Epic dramatizations for Doctors of the Church
The second part of the "Doctors of the Church" season highlighted the stories of Ephrem the Syrian, Gregory I, and John Chrysostom.
We filmed the episode on Ephrem the Syrian in the beautiful town of Štanjel and captured Efrem's years as a hermit in a stunning cave just behind the Italian border.
A particular challenge arose in how to recreate the symptoms of the plague with makeup, as Efrem succumbed to the disease, most likely contracted from the poor people he cared for and delivered food to.
The second episode centered around Pope Gregory the Great. The most challenging scene once again dealt with the theme of the plague. Gregory I organized a procession on the streets of Rome to end the plague that had plagued the city for almost fifty years. During the procession, Gregory witnessed St. Michael the Archangel standing atop the mausoleum of Hadrian (now called Castel Sant'Angelo) and sheathed his sword to signify that the people's prayers had been answered. Coincidentally, our team had visited Rome for another project just a month before our scheduled shoot for Gregory, capturing shots of Castel Sant'Angelo. Our VFX team erased the statue of Saint Michael from the building and replaced it with shots of our Saint Michael actor.
The people's procession was filmed in the streets of Piran, and we were delighted to achieve an even more authentic result.
The John Chrysostom episode concludes this season of the series. We filmed the majority of the scenes in Piran, one of our favorite locations for stories set in the early centuries. Most scenes take place in Constantinople, and Saint George’s Cathedral provided the perfect setting, even for the court scenes of Chrysostom and Empress Eudoxia. Our actor also enjoyed filming the younger Chrysostom’s years, during which he had the chance to remember what it was like to have a full head of hair.
So far, we have recreated the life stories of twenty-one Doctors of the Church. Sixteen stories remain to be told, and we are eagerly anticipating which ones the next season will bring! Stay tuned!