Hoping the hunger for local films won’t wane any time soon, Medusa film on Tuesday announced their current annual film investment would reach €130m, of which $142m (€100m) will go into local product.

Of the investment geared towards Italian products, $100m (€70m) will be earmarked for local film production with $42m (€30m) of it slated for P and A.

A logical choice, when this year to date, the Italian major has earned $185m (€130m) – to 2010’s full year gross of $173 (€122m), CEO Giampaolo Letta said today - off their line up, that included local mega hit What A Beautiful Day that grossed upwards of $70m (€50m) after opening in January.

2011 also registers an uptick (to date) in market share to 29% over 2010’s total year 17%.

A much slimmer $42 (€30m) will be used for foreign, mostly American films with Letta underlining this is not just for acquisitions, but to continue their investment in co productions. Medusa is currently full investor of Woody Allen’s working title project Bop Decameron to the tune of $22.7m (€16m), which is set to start principal photography on July 11 in Rome.

Medusa also recently co produced Sofia Coppola’s Golden Lion winning, and partly Italian set Somewhere, Paolo Sorrentino’s $40, (€28m) Cannes competitor This Must Be The Place and is on board to co produce Venuto Al Mondo, to be directed by Sergio Castellitto and starring Oscar winning actress Penelope Cruz and Emile Hirsch.

The company’s 2011-2012 slate includes some thirty-titles starting with the country’s top exportable talents: Sorrentino’s Place and Gabriele Muccino’s Hollywood project Playing the Field as well as up Bernardo Bertolucci’s upcoming 3D Io e Te.

Medusa will also distribute Italian animator (Winx series) Igino Straffi’s upcoming Not Born To Be Gladiators in the 2012 season.

Of the many Italian titles, comedies dominate and include, Tutta Colpa Della Musica, directed by Ricky Tognazzi with Stefania Sandrelli, Cose Dell Altro Mondo starring Diego Abatantuono and Valerio Mastandrea, Baciato Dalla Fortuna (Kissed By Luck) with Alessandro Gassman as well as a comedy from Pupi Avati entitled Il Cuore Grande Delle Ragazze, among others.

At Christmas, when screwball comedies reign, Medusa will unveil the Massimo Boldi starring film Matrimonio A Parigi (Wedding In Paris) to rival Filmauro’s annual Christmas franchise comedy entitled Christmas In … which, hasn’t, however, announced its full title yet.

As for international pictures Medusa is distributing films with big names or directors starting with Allen’s Midnight In Paris; Danny Boon’s Nothing To Declare; romantic comedy Larry Crowne directed by Tom Hanks starring Julia Roberts; Tomas Alfredson’s Tinker, Taylor, Soldier, Spy starring Colin Firth; Ghost Rider: Spirit Of Vengance starring Nicolas Cage; The Song Of Names with Anthony Hopkins and Roman Polanski’s Carnage, starring Jodie Foster and which is given as a shoe-in for Venice competition.