‘Serious questions’ over Sette Giugno film funded by State

An organisation representing film producers in Malta says it is “deeply concerned” over the way public money is being funnelled into a film about the 1919 Sette Giugno events without a competitive process. The Malta Producers Association (MPA), which represents TV and film producers, was reacting to revelations that the government is spending at least €500,000 on the production of a film about the uprising. Hollywood stars Harvey Keitel and Malcolm McDowell are set to star in the film so far titled Just Noise. As well as investing public funds into the film without a competitive process, the government has also formed a private company with the producers. Just Noise Ltd was formed last June with a 50/50 shareholding between the Malta Arts Council and Juggernaut Ltd, a company owned by producer Jean Pierre Magro, Pedja Miletic and Aaron Briffa. The MPA said there were serious questions over how the funding has been channelled into the film. “It is extremely worrying that €500,000 of public money seems to have been made available to a single production company with no competitive process and based upon a call for a script,” a spokesman said. Contradicting a claim made by Albert...