Video Producers Go All Out To Capture Glory of the Latin Mass
A magnificent Latin Mass film “Tradition” produced by the Latin Mass Community in Kansas City features a Solemn High Mass celebrated by Fr. Bisig of the Fraternity of St. Peter. This is a stunning production with beautiful imagery of the Mass and the church interior, with a wide variety of camera shots from close-ups to views from the balcony. The film also features cameo appearances of several FSSP priests giving brief commentary on the Latin Mass. This DVD can be an excellent means of introducing people to the glory of the Tridentine Rite, and it can serve as an educational tool in parishes or among friends. The video captures the pagentry and mystery of a Solemn High Mass, and the chant is beautifully sung by Fr. Berger and his schola. To purchase this film by PayPal, CLICK HERE.
When Emmy Award-winning writer/producer Jack Cashill did a brief news feature on the Latin Mass for the NBC station in Kansas City, he had no idea it would lead to the most spectacular video of a Latin Mass ever made. For the initial feature, Cashil took just one camera, stayed safely off to the side, and left before the consecration. Not knowing Cashill’s intentions, Fr. Edouard de Mentque of the Priestly Fraternity of St. Peter did not wish to disturb his own congregants nor stir up controversy within the diocese. A former altar boy, Cashill had not attended a Latin Mass since college. Like many Catholics, he was unaware that in July of 1988 Pope John Paul II issued his apostoic letter, Ecclesia Dei.
At the time, Cashill, in fact, did not even know that the Latin Mass was still being celebrated. Nor, apparently, did many of the Catholics in Kansas City. Cashill’s two-minute TV feature generated more response than any other feature he had produced for that NBC station. As Cashill realized, there is still a hunger for the Traditional Mass among the Catholic population, old and young. The TV feature reaffirmed what Fr. de Mentque knew from experience. With the blessing of the Pope, the Latin Mass has been enjoying an extraordinary revival around the world, and the Fraternity of St. Peter–dedicated as it is to the Latin Mass–is prospering.
Fr. de Mentque was so pleased with the TV feature and the response to it that when Cashill approached him with the idea of doing a video, the good Father was eager to participate.
Providentially, the Priestly Fraternity of St. Peter was soon to convene in Kansas City. So Fr. de Mentque talked to his superiors, and Cashill talked to his partner, Mike Wunsch, managing director of Video Post Productions, and all parties were keen to proceed. On Jan. 23rd. 1998, the Priestly Fraternity of St. Peter celebrated the Solemn High Mass with a Gregorian choir in the grand old Church of St. Mary/St. Anthony.
An award-winning director who has shot documentaries on every continent but Antarctica, Wunsch had faced few projects that required such sensitivity. “What an overwhelming challenge,” notes Wunsch. “This Mass was the culmination of nearly 2,000 years of Tradition, and we were responsible for creating the most beautiful representation of it ever made.” “This was a real Mass,” adds Cashill. “We couldn’t just yell ‘cut’ and ask for another take.”
Wunsch and Cashill oversaw a four-camera shoot and a 12 track recording of this splendid Mass. The video crew reshot the choir and the Mass without a congregation for close-ups. They also interviewed a number of the priests and integrated their commentary into the finished product, a complete Mass in real time with close-ups and camera angles never seen before anywhere.
Called Tradition: The Latin Mass With Gregorian Choir, the $50,000 video overwhelmed its preview audience. “The footage was awe-inspiring,” claimed one viewer. “I felt as though I could have stepped from the altar to the very gate of Heaven.” “The best film of the Latin Mass I’ve ever seen or heard,” said another viewer. “I’m going to invite my friends to see it.” The consensus among those who attended the preview of Tradition believe this to be the most beautiful and inspiring Mass video ever recorded. “Whether we prefer the new Mass or the old,” says Cashill, “this Mass is the shared heritage of us all.”
Tradition: The Latin Mass With Gregorian Choir is now available for only $23 postpaid from Una Voce America. (Canadian residents add $2 each, other countries add $4 each). Please indicate VHS video or DVD when ordering (the price is the same for either format).
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