Strike averted on ‘Pancho Villa’ set

HBO Films narrowly avoided a strike that could have shut down the set where Antonio Banderas is filming “And Starring Pancho Villa as Himself” after signing a contract with Mexican technicians.

The Mexican Union of Film Technicians complained that “Pancho Villa” was being made without a contract and that 18 workers had been fired without cause. It named Banderas as a defendant in his role as associate producer and sought to bar him from leaving the country.

The head of the union denied that the labor complaint would affect Mexico’s already-battered reputation as a location for foreign films. “These foreign companies have to talk to us before they come down here and make these mistakes,” union leader David Negrete said.