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A FILM REVIEW
FOCUS :
(Incorporating " Catholic Film News”)
OFGAN OF THE CATHOLIC FILM SOCIETY
Vol. II
JUNE 1949
No. 6
A BLESSING!
The Holy Father gives His Blessing to The Catholic Film Society
As we go to Press we have received news from Fr. H. A. C. Connell who has been in Rome for some weeks working with a team which is making the official film of Rome, in preparation for the Holy Year. In his letter Fr. Connell says : “During an audience,
today, of about sixty people, I gave the Holy Father a brief resume of my mission. The point I want to make is that as soon as I mentioned the Catholic Film Society, he said : ‘A blessing,’ and made the Sign of the Cross.”
A Spiritual Micawber
For such a blessing the Catholic Film Society is very grateful ; in the days to come it will need all the blessings it can secure ; for despite its poverty it has launched out into the deep and undertaken big work ; it has become a spiritual Micawber ; it lives and grows by Faith, Hope and Charity and is always looking for something to turn up from heaven ; a unique feature of the Society is that it has no money and is dependent utterly and entirely on Divine Providence who never fails. The Society has just made its first professional documentary film — Crucifers to Walsinghani , a fine piece of film journalism which records for all time the epic journey of those gallant men who carried their crosses last summer to Our Lady’s shrine at Walsinghani.
The First of the Many
We are hoping that Crucifers to Walsinghani will be the first of the many. Hollywood has long since learnt that the Catholic Church has the best stories ; it takes, however, a Catholic to understand a Catholic which is one big reason why we should make our own films. The next film on the C.F.S. agenda is the Roman one ; when that is completed it is hoped that fuller plans will be made concerning the Thomas More film, about which there is so much warm interest. Since the last issue of Focus, Very Rev. Fr. Hilary Carpenter, O.P., has submitted his preliminary treatment of the subject to one of Britain’s most notable directors. We,, of course, shall keep the public informed of the progress of this big idea. The growth and the success of this idea will depend upon the co-operation of the Catholic-speaking public. The French Catholics with their Monsieur Vincent have made a distinguished contribution to the library of films. What France has accomplished, England (surely) with the help of her English-speaking allies can accomplish !
Film of Fatima
The appearance of Our Lady at Fatima is one of the greatest events of the twentieth century. It is history which if properly iold in film could move the world. If the money is forthcoming a film unit under the auspices of the Catholic Film Society will make, this summer, a full-length documentary film of this mighty event. Editor.