Vatican duped

The director of «Angels & Demons» hints at how he duped the Vatican.

When the book and the movie version of «The Da Vinci Code» were released around the world, the Vatican was outraged, calling Dan Brown's work «an offense against God».

Shooting the sequel, «Angels & Demons», proved to be a gamble. According to a Church representative, there was no point in asking the Vatican for authorization to film in the churches and streets of Rome: they would have refused without even glancing at the script.

To get around the ban, the production sent several employees to Rome disguised as tourists and armed them with mini-cameras. Mingling with the crowds, they were able to film St. Peter's Square, along with statues and columns, which were then recreated digitally down to the last detail for key scenes.

In a recent interview on US television, director Ron Howard hinted about how he and his crew were able to get the shots they needed: «We didn't shoot at the Vatican... officially. But cameras can be made really small».