Procession (2002)

A procession of the Italian Confraternity - an order of the Catholic church that perhaps, to the eyes of traditionally non-Catholic countries, visually triggers other very different movements. However, this confusion is dispelled by constantly interspersed references, filmed in the same town and the same day, to more recognizable visual aspects of traditional Catholicism. Being an accepted part of the established church in different parts of Italy, the Confraternity (and the procession itself) contains no political meaning contextually. So, do these images still have the power to create any cultural shock? The word 'procession' contains within it the word 'process', and here lies the poetic extended meaning of a life in a religion. "Procession" is intended as a docu-poem using narrative without narration. This documentary takes as inspiration some of the values that informed Humphrey Jennings and the documentary movement of the 1930s. The hope is to rekindle interest in this format.