American director Martin Scorsese held an emotional encounter with Pope Francis during a private audience held in the Vatican in May 2023.
The moment, which occurred within the framework of a filmmaker’s tour of Italy, left a deep impression on the Pontiff, who publicly praised the gesture of the New York filmmaker by prioritizing the care of his sick wife over his professional achievements.
“When Scorsese came with his wife, who was sick at that time. And brought it. He, who was the ‘great star’, said: ‘This is what interests me, This is before all my successesthat all my movies, that all the things I did. This woman, this is mine. It’s a priority, ”said Jorge Mario Bergoglio in the documentary Stories of a generation with Pope Francisproduced by Netflix.
And he continued in his visibly moved anecdote: “Fully disarmedHe did not defend himself from his wife’s disease. He showed his love. That deserves more awards than their films, which are excellent. ”
The meeting took place before the participation of Scorsese at the “The Global Aesthetics of the Catholic Imagination” conference, organized by the Jesuit magazine La Civiltà Cattolica and the University of Georgetown.
According to the publisher of the publication, Antonio SpadaroDuring the conversation, Scorsese exchanged reflections on his cinema and personal experiences. “He explained how The call of the Holy Father moved him ‘To let us see Jesus,’ ‘said Spadaro.
During that intervention, the filmmaker expressed his intention to respond to that call through art.
“I have responded to the Pope’s call to the artists in the only way I know: imagining and writing a script for a movie about Jesus“Scorsese said, according to various reports.” And I’m about to start doing it, “he said.
His next film project, currently in development, will be an adaptation of the novel A Life of Jesus by Japanese author Shūsaku Endō, in collaboration with screenwriter Kent Jones.
Martin Scorsese He also took the opportunity to share his film references on the figure of Christ, highlighting his admiration for The Gospel according to St. Matthew of the director Pier Pa Pa Paul Pierolini.
-He also reflected on his own filmography, particularly about his controversial work of 1988, The last temptation of Christand the film Silencereleased in 2016 and focused on the persecution of Jesuit Christians in Japan of the seventeenth century. This last film was projected that year in the Vatican.
Franciscothe first Pope belonging to the Society of Jesus, has expressed on several occasions his affinity with the cinema as a vehicle of spiritual reflection.
He entered the Jesuit order with the desire to be a missionary in Japan, a vocation that is also reflected in the thematic interests of Scorsese.
The Italian tour of the Oscar winner included a series of projections in the Casa del Cine de Rome, a master class at the Sperimentale Di Cinematography Center, and a public conversation at the Cineteca de Bologna, as part of the festival The found cinema.
After the death of Pope Francis at age 88, Martin Scorsese He issued a statement in which he expressed his regret for the loss and highlighted the pontiff’s legacy.
“There is much to say about the meaning of Pope Francis and everything he represented for the world, the church and the papacy. I will leave that to others,” said the director in a statement released by Variety.
And he added: “It was, in every way, an extraordinary human being. He recognized his own failures. Irradia wisdom. It radiated goodness. I had an unwavering commitment to good. ”
The filmmaker especially valued the Pope’s ability to learn continuously and forgive:
“I knew in his soul that Ignorance was a terrible plague For humanity. So he never stopped learning. And he never stopped illuminating. He hugged, preached and practiced forgiveness. A universal and constant forgiveness ”.
Martin Scorsese He concluded his message highlighting the personal impact that the Pope’s figure had on his life.
“The loss, for me, is deep: I was lucky to meet him, and I will miss his presence and warmth. Loss to the world is immense. But He left a lightand that light can never be extinguished. ”
