PORTRAYAL

Portrayal (2020), directed by Billie Mintz, is a documentary that investigates a dark family secret connected to the art world, with Israeli artist Oz Almog positioned as the antagonist. The story centers on Roman Lapshin, the grandson of painter Vladimir Dvorkin, who discovers that Dvorkin created numerous paintings attributed to Almog. Roman embarks on a journey across continents to uncover the truth about his grandfather’s legacy and confront Almog regarding the authorship of this art.

Mintz originally approached Almog under the guise of creating a standard profile, but the documentary gradually transforms into an exposé. Through Roman’s quest, "Portrayal" raises ethical questions about artistic authorship, deception, and the legitimacy of Almog’s career. Almog, who often advocated for artists’ right to be provocative, becomes defensive when confronted with the truth, culminating in a tense climax where Almog realizes the full extent of the investigation and ejects the film crew from his studio. This intense confrontation reveals the complex relationship between art, ego, and legacy, ultimately leaving viewers questioning the boundaries of truth in both art and family history.

On the first day of filming The Guardians, Billie's camera assistant, Roman Lapshin told him a story about his grandfather and a large missing body of paintings that haunted him. Billie was so intrigued by the story he knew it had to be the subject for his next film. Portrayal follows Roman as he finds out what happened to his grandfather’s paintings and exposes a secret his family has been keeping for generations.

www.portrayalfilm.com

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POSTER

This is the demo that was used to pitch the film
(original title was "ARTIFACT")

PRESS

Portrayal Review: To Catch a Thief - POV MagazineVladimir Dvorkin was a prolific artist who painted thousands of beautiful portraits during his lifetime. One wouldn’t know it, however, from gallery catalogues, exhibition reviews, or Google searches. One wouldn’t even know of him by looking at signatures on paintings made by his own hand, for Dvorkin was a ghost painter. For years, the Russian-born artist painted portraits that he sold to Israeli “artist” Oz Almog, who proudly re-sold and exhibited the works as his own. This story haunts Dvorkin’s grandson, Roman Lapshin, who vows to expose the truth and give his late grandfather the recognition he never enjoyed during

Portrayal: Stunning true tale of art, fury and faking itThe new documentary on CBC about a ‘ghost’ artist is really about facing what our forefathers did to survive

Deceiving his subject was key to uncovering the truth about his art, says documentary director | CBC DocumentariesPortrayal tells the story of an art fabricator and his grandson’s quest to shine a light on his legacy

Without these assistants, many famous artists would never complete their masterpieces | CBC DocumentariesA man goes on a journey to uncover the legacy of his late grandfather’s art and history as a fabricator for a famous artist

Director Billie Mintz had to deceive his subject to uncover the truth about his artPortrayal tells the story of an art fabricator and his grandson’s quest to shine a light on his legacy