Franz Jagerstatter DVD News Release

February 02, 2010 - 1:03 PST

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
MEDIA ADVISORY

Hope Media Productions
8939 S. Sepulveda Blvd., Ste 110-758
Los Angeles, CA 90045
www.hopemediaproductions.com.
For immediate release, please
Press Contact: Frank Tobin / Frank Tobin PR
323.661.3720
fxtobin@aol.com
Hope Media Contact: Ron Schmidt, S.J.
310.801.6692
Schmidt.re@gmail.com

Hope Media's award-winning documentary
Franz Jägerstätter: A Man of Conscience to be distributed by Maryknoll / Orbis Books, Our Sunday Visitor and Vision Video.

Los Angeles, CA (February 2, 2010) - The award-winning documentary Franz Jägerstätter: A Man of Conscience, narrated by Golden Globe Award-winning actor and social activist Martin Sheen, will be distributed by Maryknoll / Orbis Books, Our Sunday Visitor and Vision Video, and cable distribution through CatholicTV, announced Ron Schmidt, S.J., producer and co-director of the documentary from Hope Media Productions and December 2nd Productions. The 24 minute documentary, which traces the life of Austrian conscientious objector Franz Jägerstätter, whose moral convictions defied the Third Reich and led to imprisonment and execution at age 36 in 1943, follows the authorization by Pope Benedict XVI in 2007 declaring Jägerstätter a martyr. Franz Jägerstätter: A Man of Conscience is the recipient of the 2009 Redemptive Storyteller Award from the Redemptive Film Festival.

An Austrian farmer and father of four, Franz Jägerstätter was faced with the choice to serve in Hitler's army or to face execution. A devout Catholic and loving husband and father, Franz struggled with his responsibilities to his family and to state authority, but in the end felt he could not betray God and his faith by serving the Third Reich. He was executed by beheading on August 9, 1943, at the age of 36. Using his journals and letters from prison, the documentary blends family interviews, archival photos and WW II footage to tell the story of Franz's courageous stand.

Franz's letters from prison to his wife are read by Martin Sheen who comments: "As he stood alone against the greatest force of evil in the 20th century, the Nazis, Franz Jägerstätter discovered that conscience is costly, faith is necessary, and one man with courage is a majority."

In June 2007 Pope Benedict XVI authorized the Congregation for the Causes of Saints to publish a decree that declares Jägerstätter a martyr. The beatification ceremony took place on October 26, 2007 in Linz, Austria. His then 94-year-old widow, Franziska, and his four daughters attended the ceremony. The Prefect of the Congregation for the Causes of Saints, Cardinal José Saraiva Martins, noted in the beatification sermon that "Jägerstätter served as a model for Christians today who sometimes are confronted with 'conditioning and manipulation of consciences and minds, sometimes through deceitful means.'"

About the Filmmakers:

Producer and co-director Ron Schmidt is a Jesuit priest and award-winning international documentary filmmaker whose films include On the Line a feature length documentary on the protest against the U.S. School of the Americas, In Spite of Darkness, a film on the annual non-denominational Auschwitz Retreat and numerous other short documentaries. Both films were awarded Silver Telly's in 2008 for best in their categories. On the Line has secured international distribution and was broadcast on the Al Jazeera satellite network. Previously Vice President of two Catholic non-profit production companies: the San Damiano Foundation and Loyola Productions, Schmidt was executive producer on numerous video projects. He produced a project on the American Zen Buddhist Bernie Glassman, Instructions to the Cook: A Zen Master's Recipe for Living a Life that Matters. He is producer/chair of the Gabriel Awards and has co-produced the Film Showcase at the L.A. Religious Education Congress. He is co-author of a study guide on the acclaimed documentary "Into Great Silence." He also gives film seminars and film retreats. Schmidt, along with his director son, Jason, are currently in production on 432, a feature documentary about an Auschwitz survivor and artist Marian Kolodziej.

Co-director and producer Jason Schmidt co-directed and edited the award winning feature documentary, On the Line, which features Martin Sheen and Susan Sarandon. He has directed several PSA's featuring Martin Sheen, worked as a videographer on several documentaries, edited two films and directed and edited a music video. He was the film editor and music editor on the award winning feature documentary In Spite of Darkness: A Spiritual Encounter with Auschwitz. Jason comes from a long line of filmmakers who have been in the film industry since the early 1930's. His grandfather, Arthur P. Schmidt, was an Oscar-nominated editor and worked on Sayonara, Some Like It Hot, Sunset Boulevard, and many other classic films. His uncle, Arthur Schmidt, is an executive producer on a number of Jason's projects and is a two-time Oscar winning editor for Who Framed Roger Rabbit and Forrest Gump. After several years directing industrial and educational videos, Jason founded December 2nd Productions in 2004 and along with his father and producer, Fr. Ron Schmidt, began developing and making documentaries.

Notes About the production:

Franz Jägerstätter had its genesis when Fr. Roy Bourgeois, MM and the St. Franz Project commissioned Ron Schmidt, S.J. through Hope Media Productions to make this documentary to educate people, young and old, about the life and death of Franz Jägerstätter. Well known in his native Austria, Franz is little known in the U.S. except in Peace and Justice and pacifist groups. In January 2008, Fr. Roy Bourgeois and Fr. Ron Schmidt discussed making of the film and inviting US Bishop Thomas Gumbleton to join them and a film crew in Austria in May of 2008. The filming was done on location in the small Austrian village of St. Radegund, near the southern border of German Bavaria. Franz's farmhouse still stands and now is a museum featuring artifacts from Franz and Franziska's life. The church where Franz was sexton stands little changed and is featured in the film.

Franz's surviving family members agreed to be interviewed for the film. His wife, Franziska and two of his daughters, Hildegard and Maria, reflected on their father's life and its impact on them, when they were young and in their lives as they grew. As the eldest, Hildegarde remembered her father bringing her family apples and other staples during hard times and riding on his motorcycle as a child. Bishop Thomas Gumbleton, traveled to St. Radegund for the filming of the interviews. Bishop Gumbleton is a close friend of the Jaegerstaetter family, a longtime national and international activist in the peace movement, a founding member of Pax Christi USA and an outspoken critic of violence and militarism. Martin Sheen committed to be the voice of Franz in the film.

In Austria, theologian and author Erna Putz, assisted on set with coordinating and translating the interviews. German Jesuit filmmaker, Christof Wolf, assisted by Jesuit novice, Adrian Marbacher, S.J. from Switzerland, joined Director of Photography Greg Schmidt (brother of Ron and uncle of Jason), to round out the crew. Writer Roberta Morris conducted the interviews. Archival footage and photos from the Nazi era were obtained from the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum and the Julien Bryan Film Archive.

Hope Media Productions
Hope Media Productions makes videos and films that educate general and specific audiences, such as elementary, high school and university students, about subjects covering history, religion, and social justice. This non-profit company also develops curriculum materials, teacher and student guides, and other resources, to include web sites, for educational purposes. The videos and films help preserve the oral and visual history of organizations, peoples, sites, cultures that can be used by scholars to augment their research activities. For more information, visit: www.hopemediaproductions.com

Franz Jägerstätter: A Man of Conscience

"As he stood alone against the greatest force of evil in the 20th century, the Nazis, Franz Jägerstätter discovered that conscience is costly, faith is necessary, and one man with courage is a majority." --Martin Sheen.

Length: 24 minutes.
DVD Release Date: April 2009,
Directors/Producers: Ron Schmidt, S.J. and Jason A. Schmidt.
Writer: Roberta Morris

Distribution: US
Hope Media Productions: www.hopemediaproductions.com.
Maryknoll Productions: www.orbisbooks.com
Vision Video: www.visionvideo.com
Our Sunday Visitor: www.osv.com
CatholicTV (cable) www.catholictv.com

Distribution: Europe:
Steyl-Medien - The Society of the Divine Word media outlet. www.steyl-medien.de

Synopsis:

An Austrian farmer and father of four, Franz Jägerstätter had to make a terrible choice: to serve in Hitler's army or to face execution. A devout Catholic and loving husband and father, Franz struggled with his responsibilities to his family, and to state authority, but in the end felt he could not betray God and his faith by serving the Third Reich. He was executed on August 9, 1943, at the age of 36. This simple yet powerful documentary explores the recently beatified martyr's life and death, and its meaning for today. Using his journals and letters from prison, it blends family interviews, archival photos and WW II footage to tell the story of Franz's courageous stand. The documentary features the voice of Martin Sheen as Franz along with interviews of Franz's wife, two daughters, and granddaughter. Bishop Thomas Gumbleton is also interviewed.

Biography of Franz Jägerstätter

Franz Jägerstätter was born in St. Radegund, Austria, a small village near Salzburg and the southern German border. In his youth, Franz had gained a reputation for being a wild fellow, but, in general, his daily life was like that of most Austrian peasants. In 1933, he fathered a daughter, Hildegard Auer. In 1936, he married Franziska Schwaninger, a girl from a nearby village, and they went to Rome on their honeymoon. A Catholic by birth, he experienced a religious awakening - apparently about the time of his marriage - and later served as sexton of his parish church. When German troops moved into Austria in 1938, Jägerstätter was the only person in the village to vote against the Anschluss. Although he was not involved with any political organization, and did undergo short period of military training, he remained openly anti-Nazi, and publicly declared he would not fight in the war. After many delays, Jägerstätter was called to active duty in February 1943. By this time, he had three daughters with his wife, the eldest not quite six. He maintained his position against fighting for the Third Reich, and was imprisoned, first at Linz, then at Berlin. After a military trial, he was beheaded on August 9, 1943, aged 36.
Franz exchanged many letters with his wife that expressed his faith, his love for his wife and family and his strong conviction about his decision to stand against the Nazi regime. These letters and writings from his journals have been recently translated into English and have been published by Orbis Books as "Franz Jägerstätter: Letters and Writings from Prison," edited by Erna Putz.
Beatification

In June 2007 Pope Benedict XVI authorized the Congregation for the Causes of Saints to publish a decree that declares Franz Jägerstätter a martyr. The beatification ceremony took place on October 26, 2007 in Linz. His then 94-year-old widow, Franziska, and his four daughters attended the ceremony. The Prefect of the Congregation for the Causes of Saints, Cardinal José Saraiva Martins, said in the beatification sermon that Jägerstätter served as a model for Christians today who sometimes are confronted with "conditioning and manipulation of consciences and minds, sometimes through deceitful means."

In literature

American sociologist Gordon Zahn wrote Jägerstätter's biography, "In Solitary Witness: The Life and Death of Franz Jägerstätter" (1964). Zahn happened upon the story while researching another matter in Germany in 1956 and became interested in Jägerstätter's ultimate commitment to his faith and conscience, subsequently engaging in extensive research and interviews for the biography. Israeli playwright Yehoshua Sobol based his play Eyewitness (2002) on Jägerstätter's story. It premiered in 2002 in a production by Tel Aviv's Cameri Theater, and has been performed abroad, titled "iWitness." In the spring of 2004, an excerpt of the play was presented in the Cameri Theatre's symposium on "The Holocaust in Theatre."

Contact

Frank Tobin PR
http://www.jopemediaproductions.com
IL, 60640 US
Frank Tobin - Owner / President, 323 6613720

Keywords

Franz Jagerstatter

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