Panel: Building For Tomorrow
- Date
- Thursday 25 June 2026
- Time
- 16:30 – 17:45
- Location
- Mediterrane Festival Hub Room M1, 113 Archbishop St, Valletta VLT1444
The studio model that built Hollywood is not the studio model that will sustain the next era of global production. Virtual production, LED volume stages, large-scale water filming, and multi-platform content creation now demand a physical infrastructure that most existing facilities were never designed to provide. The question is not whether the industry’s infrastructure needs to change. It is where the new infrastructure will be built, who will build it, and which territories will have the vision to move first.
Malta has moved first. The Malta Land Sea Superstage - an integrated campus combining deep-water tank capability, land-based virtual production, and full production services - is one of the most ambitious infrastructure propositions in European film history. This session examines that proposition honestly, with the people best placed to say whether it is credible and what it will take to succeed.
THE MALTA LAND SEA SUPERSTAGE
The concept integrates deep-water tank capability – building on Malta’s established reputation as one of the world’s leading locations for large-scale water filming – with land-based virtual production stages, LED volume technology, and a full production campus. Malta’s 40% cash rebate, established crew base, and Mediterranean location make it one of the most competitive production territories in Europe. The Land Sea Superstage is the infrastructure investment that converts competitive positioning into genuine destination status.
Speakers
Johann Grech
Malta Film Commissioner
Architect of Malta’s 40% Cash Rebate | Founder, Mediterrane Film Festival
Glenn Gainor
CEO, Hollywood Ventures Group
Former Head of Physical Production, Amazon Original Movies | 14 Years Head of Physical Production, Screen Gems | Co-Founder, Sony Innovation Studios
Sandy Climan
Co-Founder, Hollywood Ventures Group
Former President of Worldwide Business Development, Universal Studios | Former CAA Senior Management | Producer, The Aviator (BAFTA, Golden Globe) | World Economic Forum Advisor
Lee Rosenthal
Former President, Worldwide Physical Production
Paramount Pictures 30+ Years at Paramount | Top Gun: Maverick | Every Mission: Impossible film | A Quiet Place Part II | Rango (Oscar, Best Animated Feature) | Rocketman | The Big Short
Chris Gardner
Senior Writer at The Hollywood Reporter
Award-winning journalist, serves as a Senior Writer at The Hollywood Reporter. For a decade, he wrote Rambling Reporter, a legendary column that dates back to the first issue of the magazine, published Sept. 3, 1930. In addition to Hollywood culture, Gardner focuses on breaking news, event coverage, talent interviews, features and profiles. He has covered the Oscars, Emmys, Golden Globes and Grammys, film festivals like Cannes, Sundance, Venice and Toronto, and cultural events like the Super Bowl. He has won a National Arts & Entertainment Journalism Award, five Los Angeles Press Club Awards, a SoCal Journalism Award and been nominated for a Daytime Creative Arts Emmy Award.