Sculpting in Time

Andrey Tarkovsky, the genius of modern Russian cinema—hailed by Ingmar Bergman as the most important director of our time—died an exile in Paris in December 1986 after achieving international fame with his 1962 masterpiece, Ivan's Childhood. Since winning the Golden Lion at the Venice Film Festival for that film, Tarkovsky's work has captivated serious movie audiences all over the world, who see in his work a continuation of the great literary traditions of nineteenth-century Russia. Many critics have tried to interpret his intensely personal vision, but he himself always remained inaccessible. Now, in Sculpting in Time, Tarkovsky sets down his thoughts and his memories, revealing for the first time the original inspirations for his extraordinary films--Ivan's Childhood (1962), Andrey Rublyov (1966), Solaris (1972), The Mirror (1975), Stalker (1979), Nostalgia (1983), and The Sacrifice (1986).