Woody Allen says Trump has sparked 'best' satire in years

Oscar-winning director Woody Allen, who is known for his intellectual comedies, said Tuesday that President Donald Trump has generated the best satirical humour in the United States in years.

"Because there has been so much criticism of it and so much complaining about it, it has sparked the most imaginative and the best satirical humour in years in the US," Allen told a news conference in San Sebastian in northern Spain where he is about to begin filming his latest movie.

"Sometimes the nervous tension of difficult current events makes (people) laugh more easily. Comedy works every place and under any circumstances practically, whether the laughter is full-throated or nervous," the 83-year-old added.

The director of "Annie Hall" and "Match Point" will start filming a romantic comedy in San Sebastian on Wednesday about an American couple that visits the city's famous film festival. It features Austrian actor Christoph Waltz and US actress Gina Gershon.

Allen's career has taken a hit in recent years due to lingering accusations that he molested Dylan Farrow, his adopted daughter, when she was seven years old in the early 1990s.

He was cleared of the charges, first levelled by his then-partner Mia Farrow, after two separate months-long investigations, and has steadfastly denied the abuse. But Dylan, now an adult, maintains she was molested.

Amazon put Allen's latest film "A Rainy Day in New York" on ice over the sex abuse allegations, but another distributor will release the film in Europe later this year.

In February, the US director filed a $68 million (60 million euros) suit against Amazon for breach of contract, accusing the streaming giant of cancelling the film because of a "baseless" accusation that he sexually abused his adopted daughter.

"My philosophy has always been that no matter what... you just keep focused on the work and keep working no matter what is happening in your life, family, children, current events, politics," he told the San Sebastian news conference when asked if he planned to retire because of allegations.

"I will probably die in the midst of a film shoot on a set making a movie," he added.