On 17^th November 2023, the Embassy of Malta in Warsaw in collaboration with the Malta Tourism Authority, represented by its Visit Malta Office in Warsaw, screened the film CARMEN. The film, produced and directed by the Maltese Canadian Valerie Buhagiar, won the 2022 Canadian Film Festival in Toronto.

In her welcoming remarks, H.E. Ambassador Marisa Farrugia gave a brief overview of the film plot which was shot in Gozo and Malta.  The bittersweet comedy romance drama is based on true events of traditional life in a rural Maltese village in the 1980s.  ‘Carmen’ features the story of a spinster who spent most of her life as a housekeeper for her brother, the Catholic parish priest. It is a story of a woman on a quest to find her own voice rediscovering herself.

The Ambassador highlighted the opportunities that Malta has been offering in film facilities for the last fifty-eight years.  She briefly touched upon the production facilities one finds at the Malta film studios while referring to some renowned films and blockbusters that were shot in Malta in the last four decades.

The film screening of ‘Carmen’ was held as part of the Embassy’s cultural diplomacy initiative and was held at Kino Kultura, Warsaw, followed by light refreshments.  The event was well attended by members of the diplomatic corps, academics, Polish filmmakers, members from the Maltese community in Poland and by some Polish government officials.

The film served as an opportunity for the audience to watch a movie in the Maltese language and admire the sparkling colourful lights of the Gozitan countryside and the seaside scenery, all enticing sights to promote tourism to the Maltese islands.