Hugo Chavez is getting into the film business, or rather the government of Venezuela is, funding a new state-controlled movie studio called Cinema Villa. And as you might have guessed, the content of the films set to be produced are political in nature:

Now rolling are biopics about national heroes and villains, including Luis Posada Carriles, the former CIA operative who allegedly masterminded a jetliner bombing and tried to kill Fidel Castro.

Scenes are being shot in and around Caracas this month for the movie about Posada, considered by Chavez to be a Latin American version of Osama bin Laden. Scheduled for international release next year, it’s one of a growing number of films the socialist government is financing in a fusion of politics and art.

The trend is a boost to homegrown cinema in Venezuela, but critics say it reeks of Soviet-style propaganda efforts.

According to AP, Cinema Villa’s first production is set to premiere next month, and features U.S. actor Danny Glover. Let’s just hope for the sake of the Venezuelan people that the movies are shorter and more engaging than Huguito’s speeches.

Earlier this week, another U.S. actor, Kevin Spacey (image above) was in Venezuela to meet with Chavez and have dinner with him. I wonder if he, Sean Penn and Danny Glover are all on an FBI watch list now?

Via / Yahoo! Entertainment

Image AP Photo/Miraflores Press Office