Russia, early 1990s. Amid the collapse of the Soviet Union, a young man named Vadim Baranov tries to find his footing — first as an artist, then as a reality TV producer. When a rising KGB officer named Vladimir Putin needs someone to build his image and manage his myths, Baranov becomes the man behind the curtain. Over the next two decades, he shapes a country through propaganda, deception, and spectacle, while the world outside descends into war. A political epic about the architecture of modern autocracy, told from inside the room where it was built.