Adrian Wootton, CEO of the British Film Commission and Film London, and Johann Grech, the Malta Film Commissioner, have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to strengthen the bond between film industries and facilitate co-productions and inward investment to both countries.
Recent productions to film in the UK and Malta include Ridley Scott’s Napoleon for Apple TV, Warner Bros’ Jurassic World: Dominion and HBO’s Game Of Thrones.
Wootton said the MoU with Malta provides the UK with “another service” to offer US producers.
“If a production is coming to the UK and they say ‘we need big bodies of water’ we can say ‘Malta is definitely an option,” Wootton told Screen. ”And we know exactly who you need to talk to, and we can put you in touch with them. From our point of view, it’s adding to the services that we can provide to a company that’s going to base themselves in the UK.”
As for independent UK producers, the MoU would offer up significant channels of communication for independent UK productions to shoot in Malta, and vice-versa, said Wootton. He cited the BFC MoU with Italy which has led to co-productions and link ups to regional Italian film commissions as the type of access UK based producers would gain.
“If an independent producer is interested in putting together a co-production or shooting between the two countries, the MFC will put them on to the UK, and we’d put them in touch with Malta,” he said.
Wootton, who is in Malta attending the Mediterrane Film Festival this week, also emphasised the UK’s commitment to remaining part of the European film industry landscape, and cited the importance of film tourism to both country’s economies.
Today’s MoU follows similar agreements with between the British Film Commission and Spain, Italy, Norway and Austria.
No comments yet