Renowned paintings have often appeared numerous times on the big screen, sometimes as a background that fits in the aesthetic scenery built by each director, and other times triggering deeper connections. In Vasilis Katsoupis’ “Inside”, art is co-starring alongside the main protagonist Willem Dafoe.

Within this cinematic universe governed by the conviction that “Art is forever”, to quote the main character, a painting titled “Spring” and created by Stefanos Rokos, plays a key role, shedding light on the context of the script.

The painting was commissioned by Giorgos Karnavas, producer of Heretic, and director Vasilis Katsoupis, who asked Stefanos Rokos to create an original painting that would play a pivotal role in the film.

Ιnside takes place inside a penthouse-gallery that where an impressive collection of legendary artists’ works unravels before our eyes, including creations by Egon Schiele, Maurizio Cattelan, Francesco Clemente and Adrian Paci.

The owner of this penthouse in New York is a narcissist and sexually voluptuous millionaire collector, who has chosen to place the painting in his room, over his bed.

A burglar, Nemo (portrayed by Dafoe) breaks into the apartment and ends up being trapped in an arid garden of art.

Stefanos Rokos worked in total freedom to give life to a painting that embodies his personal pluralistic identity as a visual artist, integrating a portrait of the art collector featured in the script amidst scenes of extreme erotic complexes.

In an exuberant and odd composition, riddled with dense and vividly represented details, Rokos crafts innumerable forms in provocative clinches to lure the viewer into an orgy world of erotic fantasies. Painting frames are diffused into one another, as Stefanos Rokos “edits” them to create an “orgy film” within the film.

The film, which is currently screened at Greek movie theaters, celebrated its premiere within the framework of the 73rd Berlinale.