Principal photography has begun on “The Man Who Stole Portugal,” a darkly comic period heist inspired by one of the most audacious financial frauds of the 20th century.

Directed by BAFTA nominee Thomas Napper (“Jawbone,” “Widow Clicquot”), the script is by Richard Galazka, inspired by the titular true crime book by Murray Teigh Bloom.

In his first film lead role, BAFTA nominee James Nelson Joyce (“This City is Ours,” “A Thousand Blows”) plays Alves Reis, a self-made outsider with a genius for turning a closed door into an opportunity. Shut out and underestimated, he’s is determined to give his wife Maria (Emily Fairn, “House of Guinness,” “The Responder”) and their family the life they deserve and, hustle by hustle, he begins to invent his way upwards.…