Rex in Malta for filming

Rex, the intelligent German Shepherd, is lapping it up in a villa in the north of Malta after arriving here yesterday for the filming of the popular Italian TV series that starts next week.

Italian production house Leader Production will be filming the episode from the third series that has been specifically scripted to be set in Malta, featuring Valletta, Vittoriosa, Mdina and Marsaxlokk.

The third edition of Rex, previously known as Il Commissario Rex, will be aired on Rai Uno between March and April during prime time. It features Kasper Capparoni, also the protagonist of other TV series alongside Rex, and other popular actors who will be taking part in the Malta episode.

Last year, the programme's viewership in Italy reached 6.5 million per episode. Apart from being screened in Italy, it was sold to more than 100 other countries worldwide, including Australia, Venezuela and South Africa and Malta's core tourism markets, Germany, Spain, Austria and Sweden.

The Malta Tourism Authority said its promotional efforts in Italy will benefit from an additional push with this screening, which has been made possible through the MTA's film unit and its office in Italy.

The film unit had established contact with Leader Productions during its participation in film festivals to raise Malta's profile through the attraction of TV and film productions.