, on the other hand, provides financial support to fiction, animation and creative documentary projects.
The aim is to facilitate the creation of eligible projects, intended for theatrical release, festivals and broadcasting (including VOD/SVOD platforms), that are considered a valuable contribution to the expression of creativity and culture, that strengthen aspects of the economy by offering cultural products, that contribute to the development of skills in the audiovisual sector and that are produced according to international standards.
Malta Business can accompany you through the process of applying for an incentive with the Malta Film Commission. For information, please fill in this form and you will be contacted by our qualified consultants for an initial interview.
