Malta slowly cements its role as big budget film location
Upcoming Michael Bay film 13 Hours: The Secret Soldiers of Benghazi - based on Mitchell Zuckoff’s non-fiction book of the same name - is being praised as the biggest production to ever shoot in Malta.
By Josh Wilson 6 Jul 2015
Upcoming Michael Bay film 13 Hours: The Secret Soldiers of Benghazi - based on Mitchell Zuckoff’s non-fiction book of the same name - is being praised as the biggest production to ever shoot in Malta.
The project – which is also known in some territories as The Tempest – will wrap filming on Tuesday 6 July after a three month shoot across the country. It is reported that it has pumped a total of $50m into the Maltese economy.
The film, which tells the story of six members of the US security team who fought to defend the American diplomatic compound in Benghazi when it came under attack in 2013, is set to be released by Paramount Pictures in January 2016.
Hollywood producer Erwin Stoff said on the filming: “No film I’ve worked on before was ever done this quickly - everyone moved really fast, and there was a real urgency to just get this going.
“Sadly, Northern Africa itself was not a real possibility for obvious reasons, so Malta came in as the perfect alternative. We wouldn’t hesitate to return to Malta for a second, and this reputation will travel to LA once we return home.”
It has been one of the busiest years for production in Maltese history, which features such as Apocalypse Slough making use of the locations on the Island. And Malta seems to become more popular as a film location by the minute. At the end of July, French director Luc Besson will shoot his feature film The Lake, which is currently in pre-production, in Malta.
Edward Zammit Lewis, the Maltese minister for tourism, said in an interview that the aim for the Island is now to make sure film servicing becomes an all-year-round operation.
The film, which tells the story of six members of the US security team who fought to defend the American diplomatic compound in Benghazi when it came under attack in 2013, is set to be released by Paramount Pictures in January 2016.
Hollywood producer Erwin Stoff said on the filming: “No film I’ve worked on before was ever done this quickly - everyone moved really fast, and there was a real urgency to just get this going.
“Sadly, Northern Africa itself was not a real possibility for obvious reasons, so Malta came in as the perfect alternative. We wouldn’t hesitate to return to Malta for a second, and this reputation will travel to LA once we return home.”
It has been one of the busiest years for production in Maltese history, which features such as Apocalypse Slough making use of the locations on the Island. And Malta seems to become more popular as a film location by the minute. At the end of July, French director Luc Besson will shoot his feature film The Lake, which is currently in pre-production, in Malta.
Edward Zammit Lewis, the Maltese minister for tourism, said in an interview that the aim for the Island is now to make sure film servicing becomes an all-year-round operation.
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