Scorsese to Produce Final Pope Francis Documentary ‍‍`Aldeas – A New Story‍‍`

Martin Scorsese is producing a documentary made with Pope Francis that will chronicle the late pontiff's work with cinema in the global educational movement he founded before his death. Legendary filmmaker Martin Scorsese is producing a documentary about the late Pope Francis, featuring his last on-camera interview.

The pontiff, who became pope in 2013 after his predecessor Benedict XVI resigned, died on 21 April aged 88.

Scorsese met numerous times with Pope Francis over the years, and their conversations sometimes informed work undertaken by the 82-year-old filmmaker of the acclaimed yet polarizing 1988 film The Last Temptation of Christ and his 2016 film Silence, which chronicled the plights of Portuguese Jesuit missionaries in 17th-century Japan. The director shared his thoughts at the time of Pope Francis' death and said: “The loss for me runs deep — I was lucky enough to know him, and I will miss his presence and his warmth. The loss for the world is immense. But he left a light behind, and it can never be extinguished.”

Variety has reported that he will now produce Aldeas – A New Story, a feature-length documentary and worldwide cultural project developed by Scholas Occurrentes, the global educational movement founded by the Pope. Aldeas – A New Story will feature the final on-camera interview with Pope Francis, filmed especially for the documentary.

Prior to his death, Pope Francis said of the film: “‘Aldeas’ is an extremely poetic and very constructive project because it goes to the roots of what human life is, human sociability, human conflicts… the essence of a life’s journey.”

Scorsese said in a statement: “Now, more than ever, we need to talk to each other, listen to one another cross-culturally. One of the best ways to accomplish this is by sharing the stories of who we are, reflected from our personal lives and experiences.”

He continued: “It helps us understand and value how each of us sees the world. It was important to Pope Francis for people across the globe to exchange ideas with respect while also preserving their cultural identity, and cinema is the best medium to do that.”

No release date has yet been announced for the film.