The feature film “Stalker” by Andrei Tarkovsky based on the Strugatsky brothers’ story “Roadside Picnic” is a key monument of late Soviet culture that has received worldwide recognition. It has more than once become the subject of film studies, inspired artists and directors, and many who were with Tarkovsky at different stages of the difficult path from the conception of the project to its implementation wrote about the work on the film. Director, actor and writer Evgeniy Tsymbal worked for more than two years on the set of the film, first as a props assistant and then as a second director. In his book, he seeks to restore the chronicle of the making of the film, supporting it with documents and personal testimonies. The reader will have to find out how the original plan was transformed in the course of working with the script, become more familiar with the cultural and political context, and see the direct connection between the biographical circumstances of Tarkovsky’s life and his artistic decisions. Personal memories in the book are edited with fragments of interviews that the author conducted with members of the film crew.