Writer, director
Chris Marker

Music extracts by
JS Bach, Purcell, Mozart, Artemyov

This programme is a study of Andrei Tarkovsky, the great Russian romantic/metaphysical filmmaker who died in 1986. It was made in 1999 by the very different but admiring Chris Marker, an ironic, critical artist with a lively sense of humour who, of course, also has his romantic and lyrical side.

Incorporating film clips, journal entries, and personal musings, this film is a homage from one film-maker to another - and from one friend to another. Tarkovsky is widely regarded as one of the greatest film-makers of the 20th century, and certainly the most important post-war Russian filmmaker. He has achieved almost mythical status with such visionary masterpieces as Andrei Roublev, The Mirror and Solaris. His aesthetic and stylistic innovations, such as the minimal plot, the fragmented narrative and the long take, redefined the perception of foreign cinema and have subsequently become staples of the modern-day art film. Tarkovsky's confrontations with the Soviet government, the censorship of his films, and his eventual exile fuelled the ideological debate surrounding his life and work.

Through close readings of his films - including rare scenes from Tarkovsky's student film (an adaptation of Hemingway's The Killers) and a practically unknown production of Boris Godunov - Marker draws parallels between Tarkovsky's life and films, offering original insight into the often reclusive director. Excerpts from Tarkovsky's writings, peppered throughout the film, range from a prophetic meeting with Boris Pasternak (author of Dr Zhivago) to a chance encounter with the KGB on the streets of Paris (Tarkovsky thought they were coming to kill him).

With behind-the-scenes footage of Tarkovsky obsessively commanding his entire crew (including famed Bergman cinematographer Sven Nykvist) and candid moments with his friends and family (Tarkovsky, bedridden, editing his final film, The Sacrifice) this is a remarkably personal and astute portrait of the monumental filmmaker.