The life of St. Francis Xavier made into a documentary

First screening expected in November on the occasion of relics exposition.

Goa (AsiaNews/UCAN) – The life of Saint Francis Xavier will soon be made into a documentary film. A Catholic couple, Shamir and Kavita Diniz both of whom are filmmakers, have launched the project. Shooting started on July 9 in the Indian State of Goa, on the country's western coast, where the 16th-century Jesuit's remains are kept.

The Diniz hope to finish the film in time for the once-a-decade exposition of the saint's relics scheduled to open on November 21, 2004, at the Basilica of Bom Jesus in Old Goa, and to last till January 5, 2005.

The 60-minute film, entitled Grace, Guts and Glory will be recorded on compact disk. The Society of Jesus and Goa archdiocese are backing the enterprise, whose estimated cost amounts to US$ 44,500.

Both filmmakers are experts in videography, digital editing and computer animation. For the film they did extensive research on the historical and social conditions of the era —the XVIth century — in which Saint Francis Xavier lived.

Many scenes are too difficult to shoot live and must be produced digitally, such as village gatherings or war scenes involving hundreds of soldiers and horses.

The cast is made of about 200, mostly local actors. Saint Francis is played by a 21-year-old fashion model called Karan Jaime Bodade. "For me," Bodade admitted, "being spiritual is the toughest challenge in the film."

The life of the Saint unfolds in four parts beginning with his infancy till his decision to go on mission.  Francis Xavier reached Goa on May 6, 1542, 32 years after Portuguese Admiral Afonso de Albuquerque captured the city and 44 years after Portuguese explorer Vasco de Gama discovered the route to India in 1498. In the following centuries Goa served as the base from which Portuguese missioners began to evangelise elsewhere in Asia.

On the night of December 2, 1552, the saint died on Shangzhou (Sancian) Island, just off China's mainland. His body was found intact two-and-a-half months later and brought to Goa in 1554. Initially, his remains lay buried under the altar of the Sao Paulo. Five years after Pope Paul V canonised him in 1619, they were moved to the Basilica of Bom Jesus, where they still rest.

Over a million people paid homage to his relics during the last exposition in 1994.

• india
• catholic
• church
• jesuits
• evangelisation
• cinema