Maltese-Canadian filmmaker Mario Azzopardi is planning to present fresh proposals to the government on the creation of a film fund in Malta, after a state-backed fund, Maltese Falcon Productions, was scrapped four years ago.
Mr Azzopardi said he hoped the new fund could be set up "immediately".
He was speaking on his arrival for the European premiere of his award-winning film Savage Messiah, at Eden Century Cinemas on Tuesday. Proceeds of the film will go towards the YMCA Valletta Homeless Project for abused woman and children.
Mr Azzopardi had been the driving force behind the creation of Maltese Falcon Productions, which was supposed to co-finance three or four low-budget Maltese features a year.
After one of its principle backers, Mid Med Bank, backed out following the HSBC takeover, Mr Azzopardi was so frustrated with the lack of progress that he quit as its development and production chief.
However, he has not given up on the idea of Malta becoming a co-producer of international films, creating a film-producing industry in the process.
In fact he is expecting that the film fund will be set up immediately and he is hoping to tie its launch with a film he plans to shoot in Malta in January.
The film will focus on the life of Buzz Beurling, a Canadian pilot who was stationed at Ta' Qali and who is renowned for shooting down 21 Messerschmitts in 11 days during the German attack during the Second World War. Mr Azzopardi has already roped in the support of CTV, one of Canada's biggest TV networks, which has agreed to put up 40 per cent of the film's CAN$6 million (Lm1.58 million).
"We are now hoping the Maltese government will back the fund by offering tax incentives. It would be silly to shoot the film in Hungary just because of cheaper amenities," he said.
At the moment Mr Azzopardi is basking in the limelight after Savage Messiah clinched three prestigious Genie Awards: the Genie Best Adapted Screenplay; Best Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role; and Best Performance by an Actress in a Supporting Role.
These awards honour outstanding achievement in the Canadian film industry and have since grown in prominence to become one of the most prestigious cultural events in Canada.
Savage Messiah is a powerful psychological film about cult leader Roch Thèriault, based on the true story of one of the most sensational cases of brainwashing and manipulation in rural Quebec and Ontario in the 1980s.
"This is not a popcorn movie. It is a powerful and controversial film on child and woman abuse that will remain with you forever," Mr Azzopardi said.
Bookings for Tuesday's showing, which starts at 8.30 p.m., may be made by calling the Eden Century Cinemas on tel. 21376401. Tickets cost Lm5.