The people of Catalonia are lining the Ramblas thoroughfare in capital Barcelona to catch a glimpse of a blonde starlet and a man in a green fishing hat shouting "action!"
Director Woody Allen has promised his new movie - starring current muse Scarlett Johansson - will be a "love letter to Barcelona, and from Barcelona to the world" in the same way Manhattan was to New York.
But Barcelona's people are not so keen to be helping foot the bill for the movie.
Ten percent of the budget for The Barcelona Project - Allen's working title - is being paid by the taxpayers of the city and the region of Catalonia.
Barcelona's city hall is providing $1.37 million and the Catalan Regional Government more than $500,000 - an investment many argue should be going to home-grown works.
"He (Allen) must think we're quite a stupid society," said an editorial in Catalan daily El Periodico.
The row has aggravated artistic tensions in the region where the official language is not Spanish, but Catalan.
"The problem is... they say there is no money for Catalan films, and they even put obstacles in the way of awarding subsidies to films made in the Spanish language," said Alberto Fernandez Diaz, leader of the right-wing Partido Popular.
But many within Spain's film industry think the project is actually no bad thing.
"The director might be American but everyone from the art director to the technicians is Spanish, so this is actually a Spanish film and will give our industry a huge boost," said Pedro Perez, president of the Spanish Association of Film Producers.
A co-production only needs a 10 percent contribution from a Spanish production company to be considered a Spanish film. The Barcelona Project is a 50-50 co-production between Allen and Spanish company Mediapro, so is more thoroughly 'Spanish'.
The lead characters are played by Spain's top movie stars, Penelope Cruz and Javier Bardem.
Although the film's storyline is secret it is believed to be a love triangle - with Cruz and Johansson vying for the same man.
Agencies
(China Daily 07/31/2007 page9)
