In front of guests such as actors Cate Blanchett, Monica Bellucc and Chris Pine as well as director Spike Lee, Pope Leo XIV emphasized the need to defend the future of film as a shared cultural experience, writes The Telegraph .
He describes the film as enormously important in an era of global unrest and digital transformation. The culture-loving pope also laments that more and more cinemas around the world are being forced to close.
Box office revenues are still below pre-pandemic levels, with North American cinemas recently reporting their weakest summer numbers since 1981.
Leo XIV urged filmmakers to defend “slowness, silence, and difference” when it strengthens the narrative.
Film should not exploit pain but explore it with honesty, he said.
At the end of the meeting, guests had a chat with the Pope and Spike Lee presented a New York Knicks jersey marked “Pope Leo 14.” Earlier this week, the Pope revealed his favorite films, including “The Sound of Music” from 1965 and the Italian “Life is Wonderful” from 1997.
