Located on a peninsula off the northern Greek coast, Mount Athos is one of Europe’s last remaining secrets and a monks’ republic.
Access to women is strictly denied while only religious pilgrims and workers may receive visas to enter.
For the first time, filmmakers received access to all forms of monastic life on this holy mountain. The result? “Athos,” a feature documentary film with over 1 hour of runtime.
Commonly known in Greek as “Agion Oros,” Athos is governed as an autonomous polity within Greece and has been listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1988.
The complex includes 20 monasteries which fall under the jurisdiction of the Ecumenical Patriarch of Constantinople. The area has been inhabited since ancient times and its Christian presence dates back to at least 800 AD.
More than 2,000 monks from Greece and other Eastern Orthodox countries including Romania, Moldova, Georgia, Bulgaria, Serbia and Russia live a life of abstinence in Athos.
In the documentary, German filmmakers Peter Bardehle and Andreas Martin explore the various aspects of everyday life in Mount Athos. The film includes Greek-language interviews (and English subtitles) with monks as they perform daily tasks and offer reflections on their life and faith.
Watch the complete documentary
