The Malta Film Commission is launching a Mediterranean-focused film festival building on its growing position as a key international shooting location.
Bannered the Mediterrane Film Festival, the event run will from 25 to 30 June in the Maltese capital of Valletta and other locations across the archipelago country.
The commission said the event would take its cue from Malta’s location in the Mediterranean Sea and aim to foster creative collaboration between the so-called Club Med or MED9 nations.
These nine European Union member states with Mediterranean borders consist of Croatia, Cyprus, France, Greece, Italy, Malta, Portugal, Slovenia and Spain.
The competitive festival will show contemporary cinema from these nine countries and aim to build creative collaborations between them.
“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,” said Film Commissioner Johann Grech.
Minister for Tourism Clayton Bartolo added: “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.”
Attendees will include Maltese and international filmmakers, actors, crew members, studio executives and producers as well as representatives of Mediterranean Film Commission offices, the British Film Commission, academics, investors and executives from major Hollywood studios.
Malta’s standing as an international filming location has burgeoned over the past decade thanks to a strategy of developing infrastructure and crew as well as the creation of a 40% cash rebate.
The country hosted five international shoots in the first four months of 2023 including Classified, starring Tim Roth and Aaron Eckhart.
