Mediaset to finance raft of projects following Pope biopic

Mediaset plans to finance a raft of content projects in Italy with international distribution in mind following its US$15 million investment in Chiamatemi Francesco, a biopic of Pope Francis that will be released theatrically on December 3 in Italy.

Mediaset content chief Alessandro Salem said that the film would be “the first in a series of new projects produced in Italy and conceived for wide-scale international distribution” at a press conference to mark the release.

Mediaset took the decision to finance the biopic entirely from its own resources without a coproduction deal after the project was proposed by Pietro Valsecchi, founder of Mediaset’s production unit TaoDue to Mediaset CEO Pier Silvio Berlusconi, according to the company. Chiamatemi Francesco, directed by Daniele Luchetti, has been made in both a feature film version and as 4×50 min. mini-series.

The film, which will be distributed by Mediaset distribution unit Medusa Film, has been sold in 40 countries internationally in both its film and TV versions.