Greece, 1979. Donatella Baglivo follows with her camera the Greek master Theodoros Angelopoulos on the set of his most ambitious film: “Megalexandros” (Alexander the Great), which would win the Golden Lion at the Venice Film Festival in 1980.

A behind-the-scenes documentary that is much more than a simple making-of. Angelopoulos is striving to remove Greek culture from the marginalization in which it lies, to restore its dignity and visibility in the world cinema landscape. He is a leading figure in the art of cinema, a director full of imagination who is giving his very best.

“Megalexandros” tells the story of the last protagonist of the great epic of Greek culture and history, before the inevitable decline. An epic film of over three hours, shot in the harsh landscapes of Northern Greece, with the celebrated long takes that have become the director’s stylistic signature.

Angelopoulos belongs to the generation of great European auteurs: like Tarkovsky, like Bergman, like Antonioni, he made cinema an instrument of reflection on history, on time, on the human condition. His films—”The Travelling Players” (1975), “The Beekeeper” (1986), “Ulysses’ Gaze” (1995), “Eternity and a Day” (Palme d’Or at Cannes 1998) are visual meditations of rare power.

This documentary captures the working method of a master: his concentration, his vision, his relationship with the actors and the landscape. A precious document for understanding cinema as a total art form.

Theo Angelopoulos left us tragically in 2012, struck by a motorcycle while crossing the street during the filming of his last movie in Athens. This behind-the-scenes footage remains a unique testimony to his genius.