Antonio Banderas to portray trapped Chilean miner

Los Angeles, May 22 (IANS/EFE) Spanish actor Antonio Banderas will star in "The 33", a film based on the story of survival of the miners buried for more than two months in a mine in northern Chile, Variety reported.

Banderas will portray Mario Sepulveda, the charismatic miner who earned the nickname "Super Mario".

The announcement was made by producer Mike Medavoy at the Cannes Film Festival. The filming, to be directed by Mexico's Patricia Riggen, will begin in the fall in Chile.

Martin Sheen and Rodrigo Santoro will also be part of the cast.

The script, by Mikko Alanne and Jose Rivera, sticks to the incidents that occurred in the San Jose mine, where the miners were trapped some 700 meters underground for 70 days before they were rescued in October 2010.

The script was written in collaboration with the miners themselves and includes details never before revealed about their first 17 days below ground before they were able to make contact with the surface.

Simultaneously with the filming, journalist and author Hector Tobar is currently writing the official book recounting the miners' ordeal.

--IANS/EFE

rd