Cate Blanchett, Monica Bellucci, and more join Pope Leo to celebrate cinema

Pope Leo XIV hosted a celebration dedicated to cinema while welcoming artists from around the world on November 15.

Celebrated icons of the discipline, including Cate Blanchett, Monica Bellucci, and Spike Lee, descended upon the Vatican to hold an audience with the Catholic sovereign.

Labelling cinema as “a popular art in the noblest sense, intended for and accessible to all”, the Pope expressed its power with the words, “When cinema is authentic, it does not merely console, but challenges.”

“It articulates the questions that dwell within us, and sometimes, even provokes tears that we did not know we needed to express,” he further told those in attendance.

His Holiness also urged his audience to recognise and explore the significant issues of our time in film, rather than “exploit” it.

“Violence, poverty, exile, loneliness, addiction and forgotten wars are issues that need to be acknowledged and narrated. Good cinema does not exploit pain; it recognizes and explores it. This is what all the great directors have done,” he said.

The Pope additionally acknowledged “that the art of cinema and the cinematic experience are in danger” while he implored “institutions not to give up, but to cooperate in affirming the social and cultural value of this activity.”

Following his 15-minute address and a blessing, Pope Leo XIV received the famous individuals from the audience, one at a time. Cate Blanchett later told the press that he “really urged” everyone in attendance “to go back into our day jobs and inspire people.”