In 1926, the city of Odessa on the Black Sea coast is a multinational medley of gangsters and sailors, security agents and world known film-makers. Here Aleksandr Dovzhenko tries to start his career as a film director. “Red producer” Pavlo Nechesa gave him chance to make THE DIPLOMATIC POUCH, a detective and action movie based on the screenplay by the 20- year-old Jewish shoemaker Moses Zats. Dovzhenko likes the screenplay. He starts to gather his film crew and the actors. During the process, Dovzhenko meets interesting and colorful local characters, sailors, tango dancers, boxers.  All of them will play roles in his film. In these days, Director also meets his love – the Russian star actress Julia Solntseva. Julia likes him, but she must decide – to stay with Alexandr in Odessa or stay in Moscow to work with Sergey Eisenstein. She chooses to leave for Moscow. Finally, Dovzhenko gathers a solid crew and superb actors. Everything is ready to shoot a great film. But when the young director starts shooting, the Che-ka (the Soviet Political Police before KGB), find some documents that confirm Dovzhenko’s participation in Civil War against the Soviet regime. A Che-ka courier must deliver the compromising document to Odessa. The Che-ka is planning to arrest the Director. Dovzhenko’s friends ask local retired Jew David for help to steal the documents. David is an old retired Jewish gangster.  The gangsters start their action while Dovzhenko could be arrested by the Che-Ka at any moment. The gangsters work with an old map, a plan of the famous Odessa catacombs. They follow the courier underground and intercept the case with the incriminating documents after a wild chase above and below the city. Che-Ka officers are also waiting for the courier. There is a shootout, and the gangsters not only steal the case, but also kidnap the courier. At the same time, Dovzvenko is filming the last frame of his film. He manages to finish his film under these difficult conditions. On the day of the premiere, the young director obtains his best prize: Julia Solntseva has come back to Odessa to be with him.