The announcement, which was widely reported in the Malta press, came at a press conference presented by the Malta Minister of Tourism Edward Zammit Lewis and the Malta Film Commissioner Engelbert Grech.

The new scheme will enable the Film Commission to award additional grants to filmmakers and to offer further training, according to the Film Commission.

The Minister also introduced a new grant to support domestic films at international film festivals and said the move was meant to help Malta producers compete on the international market.

One goal of the ministry is to bring more stability to the local film industry, instead of the current situation where the scheduling of international film productions creates peak seasons. The government hopes to do that by branching out into the commercial TV field and providing more support to domestic filmmakers.