In the eyes of many, Nasir Jones accomplished everything he had set out to do with his 1994 debut album. Now celebrating 20 years since its release, the set has become required listening for any individual that claims to be part of hip-hop culture. From its intriguing title to its meticulous sequencing, Illmatic is the yardstick that all rap albums are measured against. Nas’ inner-city version of Shakespearian lyricism was inspired by the poetry of Rakim, molded into a new language art. Illmatic has not only aged like fine wine, but it is the very grape that all wines are manufactured from.

All of this is why journalist Erik Parker and director One9’s documentary, Time Is Illmatic, released by Robert DeNiro’s Tribeca Film, is essential viewing. The film satisfyingly answers the question: How did Nas do it? Rather than a masturbatory visual rambling on the greatness of Illmatic, what the filmmakers achieve is a tightly-woven narrative, deconstructing Illmatic to focus on the fundamental elements that contributed to its creation.

“A lot had been written, but nobody made anything visual about Illmatic,” screenwriter Erik Parker explained to Cuepoint, describing a production process that took nearly a decade to complete. “When we interviewed [Nas’ father, jazz musician] Olu Dara, the conclusion that we all came to was that we couldn’t tell the story of Illmatic without telling something bigger about Nas and the world around him.”

Originally planned as a DVD released on the 10-year anniversary of the album, it is perhaps more fitting that the film spent another decade in production. The filmmakers realized that this wasn’t simply about the music, Time Is Illmatic would be about documenting the circumstances that help shaped the perfect hip-hop album.

“We thought we could make a 10-year anniversary music DVD but we realized we had much bigger stories that dealt with issues in society in a way that helped shaped the Jones family and told their musical and cultural history,” One9 said. “All the music on Illmatic stemmed from a condition and we wanted to tell the story inside and out from someone who lived that culture and understood the social conditions.”

Deniro introduced Time Is Illmatic at the Tribeca Film Festival earlier this year

Making a film about Nas’ seminal opus is one thing, but getting his blessing and his involvement was something else entirely. Once the filmmakers succeeded in snaring the attention of Nas and began rolling out their vision, support from the rapper came naturally.

“We first sent it to Nas’ manager who came by the studio and was blown away by what he saw,” One9 said, reflecting on the moments leading up to Nas’ seal of approval. “He was texting Nas in all caps saying that he needed to come and check it out. So when we did get the email that Nas was coming, he said he only had about 20 minutes. He comes up to the studio and we show him a few scenes and all these old video clips that started to really get engaged. He started asking a lot of questions and he didn’t want to leave. His 20 minutes turned into two hours.”

But it wasn’t the only blessing they would receive on that night.

“Then Nas called his brother Jungle to come and watch it. So now Jungle is there and they are watching footage for 4 hours,” he continued. “Nas said he believed the film was going to be special and unique. He wanted to finish the film and said that anything we needed from him, we could have. He saw it as something that not only inspires people who grew up in hip-hop, but another generation entirely.”