TRF Seraphim ENPRO

Genre: Documentary
Format: PAL / SECAM, DV-Cam, DV-Avi
Runtime: 26:37 min
Languages: RU (orig.), EN, DE
Trailers: 1:30 (EN), 1:55 (Music), 3:01 (EN)

Awards: Third prize at the XX International Festival, Niepokalanov (PL) 2005; Award winner UN World Youth Alliance film festival, New York 2005

Topic: The beloved St. Seraphim of Sarov, canonized in 1903 by the last Tsar, is presented following the main steps of his extraordinary life in parallel to the painting of an icon of him, and the fulfilment of his main messages in the “Red Spring” community inspired by his teachings and blessed by the Saint himself.

Plot: The 18th century: the serfdom in Russia has reached a point of extreem hardness. A series of rare photographs of an analogous reality taken about 100 years after introduces the spectator into the environment in which Saint Seraphim of Sarov was born, grew up and died. By means of the different stages of painting an Icon of St. Seraphim, the film pictures in 5 chapters the life and spiritual achievments of the saint.  Thanks to numerous anecdotes the narrator underlines the most important moments of the saint's life, accompanied by a rich iconography of various origin. Shootings of the present community of Red Keys, founded by the saint himself, constitute the framework of the film. Interviews with the prior of the community and his assistant, and with several sisters, help to enlighten the spiritual aspects of the community and of the teachings of saint Seraphim. Many shootings of the daily routine in the Red Key's community, and of the life and prayers at the Diveyevo monastery which is also strongly related to the life of saint Seraphim, complete the picture, allowing the spectator to enter deeper into the spirit of the main character.

Artistic considerations: The skillful combination of ancient paintings and drawings, the artisan construction of an icon, historic photographs and footage, and modern location shootings give the film a special artistic note which allows the eye to rest on the content not only from the intellectual and spiritual point of view, but also from the point of artistic craftsmanship. In skilled manner the director uses closeup shootings of the development of an icon, scetches and technical skills, and associations of colors with events to accompany the story about saint Seraphim. Thus the movie gives also some intuitive insight in the meaning and techniques of icon-painting, besides the information transmittet by the content. The music of Johann Sebastian Bach, Franz Schubert and of Spanish folk melodies create the acustic setup which allows the spectator to perceive the spirit of the time and to guide emotionally throughout the content.