Diocese of Lansing Priestly Ordinations 2024
It’s always a particular joy of mine to film Ordinations to the Priesthood. I find it particularly meaningful to devote a lot of time and energy to filming, editing and scoring these videos to match the magnitude of the commitment and sacrifice these men are making. At the 2024 Ordination, we got word at the last minute that Father Mike Schmitz would be in attendance as a vesting priest for the new Father Joshua Fons (who had worked with Father Mike during his days as a FOCUS missionary in Duluth, Minnesota). It was a fun element to include, though I think we succeeded in making the two Ordinands the primary focus of this video. Enjoy, and please continue to pray for these men in their priestly ministry!
ON THE EVE OF ORDINATION
In the few days before Ordination, I filmed these brief interviews with our two Ordinands, as well as some B-roll with each, introducing them to their new parishioners.
Similar projects:
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Diocese of Lansing Priestly Ordinations 2023
When I started working at the Diocese of Lansing, one of the things I really wanted to produce was a cinematic Ordination recap, similar to what the Archdiocese of Cincinnati and others have produced for many years. I find it particularly inspirational to give justice to these men who are devoting their entire lives to serving the Church in this way. I see it as similar to a wedding film but more sacred and holy (not that weddings aren’t sacred as well!). This particular Ordination was made all the more special because, midway through being vested, new priest Father Seamus Kettner began weeping tears of joy (which I happened to catch on my Tascam DR-10L I had wired the guys with beforehand). The moment was very inspirational to those who witnessed, and this video has been viewed well over 10,000 times across the diocesan platforms. It also received a 1st place win in the “Best Ordination Video” category at the 2024 Catholic Media Awards.
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"Portraits of the Call" Vocations Documentary
“Portraits of the Call” is a 2023 documentary I produced highlighting different Catholic vocations in life, intended to be used as an educational tool for presentations and events by the Diocese of Lansing’s Vocations team. It involved filming in many places, from inner-city Flint, Michigan, to New York City to film with the Sisters of Life in their Hell’s Kitchen convent. Snippets of the film, posted on the Diocese’s social media channels for National Vocations Awareness Week, caught the attention of international Catholic media outlet, Aleteia, which wrote a piece on the clips titled, “All young Catholics should watch these inspiring vocation stories.”
The project won a 2024 Michigan Regional Emmy Award in the Religion category, as well as Silver recognition in the 45th annual Telly Awards. It was also cited as a primary contributor to my selection as the 2024 Cardinal John Foley Award winner by the Catholic Media Association.