The Maltese film Uwijja attracted 37,000 international viewers after it was made available on popular international streaming websites in the beginning of 2023.
Uwijja follows the tale of John (Kim Camenzuli), who is balancing school, work and his social life, and touches upon the dangers of drink driving.
Directed by Keith Albert Tedesco, the film was screened locally in 2022 and was made available on numerous streaming channels such as Amazon Prime, Canal VOD, iTunes, Google, iNDEMAND and Vudu. It was seen by 37,000 viewers between 2023 and this June. Available on GO, the film has also gained popularity among local viewers.
It had an average of 20,000 views per month last year, plus an additional 6,000 views every time it was broadcast, which happened six times in 2023.
“Having a quarter of a million people watch such a small film is a big deal to me,” Tedesco said.
“Initially, I was surprised and I am relieved that a €20k film did well. The €20k went a long way and I didn’t have to break the bank or spend unnecessary and exuberant amounts of taxpayers’ money to do something for our film culture and society.”
Uwijja will be screened at the Gozo Film Festival on August 24.
Following Uwijja, Tedesco dived into his third production, a mini-series ‒ The Home Straight ‒ about a retired Maltese athlete with a club foot who comes out of retirement and, against all odds, becomes one of Europe’s top 400 sprinters. The script was inspired by the childhood experiences of the lead actress, Sarah Naudi, who grew up with a club foot.
Attitude towards local film-makers has changed for the worse
Tedesco had launched a crowdfunding campaign to start working on the new production, which is at the post-production stage.
“The Home Straight has been a most eye-opening experience as I haven’t filmed in Malta for some time and the climate and attitude towards local film-making has changed for the worse,” he said. “It’s more expensive now and there is less heart.”
He said he struggled to find cast and crew who were willing to make themselves available for filming or to retain crew, who would prefer to work for a big name studio instead.
“It was a lot of begging and, in the end, I was heartbroken. Thank God, I was surrounded by a few film lovers like Fabrizio Fenech and Sarah Naudi, who helped me cross the finish line.”
But the experience also had its positive moments. Tedesco had teamed up with Athletics Malta and had a few strong athletes feature in the film playing themselves.
“It was humbling, amazing and rewarding to have such a dedicated representation of this side of Malta give their all for the film,” he said.
“It was beyond amazing. Their lives and passions are something to be celebrated, and spending just a few days with them was enough for me to feel like I’ve come up on top, even if it was the most challenging project I’ve ever had to do.”