Mark Camilleri

In his youth Camilleri was a member of Moviment Graffitti. During this time, he was arrested with another member for attempting to throw red paint at the USS O'Bannon American warship, which was temporarily berthed in Malta. As he was a minor at the time of the crime, his name was not published. He was conditionally discharged for involuntarily damaging police uniforms, and fined €100.

Camilleri studied at the University of Malta. As a student, he edited a student newspaper called Ir-Realtà. During his university years, in 2009, he published Alex Vella Gera's short story Li Tkisser Sewwi (trans. Fix What You Break) in Ir-Realtà. Vella Gera's short story is a first person male narrative about female objectification and sexual violence. The publication was promptly banned from the University of Malta, and Camilleri was indicted to court along with the author for publishing obscenities and pornography. This arrest took place during a time when censorship laws were being applied across the arts sector. After the arrest, he organized a pressure group called Front Against Censorship, which lobbied for the removal of censorship laws from the arts. Camilleri and Vella Gera were released from all charges by the Maltese courts.

For his contributions to art and literature in Malta, Camilleri was awarded a Midalja għall-Qadi tar-Repubblika (M.Q.R.) in 2013 by Malta's President George Abela. Vella Gera was also offered the award but turned it down.