WYD MADRID11.COM REPORT: Goodness Reigns Film Festival
August 17, 2011. Volunteers rolled out the red carpet yesterday for World Youth Day´s mini film festival. Instead of sequined evening gowns and tuxedoes, there was every variety of JMJ apparel. Theatres on Calle Fuencarral debuted films all afternoon, shuffling ever cheerful pilgrims in and out.
The Goodness Reigns Share the Story Short Film Festival featured the winning results of a contest that began over a year ago hoping to promote sharing the message of Truth through different categories for different age groups. Winners had the option to receive a film making package or all expense paid trips to World Youth Day.
The lights dimmed and host Mario St. Francis began to present the films.
He invited the creators of each film to come down and talk a little about their film and the process of creating it.
While everyone had a story for how this opportunity worked in their lives, one student and her teacher had a particularly inspiring story.
“Vigils and Hope” promotes the power of prayer by recognizing the victims of homicide in Milwaukee, WI. Created by the Broadcast Media Class at Messmer High School in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, these students entered their film in the Missionary Spirit category.
Chabeli Romero was one of the leaders and organizers of creating the film, says Maripat Wilkinson, the broadcast media instructor who originally came up with the idea for the class to enter the Goodness Reigns contest. “She kept every one motivated to keep their eyes on the prize.”
“The idea of the video was to raise awareness and to show how a small group of students can make a difference,” Chabeli says.
The film is about the victims of homicides from Milkwaukee, Wisconsin in 2010. These students participated in prayer vigils for the victims and created this film in order to raise awareness among their community in hopes to end the violence.
The creation of this film affect each and every one of the students in the class, “It was very emotion, they were not numbers but people,” says Maripat. Several of the students in the class knew or were related to the victims. “One of the blessings of the film was that we were able to rally around our own.”
“Facing how horrible and prevalent homicide is in the city, it became very real and the list kept growing. We reached 108 on December 31 in 2010,” she adds.
Around late spring, the class discovered that while their film had not won a trip to World Youth, they were invited to come because their film would be shown at the film festival. But by the middle of July, the class faced the hard reality that there was no money to be had to fund the trip.
Thanks to the efforts of Suzanne Haugh, the director of Goodness Reigns, a donor was found and Chabeli and Maripat were able to come to the premier of the film they worked so hard on.
“I hope they take from this film the fact that a small group of people can make such a huge impact.”
Chabeli said she hopes that people will be able to take this back to their home towns and will be inspired to raise awareness of what is going on in their own communities and will work to make a difference.
Both Chabeli and her teacher, Maripat, emphasized the important of the prayer vigils that were held, “Prayer makes a difference.”
Goodness Reigns has posted all of the entries on their website, http://goodnessreigns.com/vote/page/7/, where you can find Vigils and Hope.
http://www.madrid11.com/en/noticias/1618-raising-awareness-through-prayer-and-film
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