Film about life of Patriarch Josyf premieres (07/07/02)

Film about life of Patriarch Josyf premieres

by Roman Woronowycz
Kyiv Press Bureau

LVIV - Residents of this city had the chance to view a movie on the life of one of the great historical personages of 20th century Ukraine and former resident of Lviv, when the full-length documentary film, "Patriarch," debuted here on June 29.

The film on the heroic life of Cardinal Josyf Slipyj, the first leader of the Ukrainian Greek-Catholic Church to have been commonly referred to by the designation "patriarch," premiered only hours before one of his most strident dreams - a Ukrainian Catholic University in Lviv - became a reality.

It was the third premiere for the film, after an initial showing in Kyiv on June 21 to a packed house, and one in Chicago in April. The film debuted first in the United States after parishioners of Chicago's Ss. Volodymyr and Olha Ukrainian Catholic Church financed much of the project.

The 90-minute movie chronicles the life of Patriarch Josyf from his elevation to primate of the UGCC with the death of Metropolitan Andrey Sheptytsky and his arrest by Soviet authorities and banishment to Siberia in 1945, to his release in 1963 and the remainder of his life and work in Rome.

"Patriarch" is divided into two segments, with the first half addressing Cardinal Josyf's life in Ukraine and subsequent prison time in Siberia, and the second part detailing his activity in Rome after his exile and his travels abroad.

The film interweaves still images and contemporary as well as historic black-and-white footage of Lviv, Kyiv and Siberia, with interviews of individuals who knew and worked with the Ukrainian Catholic patriarch. It creates a compelling story of a life of love, strength, determination and, finally, triumph in the patriarch's successful effort to save the UGCC after its destruction in Ukraine at the hands of Soviet officials by re-establishing much of its infrastructure in Rome.

The movie developed from an idea by ex-journalist Marta Kolomayets and her husband, Danylo Yanevsky, a Kyiv television host. The two decided to move forward on the project after a lively night of conversation with their friend, the Rev. Myron Panchuk, pastor of Ss. Volodymyr and Olha, on the dearth of great men in Ukrainian history, during which the name of the patriarch cropped up in conversation as one of the few the country did have.

"It particularly affected me because I knew Patriarch Slipyj from my time at the summer courses of the UCU," said Ms. Kolomayets.

She had attended courses during the 1970s offered by St. Clement Ukrainian Catholic University in Rome, which was founded by Cardinal Slipyj and where he taught. She remembered discussions the late patriarch would lead on various subjects. "Afterwards, he would give us money for ice cream," explained Mrs. Kolomayets. "He loved kids."

The Rev. Panchuk believed he could gather needed financial backing from his parish to get the project off the ground, and the three decided to move on an unexpected plan to make a film. Less than four months after the night of conversation that sparked the idea, a contract was signed with Kontakt Film Studio in Kyiv and noted Ukrainian television director Oleksander Frolov. Ms. Kolomayets became the film's executive producer and chief interviewer.

The film took just more than a year to make, which Mr. Frolov, who earlier directed a documentary on the life of Metropolitan Sheptytsky, said was his longest project to date, but ultimately his most satisfying.

"I cannot say that I worked hard in developing this film, it was interesting and exciting work, not a difficult job," explained the director before the Kyiv premiere.

While noted academic Yurii Shapoval scoured KGB archives in Kyiv, Mr. Frolov reviewed miles of historical footage. New York filmmaker Yaroslav Kulynych provided documentary footage of the patriarch during his U.S. visits from his personal archives, and Ms. Kolomayets did historical research and interviewed various individuals connected to Cardinal Slipyj.

While production team members remember the work as gratifying, the most vivid recollections are of the ironies in how key dates in the life of the Ukrainian Church leader coincided with key dates in the project's development.

Three significant moments that coincided, according to Ms. Kolomayets, were January 25, which was the date the patriarch was released from Soviet exile in 1963, and the date the contract to make the movie was signed with Kontakt Studios in 2001; February 9, the date in 1963 on which Cardinal Slipyj arrived in Grottoferrata, the monastery outside Rome where he first stayed, and the same day in 2001 on which the Kontakt film crew arrived there to begin filming those sequences; and finally April 11, the date on which Cardinal Slipyj was arrested in Lviv and also the date on which filming was completed in 2002.

Ms. Kolomayets had a straightforward explanation for the many coincidences. "I believe he guided us during the making of the film," she said.

The film's producer said she would spend the summer developing English-language subtitles before releasing the film in the United States in the fall to be shown in New York, Washington, Cleveland and Detroit. The film will also travel through Ukraine's oblast capitals for viewing. There are plans to air the documentary on Ukrainian television on September 7, the 18th anniversary of the patriarch's death.

"Patriarch" is available on NTSC (U.S. system) videotape from Ss. Volodymyr and Olha Parish in Chicago for $25 and in Ukraine on PAL (European system) for 50 hrv.

| Home Page |