ANTONIO BANDERAS - BANDERAS WARNS INDIE FILMMAKERS TO PREPARE FOR TOUGH TIMES

BANDERAS WARNS INDIE FILMMAKERS TO PREPARE FOR TOUGH TIMES

ANTONIO BANDERAS fears independent filmmakers are set for a struggle - because cash-strapped investors are refusing to gamble on risky movie projects.
The Spanish actor has just screened his directorial debut, El Camino de los Ingleses, at the Karlovy Vary Film Festival in the Czech Republic - and admits he had to fight for the cash to get the low-budget film off the ground.
Banderas, who has a film production company based in Malaga, Spain - blames the world economic crisis on the troubles lying in store for independent cinema, explaining, "The crisis has taken us by surprise and it is stabbing us in the back.
"It is very difficult to get a penny from a bank now. We are in a difficult situation."
But the actor/director, who was presented with the festival's President's Award on Saturday (11Jul09), insists he won't stop making indie films - he's currently seeking funding for a screenplay he has written about "the last king of the Arabs in the ninth century".