Veteran movie director Woody Allen has announced that Rome will be the backdrop for his next project. Currently untitled and at screenplay stage, Allen is remaining tight-lipped about the film's storyline or cast, although he plans to shoot the film in Rome this summer.

Long-associated with filming the majority of his movies in New York, Allen recently said he could no longer afford the cost of shooting in the Big Apple, and wants to continue filming in European cities. Over the last year he shot "You will meet a tall dark stranger" and "Midnight in Paris" on location in London and Paris respectively.

Allen told Italian newspaper La Repubblica: "I love these sophisticated cities. Each time, it's like a declaration of love for certain places. I project onto the big screen my feelings for places which count a lot in my life. I hope to do the same thing with Rome".

Born in 1935, Allen is an American screenwriter, director, actor, comedian, author, playwright and jazz musician. A talented clarinetist, Allen takes to the stage with his New Orleans Jazz Band in a fund-raising concert for Bambin Ges