Updated with PN reaction 1.55 pm

The Malta Film Commission has rejected a freedom of information request to publish a controversial 10-minute film featuring Johann Grech.

In an email denying Times of Malta’s request, the Film Commission said: “The document requested is publicly available or will be published within three months.”

The 10-minute film, which features the film commissioner and stars David Walliams, is conservatively estimated to cost taxpayers at least €500,000.

It has never been made public and was only screened to guests at the Mediterrane Film Festival in June.

The film, called Once Upon a Time in Malta, starred Walliams and Grech, among others, in a plot that sees the British actor travel back in time to the Knights of Malta period.

Sources said around 130 crew members were employed to work on the film, which was led by a British director, James Nunn.

Tourism Minister Clayton Bartolo later said the film was made to attract business to the country but also admitted that, in his view, Grech should not have featured in it. 

Prime Minister Robert Abela implied he had reservations about the amount spent on the film, saying it must bring “very strong” returns on investment to be considered a smart use of taxpayer money.

The film, 'Once Upon a Time in Malta', starring David Walliams, saw the British actor and two-time film festival host travel back in time to Malta’s Knights period.

Times of Malta filed the freedom of information request in July in the wake of the controversy. 

The full cost of the film has also not been disclosed with Grech saying all investment in the Mediterrane Film Festival will be made known in an economic report at a later date.

At the time, Grech said the film would be sent to international film-makers and production companies to generate interest in telling the story of the Knights of St John. 

He had said: “This story can be as impactful as Game of Thrones or The Crown, and it [the film] will also be used in various screen tourism and promotional events in the coming months.”

Walliams was paid €120,000 to host the Malta Film Awards in 2022 but the sum was only revealed after a judge ordered the Malta Film Commission to declare how much it had paid the comedian.

Government must be transparent about how it spends taxpayer money - PN 

In reaction to the FOI being rejected, Shadow Culture Minister Julie Zahra said that the government should be transparent about how it spends taxpayer money. 

Additionally, she said it must turn its focus on helping Malta’s indigenous film industry rather than “spending frivolously on its inner circle”. 

“It is worrying that the full spend on this film has not been revealed and there is an urgent need for the government to be transparent about how it uses taxpayer money. It is evident that this expense cannot be justified, especially when there is a dearth of funds available to support local artists,” Zahra said in a statement.

“The PN believes that the government should use financial resources responsibly and transparently. Investment in the local arts scene should be a priority to reach concrete and realistic results for the Maltese cultural sector and not with enormous spending with no accountability, as was the case with this film.”