A spaghetti western is a subgenre of Western films produced in Europe, primarily in Italy, in the mid-1960s in the wake of Sergio Leones film-making style and international box-office success. The term "spaghetti Western" was coined by Spanish journalist Alfonso Sánchez in reference to the Italian food spaghetti. Spaghetti Westerns are also known as Italian Westerns or, primarily in Japan, Macaroni Westerns. They are low-budget films produced by Italian directors and filmed in Europe, primarily in Almería and the Tabernas Desert. Spaghetti Westerns are far more cynical and violent compared to their contemporary Hollywood cousins, and they often feature anti-heroes for protagonists, dastardly villains, desert landscapes, non-traditional music scores, and plenty of violence. The majority of the films in the spaghetti Western genre were actually international co-productions between Italy and Spain, and sometimes France, West Germany, Britain, Portugal, Greece, Israel, Yugoslavia, or the United States. Some of the most famous Spaghetti Westerns include "The Good, the Bad and the Ugly," "A Fistful of Dollars," and "Once Upon a Time in the West".