allowed for more exposure of regional cinemas. Beginning as early as the 1930s Spain played a role in producing Latin American and Cuban films, but began to invest more heavily in the 1990s. In 1997, Ibermedia was created for the purpose of promoting co-production between Spain and Latin American countries. There are 14 countries involved in this organization and Cuba is one of them. Two examples of Cuban co-produced films are Humberto Solás's Cecilia (Cuba/Spain) and Tomás Gutiérrez Alea and Juan Carlos Tabío's Academy Award-nominated Strawberry and Chocolate (Cuba/Mexico/Spain). There have been mixed opinions about the development of co-productions. For some it is a necessary evil. Humberto Solás states that "For established filmmakers there is not a single cent for production. We are obliged to seek co-productions. If a film is not co-produced, it will not be made." The problem with finding foreign funding for Cuban films is that, often, the financiers want to have some amount of influence over the final product so that it can be successful in their own countries. Frequently there are also stipulations that require a certain number of cast and crew to be working on the film from each of the producing countries. For example, a Cuban film that was co-produced by Spain would require a certain number of Spanish actors, writers or directors, and production technicians. This makes it difficult for Cuban national cinema to hold on to its identity and also creates issues when determining the nationality of a film. Julio García Espinosa agrees that the benefit of co-productions is that it has allowed for films to continue being made in Cuba and Latin America, but believes that the most successful co-productions are those that exist solely between Latin American countries. Cuba has been involved in aiding in the production of other Latin American films, but through technical assistance rather than acting as a financier. One example is Chilean director Miguel Littín's Academy Award-nominated Alsino and the Condor, which was shot in Nicaragua and received technical support from Cuba. Also in the late 1980s, Cuba created the Third World Film School to train students from various third world countries in the art of filmmaking. Imperfect cinema Cuban cinema and Latin American films communicate many different meanings, messages, and focuses. Cuban film director Julio García Espinosa was well known in the 1960s for his contributions to cinematography and culture. He was a founder