The video of Prime Minister Joseph Muscat’s controversial new year message cost some €8,400 to be made.

The 20-minute clip, which included dramatic shots of cliff tops, Grand Harbour and the national orchestra, has come under public scrutiny.

A government spokesman yesterday said the exact cost of the video was still being calculated and a breakdown would be tabled in Parliament shortly.

Independent MP Marlene Farrugia said on Monday the money should instead have been distributed to poor families who needed it most.

Estimates solicited by this newspaper indicated that it would have cost an ordinary civilian in excess of €10,000 to produce such a clip.

Production houses contacted by the Times of Malta said they would charge between €1,500 and €3,000 to shoot and edit the video but this would not cover other costs.

The video includes a wide shot of about 40 members of the Malta Philharmonic Orchestra

The Office of the Prime Minister has an in-house editing suite and employed a full-time editor after the last election. The video includes a wide shot of about 40 members of the Malta Philharmonic Orchestra performing a rubato rendition of the national anthem. The orchestra charges €150 per musician for ensemble work. It is not clear what rate, if any, the government paid for this performance.

The orchestra scene, along with a number of others, was filmed using drones. Drone companies said they would charge about €1,000 a day for that sort of work.

The video opens with a scene of a grand piano being played on a cliff’s edge above rough seas. Just transporting the bulky instrument to that location would have cost around €500, according to movers.contacted by this newspaper.