Synopsis
Anton Krustev is a famous cinematographer. Together with his wife Diana and their 12-year-old son Antoan he lives in Sofia, Bulgaria, in the 70-ies.
When Antoan starts getting life-threatening bouts of asthma, Diana decides that, together with her son, she has to leave for Berlin where her mother lives in a small house. Аnton stays in Bulgaria.
Beno, the director Anton works with, has fallen into disgrace with the higher officials of the Communist Party. He has to deliver his film to Karlo, a member of the Party Central Committee. Anton continues working on the film with another director. Beno feels offended by Anton. He slanders against Anton before State Security saying that his wife and his son live in West Berlin and are not thinking of returning to Bulgaria. State Security starts watching Anton.
Diana writes to Anton regularly, they speak on the phone whenever possible. Their letters are read and their phone calls are recorded.
Аnton is torn between his family and work. He knows he is being watched by State Security. Diana wants him to join them in West Berlin. She sends him pictures of their new home. With the Orts family who arrive in Bulgaria on holiday, she sends Anton jeans, coffee and other things so difficult to find here. The harmless meeting with the Orts makes the special services even more suspicious of Anton. They suspect him of participating in some spying scheme. State Security gets seriously down to work.
They interrogate Anton’s neighbours. They get in contact with his father. Being under the pressure of the secret services, his parents want him to divorce Diana or make her return to Bulgaria.
Diana’s situation in West Berlin becomes more and more complicated. She has arrived there on a tourist visa and now her passport has expired. Her statute is unclear. If she returns to Bulgaria, she risks being arrested even on the border.
Meanwhile, Anton receives a prestigious Bulgarian film award the purpose of which is to keep him quiet and loyal to the state.
State Security get paranoid – they are afraid of losing thеir internationally acknowledged “window” in the field of cinema: Anton.
State Security bring Anton to a dilemma: he is either to give up his family and divorce his wife or lose his job. Anton is torn between the two things most dear to him in his life: family and work. Anton decides to get divorced. When he tells Diana this over the phone, she faints.
Unfortunately, Karlo loses his position as member of the Party Central Committee. He is declared an enemy to the party. Anton loses his job.
In a car crash Anton loses his sight almost completely. Anton’s career is over and done with. He has lost his family, his work, and the meaning of his life: to be the Cinematographer.
Thirty years later, Anton shoots the story of his own life. But those who now direct the movie are the very same people who once persecuted him.