In recent years, we in Malta have been very fortunate to have attracted several big budget feature films being shot here. But the vast majority of movies do not have $100,000,000 - $150,000,000 budgets. Most are far more modest affairs costing between $4 to $10,000,000. These are the bread and butter Indie films that keep the movie business ticking over.
However, low budget certainly does not mean low quality; several award-winning features have cost a fraction of the wardrobe budget of a blockbuster like Agora. Toronto-based production company Lenz Entertainment are currently in pre-production of a comparatively low-budget feature, much of which could be shot here in Malta. Conversely it could also be shot in lots of other places, because - as with all low budget films - everything depends on cost.
Certainly Malta is one of the countries very much on the minds of the production heads, but maybe we've had it a bit too easy lately. What we mean by that is, the influx of multimillion dollar blockbuster features to our shores has made it difficult for the smaller production houses to compete financially.
For example: There is no way that they can pay the sort of wages that the big boys can shell out. They also have to count every penny when it comes to construction and other costs. Local actors, extras and suppliers of ancillary services to visiting film crews get used to a certain level of remuneration. This makes it difficult for them to accept that they will be paid considerably less that they were when they worked on Troy or Gladiator or Agora.
But, if the local film industry is to grow and flourish, it is the smaller features and made-for-TV films that will have to form the bulk of the work. There is a very strong possibility that Lenz Entertainment will shoot for six weeks here in Malta during the autumn. There is the added possibility that the Maltese-born director Mario Azzopardi will direct the movie. It all depends on whether we can cut our cloth to fit the budgetary constraints, which will be vital if this particular shoot - and other similar ones - are to be attracted to our islands.
However, low budget certainly does not mean low quality; several award-winning features have cost a fraction of the wardrobe budget of a blockbuster like Agora. Toronto-based production company Lenz Entertainment are currently in pre-production of a comparatively low-budget feature, much of which could be shot here in Malta. Conversely it could also be shot in lots of other places, because - as with all low budget films - everything depends on cost.
Certainly Malta is one of the countries very much on the minds of the production heads, but maybe we've had it a bit too easy lately. What we mean by that is, the influx of multimillion dollar blockbuster features to our shores has made it difficult for the smaller production houses to compete financially.
For example: There is no way that they can pay the sort of wages that the big boys can shell out. They also have to count every penny when it comes to construction and other costs. Local actors, extras and suppliers of ancillary services to visiting film crews get used to a certain level of remuneration. This makes it difficult for them to accept that they will be paid considerably less that they were when they worked on Troy or Gladiator or Agora.
But, if the local film industry is to grow and flourish, it is the smaller features and made-for-TV films that will have to form the bulk of the work. There is a very strong possibility that Lenz Entertainment will shoot for six weeks here in Malta during the autumn. There is the added possibility that the Maltese-born director Mario Azzopardi will direct the movie. It all depends on whether we can cut our cloth to fit the budgetary constraints, which will be vital if this particular shoot - and other similar ones - are to be attracted to our islands.