In 1874 Paris, painter Edgar Degas is struggling with debt after his father's death. He takes a job illustrating a small book on opera and becomes inspired by a young ballerina named Marie.
Rembrandt loses his wife and in his grief neglects his infant son. It is his apprentice who convinces Rembrandt to fullfil his parental duties. Finally understanding his own father, Rembrandt breaks with artistic convention to produce his masterpiece, "The Nightwatch."