Johann Grech planning new multi-million-euro film bash next month

Malta’s Film Commissioner Johann Grech is planning yet another taxpayer-funded film extravaganza this June, with costs expected to run into millions despite ongoing investigations into the spending and procurement practices behind previous editions of the Mediterrane Film Festival.

The Shift can reveal that preparations are already underway for what insiders are describing as Grech’s latest luxury “film festival”,  an annual event that industry sources increasingly argue has become less about cinema and more about political networking, celebrity glamour and a self-vanity affair.

According to Film Commission sources familiar with the plans, this year’s event is scheduled for the end of June. It is expected to double as an opportunity to issue public contracts for many of those currently involved in Labour’s electoral campaign machinery.

A public tender calling for contractors to organise the event was issued earlier this month, at the height of the electoral campaign. Yet, the contract has still not been officially awarded, despite the event being less than a month away.

The only bidder was Great Company Ltd, owned by former NET TV executive Anton Attard and Mark Grech, better known as il-Guru,  closely associated with the Film Commissioner.

The same company handled last year’s Mediterrane Film Festival, which itself became the subject of controversy after procurement records showed the contract was approved only after the festival had already concluded.

The latest bid is understood to amount to approximately €3.5 million, although sources familiar with previous editions expect the final costs to increase substantially once subcontracting, hospitality and ancillary expenses are added.

Last year’s festival eventually became one of the most controversial public spending scandals of 2025 and was also publicly criticised by Labour insiders, including Jason Micallef.

The Mediterrane Film Festival included lavish VIP treatment, luxury yacht transfers, five-star accommodation, celebrity hospitality, imported food and wine, influencers flown to Malta at taxpayers’ expense, and extravagant gala dinners at Manoel Island.

The event also triggered outrage after British comedian David Walliams joked during the ceremony that producers needed to “sleep with Johann Grech” to benefit from Malta’s multi-million euro film incentives.

Questions surrounding Walliams’ role intensified after Grech later declared in sworn court filings that the Film Commission held no contract or documentation related to his participation.

Repeated requests by journalists, opposition MPs and civil society groups seeking a breakdown of festival costs have consistently been resisted by the Malta Film Commission and Culture Minister Owen Bonnici.

Despite multiple parliamentary questions, Freedom of Information requests and court proceedings, the final costs of the three previous editions of the Mediterrane Film Festival have never been fully disclosed publicly.

The National Audit Office and Parliament’s Public Accounts Committee are currently examining several aspects of the Film Commission’s expenditure and procurement practices following a series of revelations concerning undocumented spending, weak oversight and irregular contracting.

The Shift is also informed that several contractors currently involved in Labour’s electoral campaign are expected to be brought in as subcontractors under the overall festival contract, receiving payments through public funds allocated to the event.

Industry insiders told The Shift that Johann Grech’s Film Commission has increasingly evolved into a personality-driven institution operating with exceptional political protection from the Office of the Prime Minister, particularly through the Prime Minister and his assistant, Mark Mallia.

Last year’s gala guest list included senior OPM officials, political aides and Labour “volunteers”, fuelling accusations that the event served as an exclusive partisan exercise financed by taxpayers rather than a genuine cultural initiative focused on Malta’s film industry.