Martin Scorsese Announces Documentary Featuring Pope Francis Interview

Martin Scorsese will release Aldeas–A New Story, a full-lengthy documentary film featuring Pope Francis‘ “final in-depth on-camera interview for cinema.”

The film will reflect on the work of Scholas Occurrentes, a non-profit, global education project founded by Pope Francis in 2013. Part of the project has been cultivating filmmaking in communities around the world to help create “the culture of encounter from the peripheries, gathering together the beauty of human diversity, and fostering unity in a divided world.” Aldeas–A New Story will feature short narrative films made in Indonesia, the Gambia, and Italy.

Produced by Aldeas Scholas Films in association with Scorsese’s Sikelia Productions and Massive Owl Productions, the film will intertwine the short films with Pope Francis’ interviews with Scorsese during a return to his ancestral hometown in Sicily. 

“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,” Pope Francis said in a statement before his death in April.

Scorsese added, “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. 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.”

A press release notes, “By empowering communities to tell their own stories and preserve their cultural legacies, the feature documentary stands as a testament to the enduring belief that creativity is not only a means of expression but a path to hope and transformation. The short films themselves will ultimately premiere in newly established local cinemas, serving as lasting hubs for cultural expression and education.”

Aldeas–A New Story was produced by Scorsese along with Teresa Leveratto, Ezequiel del Corral, and Alfonso Gomez-Rejon. It was executive produced by Lisa Frechette, Romilda de Luca, Ariel Tcach, and Ariel Broitman. It was directed by Clare Tavernor and Johnny Shipley, and produced by Massive Owl Productions’ Amy Foster. Cinematographers Ellen Kuras and Salvatore Totino also contributed to the film. 

Scorsese met with Pope Francis several times over the years. The filmmaker used their conversations to help inform his films The Last Temptation of Christ and Silence. He paid tribute to Francis following his death, saying, “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. So he never stopped learning.”

He added, “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.”

A release date for the film has not been announced, but Aldeas Scholas Films noted on Instagram that it is coming “soon.”