Spanish actor Antonio Banderas looks set to sign up to a movie about a period in the life of artist Pablo Picasso to be produced by Jorge Vergara, the owner of the Guadalajara Chivas soccer team and the multi-level Omnilife nutrition supplements company. 

“33 Days” tells the story of Picasso’s creation of “Guernica,” regarded by many art critics as one of the most moving and powerful anti-war paintings ever done.

In 1937, Picasso was commissioned by Spain’s democratic government to create a mural that would expose the atrocities of Generalissimo Francisco Franco and his allies.  Completed during May and June of 1937, the work reflects the devastating German bombing of the Basque town of Guernica during Spanish Civil War.

Vergara’s first feature as a producer, “Y Tu Mama Tambien” with Gael Garcia Bernal and Diego Luna, was a critical hit. He followed up with two other well-received films, “Cronicos” and “El Asesinato de Richard Nixon.” 

Attending last week’s Guadalajara International Film Festival, Banderas said that in addition to interpreting the great artist, he was thrilled that scenes from “33 Days” are likely to be shot in Malaga, Spain, his own birthplace, as well as Picasso’s.

Renowned Spanish filmmaker Carlos Saura is pencilled in as director of “33 Days” and it is rumored that Gwyneth Paltrow may also be involved.