The film was chosen by the Malta Academy Selection Committee (MASC), an independent jury of Maltese professionals appointed by the Malta Entertainment Industry and Arts Association (MEIA) and the Malta Producers’ Association (MPA).

After her estranged mother’s death, Mar plans to leave Malta for good by selling the farmland she’s inherited. But as she travels the island to claim her land, she meets Nenu, an irrepressible 80-year-old folk singer, whose music and spirit challenge her desire to escape. An unexpected connection between past and present grows as Mar slowly warms to the homeland she wanted to turn her back on. Spoken almost entirely in Maltese, the film offers a portrait of Malta through its landscape, language and living folk-song tradition.

The main cast consists of Michela Farrugia, Nenu Borg, Michael Azzopardi, Frida Cauchi, Sean James Sutton, and Charles Sammut.

Żejtune had its world premiere in competition at the Göteborg Film Festival and won Best Screenplay in the International Narrative Competition of the Tribeca Film Festival. Later it travelled across Europe, winning the Audience Award at the Mediterranean Film Festival Split, as well as Best Sound and Music at Cinema Jove – Valencia International Film Festival.

In Malta, the film has attracted more than 11,000 cinema admissions since April 2026, and has been sold by Films Boutique to 22 countries, including France, Italy, Germany, Belgium, the Netherlands, the Balkans and several Eastern European territories.

The film was produced by the Maltese companies Noruz Films, Pellikola, and Solari Productions in coproduction with German One Two Films, and Rebecca Anastasi from Malta. The project has been financed by the Malta Film Commission, ZDF/Das kleine Fernsehspiel, Arte, Arts Council Malta, the Doha Film Institute, and the Ministry for Gozo.

Żejtune is Camilleri’s second feature film. His debut, Luzzu, premiered at the 2021 Sundance Film Festival, where it won the Special Jury Award for Acting, and was Malta’s submission for the 94th Academy Awards. Luzzu was produced by Noruz Films, Luzzu Ltd, Pellikola, and Maborosi Films, with support from the Malta Film Fund, and the financial incentives provided by the Malta Film Commission and the Government of Malta.

Alex Camilleri is a recipient of the Independent Spirit “Someone to Watch” Award and a Guggenheim Fellowship.

The nominations for 99th Academy Awards will be announced on 21 January and the 99th Academy Awards will be held on 14 March 2027 at the Dolby Theater in Hollywood, Los Angeles.