Martin Scorsese Producing Doc Featuring Pope Francis’ Final Interview

Martin Scorsese is producing a feature length documentary about the late Pope Francis and the educational movement founded by the Pope prior to his passing.

The film, titled “Aldeas — A New Story,” was developed in collaboration with Francis’ Scholas Occurrentes, and it features Scorsese in conversation with His Holiness upon Scorsese’s return to his hometown in Sicily, and it also features the Pope’s final in-depth, on-camera interview, which was conducted exclusively for the film.

The film will focus specifically on a cinema initiative called “Aldeas,” which has the purpose of bringing together film production with education and community building. The program allows participants to create scripted short films celebrating their identities, histories, and values, and the documentary goes behind the scenes in the making of these short films. Indonesia, The Gambia, and Italy were the first countries to participate in the Aldeas initiative, and the shorts made for it will premiere in local cinemas.

Said Pope Francis before his passing, “‘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.”

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

“Aldeas — A New Story” is directed by Clare Tavernor and Johnny Shipley. The film was produced by Aldeas Scholas Films in association with Sikelia Productions and Massive Owl Productions. Amy Foster produces for Massive Owl Productions, and the producers are Martin Scorsese, Teresa Leveratto, Ezequiel del Corral, and Alfonso Gomez-Rejon, with Lisa Frechette, Romilda de Luca, Ariel Tcach, and Ariel Broitman serving as executive producers. Acclaimed cinematographers Ellen Kuras and Salvatore Totino also contributed to the film.

The “Aldeas – A New Story” film and Scholas Occurrentes’ Aldeas movement are independently financed by international sponsors and donors, ensuring all proceeds are reinvested into expanding the initiative globally.

Upon Pope Francis’ death on Easter Sunday, Scorsese reacted by saying “the loss for me runs deep.“

“He was, in every way, a remarkable human being. He acknowledged his own failings. He radiated wisdom. He radiated goodness. He had an ironclad commitment to the good. He knew in his soul that ignorance was a terrible plague on humanity,” Scorsese wrote in part. “So he never stopped learning. And he never stopped enlightening. And, he embraced, preached and practiced forgiveness. Universal and constant forgiveness.”

Pope Francis actually encouraged Scorsese to adapt “The Life of Jesus” for the screen after Scorsese met with him back in May 2023.