Film Commission ‘leasing’ Fort Ricasoli as film set location without title

Concerns have been raised about several lease agreements between Johann Grech’s Film Commission and international filmmakers, including the recent Hollywood blockbuster ‘Gladiator II’, which used Fort Ricasoli in Kalkara as a filming location.

Questions in parliament asked in the past few months, especially by PN MPs Julie Zahra and Karol Aquilina, have led to no answers. The government has declined to disclose how much international film producers are paying to lease Fort Ricasoli, who is responsible for collecting these payments, and what happens to the funds once collected.

Film industry sources have informed The Shift that international filmmakers have entered into agreements with the Malta Film Commission to use the fort as a primary location for their films. However, they emphasise that there is uncertainty regarding the distribution of proceeds since the Malta Film Commission does not own the fort.

Investigations by The Shift confirmed that Grech’s Commission, which is intended to facilitate interactions between the government and international filmmakers, is also directly involved in the contracts for leasing the fort.

Yet, according to answers provided in parliament, the fort remains the property of the Lands Authority, and there is no formal agreement governing the Film Commission’s use of it.

When PN MP Julie Zahra asked which government entity was responsible for administering Fort Ricasoli, seeking details on the payments made by film producers, Lands Minister Stefan Zrinzo Azzopardi did not provide the information.

He avoided a direct answer, stating that lease agreements were confidential due to their commercial nature.

According to Zrinzo Azzopardi, the Lands Authority is “currently in discussions with the Malta Film Commission to reach an agreement on Fort Ricasoli.”

He acknowledged that the Film Commission has no title to the fort despite leasing it, but he refused to disclose how much money the government received from the leases or where that money went.

These so-called “discussions” seem never-ending. Five years ago, during another parliamentary inquiry by PN MP Karol Aquilina, then-Tourism Minister Julia Farrugia Portelli said discussions with the Malta Film Commission regarding the fort were ongoing.

“Discussions between the Lands Authority and the Malta Film Commission on an agreement to allow the Commission to administer the fort are at an advanced stage,” she insisted. Yet, five years later, those discussions remain unresolved.

Deeper problems of mismanagement

The fort has been used for major blockbusters such as ‘Gladiator’, ‘Troy’,  ‘Agora’ and ‘Julius Caesar’. The lack of clarity on revenue and its use highlights deeper issues of mismanagement often linked to the Commission, especially under the controversial leadership of Johann Grech.

Grech has frequently made headlines for his extravagant spending of public funds without accountability.

The latest incident was the €4 million spent in a weekend last summer to organise the Malta Film Week.

Industry insiders criticised the lavishness and uncontrolled expenditure on international filmmakers while local industry funding remains insufficient.

The National Audit Office (NAO) has recently condemned Grech’s mismanagement of the Commission. In a scathing report last November on a film festival he held in 2022, the NAO found a lack of accountability and proper management.

“The Malta Film Week held in 2022 was not supported by comprehensive documentation, particularly feasibility studies, plans, and predetermined goals,” the NAO concluded.

The NAO also highlighted that the Malta Film Commission has not submitted audited accounts for several years. “The absence of a serious audit trail results in poor business continuity and a lack of transparency, accountability, regularity, and value-for-money principles.”

The NAO noted that the last audited accounts from the Film Commission were from 2019. The audited financial statements for 2020 were finalised in October 2023, whereas those for 2021 and 2022 are due to be concluded in October 2024.

Recently, when asked in parliament why the Malta Film Commission, which has recently adopted the name Screen Malta, has not submitted its accounts to the MFSA, former Tourism Minister Clayton Bartolo said the Commission was not obliged to do so. The Auditor General clearly disagrees.