The filming of a pilot episode for Saul, a TV series based on the Acts of the Apostles, will begin in Malta on November 26.

Depending on the success of the pilot, newly established film company Cittadella hopes to produce another 12 episodes, comprising the first season, to be shot entirely in Malta between May 2014 and February 2015.

Saul is an official Malta-Canada co-production, with E-ONE acting as worldwide distributors.

Out of the 26 cast members, 19 will be Maltese. The foreigns include John Rhys Davis, Kyle Schmidt and Emmanuel Vaugier, while Larissa Bonaci, John Suda, Godwin Scerri and Joe Quattromani will play some of the other principal parts.

Script and direction is in the hands of Maltese writer/director Mario Philip Azzopardi, who is also the CEO of Cittadella Films.

“After a spate of biblical films on American TV, there seems to be a resurgence of interest in Biblical themes,” said Azzopardi.

“This movie and the series is a fictionalised retelling of the origins of the Christian Church, based on the Acts of the Apostles with Paul of Tarsus (St Paul) and Mary Magdalene as the main protagonists."

Guaranteed distribution and pre-sales will secure the exorbitant cost of the series which is estimated at €75 million for all 24 episodes

Perhaps the most ambitious project in the pipeline is a Great Siege co-production between Cittadella and Berkshire Axis Media of Toronto Canada.

It has been in development for the last 14 months and will be entering into pre-production by the summer of next year to shoot in early 2015.

Negotiations will be closing imminently with a major German distributor and a leading British TV production company (names withheld pending imminent agreement) for a quad partite production of The Knights of Malta, according to Cittadella.

“This will be a three-season (eight episodes per season) TV mega production. The first season will follow a myriad of characters in the year before the Great Siege, the second season will be dedicated entirely to the Great Siege while the third season will follow the same characters in the aftermath of the historic conflict.”

The executive producer is Fred Fuchs who was one of the producers of The Godfather (part 3).

Guaranteed distribution and pre-sales will secure the exorbitant cost of the series which is estimated at €75 million for all 24 episodes, Azzopardi said.