The Maltese film Il-Gagga was screened at the Italian Cultural Institute in Tripoli, Libya, as part of The Great Directors International Film Festival.

Productions from 16 countries, including Malta, are being screened in various locations in Tripoli. The festival is organised by the Italian Cultural Institute in collaboration with the Tripoli Municipality People’s Committee for Culture and Information and with the participation of the Embassies of Brazil, Canada, Egypt, France, Germany, Italy, Republic of Korea, Japan, Malta, Poland, Serbia, Switzerland, Turkey and the USA.

Members of the Maltese community in Libya, Libyan friends of Malta and other members of the expatriate community in Libya attended the screening and were full of praise and admiration for this early work of Maltese film director Mario Philip Azzopardi that eloquently depicts the anguish of evolving and conflicting values in Malta during the 1960s. Originally filmed on Super 8, Il-Gagga was recovered and digitally re-mastered for screening by Studio Seven Productions Ltd.

Malta’s participation in this international film festival is yet another result of the endeavours of Malta’s Tripoli Embassy in promoting different aspects of Maltese culture through its own activities and in cooperation with the Libyan Authorities and other European Union Embassies.

Il-Gagga’s screening is also the latest in a string of cultural and social events organised in the Libyan capital by the Maltese Embassy and the Klabb tal-Maltin aimed at bringing together members of the Maltese community residing, working and frequently visiting Libya.