The postgraduate programme, Master of Arts in Film Studies, was launched this morning by Tourism Minister Edward Zammit Lewis.

The course will offer a practical and theoretical base in cinematography, allowing students to specialise in the sector.

The programme will be offered on a part-time basis over six semesters, and shall consist of a taught component, dissertation and project.

The Minister said that the course will provide for higher quality services offered by the film industry in Malta, allowing for the country to be targeted by producers not merely for its location but for the quality of directors and scriptwriters it has. It will provide for the workforce to welcome foreign productions.

In a period of two years, the Malta Commission would have invested €1 million in training of Maltese artists.

The government is also working on a national policy focused on the film industry, in collaboration with the Malta Film Commission and the University of Malta.