Cameras rolling again for international productions
A Greek-American religious drama on the tribulations of Saint Nektarios of Aegina is entering its fourth week of filming in Athens after the coronavirus lockdown pulled the plug less than a week into production in mid-March.
“Man of God,” which is in English, is written and directed by Yelena Popovic and features prominent Greek actors including Aris Servetalis in the role of the persecuted and exiled saint, Christos Loulis and Karyofyllia Karambeti, as well as Russian actor Alexander Petrov (“Attraction,” “Gogol”), who plays an assistant to Nektarios and follower. It also features Mickey Rourke as a paralyzed man who is believed to have been healed by the miracle-working saint.
“We felt the right thing was to start production and get as much done as we could,” Alexandros Potter, who runs producer Simeon Entertainment with Popovic, told Screen Daily last week.
“We’d put so much work into this and the actors were ready so we took the first opportunity we could,” he said of the start of filming on June 8.
Much of the filming is being conducted outdoors and the cast and crew have been equipped with masks and other safeguards to protect them from potential infection. Filming on the island of Aegina, where Nektarios (1846-1920) built a monastery for nuns, has already finished, so the action is now mostly centered on Athens.
“It’s definitely a challenge,” Popovic told Screen Daily.
The score for “Man of God” is being composed by two-time Cesar winner Zbigniew Preisner, best known for his work on Krzysztof Kieslowski’s “Three Colors” trilogy.
