Divine Life
Divine Life is an observational documentary about the life of three devotees (a nun and two priests): a divine but also earthly life, unknown and foreign to most.
Synopsis
Elizabeth is the mother superior of a convent in Mallorca. In the morning she runs a nursery for children and the rest of her time she struggles to keep alive the vocation of the six nuns in her community and her own.
Jaume is the priest of Palma de Mallorca’s prison. His work combines social assistance with the pastoral faith of the prisoners. He also dedicates to encouraging pilgrimage trips along the Camino of Santiago.
Carles is a young priest, recently ordained who aspires to keep alive the scant faith of the parishioners of his three small parishes.
“Divine Life” explores how moments of prayer are combined with those of crude daily life and especially, how the three main characters debate between earthly passions and their vows. We discover the various senses of faith, in a society that is advancing at a dizzying pace and at a time of the greatest crisis of vocations in history.
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Director’s note
Until the eighties, the presence of the Church in Spanish society had a decisive role in education, in social and health actions. The clergy participated in national politics, was an emblem of national morality, and organized a fundamental part of the country’s cultural activity.
In the 21st century, this institution is going through an unprecedented crisis: it loses weight in society, vocations are scarce and the faithful are aging. In this context and coinciding with the celebration of the “World Year of Consecrated Life” we ask ourselves about these private lives. Lives that have remained for years in a place somewhat inaccessible to the laity.
This is how “Divine Life” was forged, as a portrait of three religious that would allow us to investigate how they live and look at the world from the utmost intimacy. Sor Elizabeth, Mother Superior of the Servants of Jesus; Carles Seguí, a young priest in charge of various churches in Pla de Mallorca; and Jaume Alemany, priest of the Penitentiary Ministry. They agreed opening their houses to us and allowed us to observe them from the greatest invisibility.
“Divine Life” is an essay open to multiple interpretations. An invisible look at the divine and earthly life of these three religious.
Title: Vida divina
International Title: Divine Life
Genre: Documentary
Runtime: 70 min
Source Format: 16:9 AppleProRes422HQ
Screening Format: AppleProRes422 y H264
Original language: Spanish and catalán
Available subtitles: English
Filming Locations: Mallorca and Santiago de Compostela
Year: 2015
Company: Mosaic Producciones
Co-produced by: IB3 Televisió de les Illes Balears
With the support of: Consell de Mallorca
Direction and Screenplay: Miguel Eek
Head of production: Sara Marquina
Head of post-production: Marta Castells
Sound Design and Mixing: David Masmiquel
Film Editor: Joan Bover
Color Grading: Jaume Alcina
