The film prayer about the life of Elder Elijah was presented by the MAER media holding

The premiere screening of the painting "Father Eli, pray to God for us!" was held in Moscow. The first viewers of the film were representatives of state and Orthodox organizations, cultural figures, as well as the spiritual children of Father Elijah.

The documentary, which is timed to coincide with Elder Elijah's Memorial Day, tells the story of his life and ministry through archival materials, reconstruction of events and memoirs of contemporaries. The film was directed by two-time winner of the "TEFI" Sergey Korsakov.

The videos announcing the film were seen by over 3 million people right on the streets of Moscow. The film's television premiere took place on the SPAS TV channel, and the film is available to a wide audience on the Ili website.RF.

"The screening, which takes place with the blessing of His Holiness Patriarch Kirill of Moscow and All Russia on the memorial day of Archimandrite Elijah, is an event of great spiritual and cultural significance. He reminds us of the kinship of ecclesiastical and creative principles... Father Eli was not just a confessor, but also a keeper of historical memory, which we talk about so much today," says Olga Lyubimova, Minister of Culture of the Russian Federation, in a welcoming letter.

The film covers various stages of Elder Elijah's life: his old age in Russia, childhood and youth, and joining the church.

In total, 40 interviews of spiritual children and priests were recorded during the creation of the film, the wide geography of the film includes iconic places: Greece, Abkhazia, Crimea, the Chechen Republic, the Orel region, Optina deserts, Pskov, St. Petersburg, Peredelkino, Moscow.

"There are a lot of exclusive shots in the film. In the New Jerusalem Monastery, we filmed a church choir in the main cathedral, where they perform the "Holy War" and Athos tunes. And Father Ilia's niece reads his poem written on Mount Athos in our film," said Yuri Kot, the author and producer of the film, Candidate of Philosophical Sciences.

His Holiness Patriarch Kirill, TV presenter and media manager Boris Korchevnikov, journalist and blogger Roman Golovanov, public and political figure Elena Nikolaeva, historian and publicist Leonid Reshetnikov, Bishop Joseph of Mozhaisk, entrepreneur Temur Shakaya and others took part in the filming.

"Such films help a person to think about himself, about his soul, about his path. Elder Eli is a man of amazing destiny. A spiritual mentor, a source of wisdom, a support in difficult moments of life. This is a man who, through his ministry, reminded us that Russia's strength lies not only in its history and culture, but also in its spiritual depth. The MAER media holding supported the premiere of the painting in order to preserve the memory and convey important meanings from generation to generation!" said Konstantin Mayor, owner and CEO of the MAER media holding.

The documentary is part of a multi-year information and charity project. His main task is to inform and popularize the works of Elder Elijah.