Pedro Almodovar's Pain and Glory picked to bid for Oscar

Pedro Almodovar's film Pain and Glory will represent Spain as its entry in the Best International Feature Film category at the 2020 Oscars.

The film is a semi-autobiographical story of an ageing film director, starring Almodovar's frequent collaborator Antonio Banderas in the lead role of Salvador Mallo. Banderas, who won the Best Actor honour at the 2019 Cannes festival for his portrayal, is joined by another Almodovar regular, Oscar winner Penelope Cruz, who appears in flashbacks as the main character's mother.

The 69-year-old said in a statement obtained by The Hollywood Reporter: "I want to thank the members of the Spanish Academy for the support and the chance to once more compete in the best international feature film category at the next Oscars."

Almodovar took home the award, which was previously known as the Best Foreign Language Film at the 2000 Academy Awards for his critically acclaimed movie All About My Mother. He was also nominated for Best Director and Best Original Screenplay for 2002's Talk to Her, winning the latter award the following year.

The veteran director was recently awarded the Golden Lion for Lifetime Achievement for directors at the Venice International Film Festival.

The 92nd Academy Awards will be held on 9 February 2020. The nominations will be announced on 13 January.