SLS 22RS-2390 ORIGINAL
2022 Regular Session
SENATE CONCURRENT RESOL UTION NO. 72
BY SENATOR PEACOCK
COMMENDATIONS. Commends the creators of the film "The Five Priests" on being
honored as an Official Selection and Monthly Winner at the Cannes World Film Festival for
independent filmmakers along with twenty-six other international festivals of note.
1 A CONCURRENT RESOL UTION
2 To commend the creators of the film, The Five Priests, on being honored as an Official
3 Selection and Monthly Winner at the Cannes World Film Festival for independent
4 filmmakers along with twenty-six other international festivals of note.
5 WHEREAS, The Five Priests, a full-length documentary that recounts the lives of
6 five Roman Catholic priests who died in the 1873 Yellow Fever epidemic in Shreveport and
7 are now Servants of God in the Vatican canonization process, has been honored as an
8 Official Selection and Monthly Winner at the Cannes World Film Festival for independent
9 filmmakers along with twenty-six other international festivals of note; and
10 WHEREAS, the film was produced by the Louisiana State University-Shreveport
11 Foundation in conjunction with the Cathedral of St. John Berchmans, and directed by Chris
12 Charles Scott of Strategery Films in Las Vegas, Nevada; and
13 WHEREAS, the film features the Apostolic Nuncio to the United States (the Vatican
14 ambassador), Archbishop Christophe Pierre, Bishop Francis Malone of the Diocese of
15 Shreveport, Shreveport Mayor Adrian Perkins, Father Peter Mangum of the Cathedral of St.
16 John Berchmans, local author W. Ryan Smith, and Dr. Cheryl White, history professor at
17 Louisiana State University-Shreveport; and
18 WHEREAS, the documentary is based upon the book, Shreveport Martyrs of 1873:
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SLS 22RS-2390 ORIGINAL
1 The Surest Path to Heaven, authored by Mangum, Smith, and White, and published by The
2 History Press in October 2021; and
3 WHEREAS, The Five Priests premiered at the Strand Theatre in Shreveport on
4 November 4, 2021, and has been enjoying critical acclaim during the current international
5 film festival season; and
6 WHEREAS, to date, The Five Priests is also the winner of Best Feature
7 Documentary at the European Film Festival; Best Documentary, Best Idea for a
8 Documentary, and Best Cinematography in a Documentary at the World Independent
9 Cinema Awards Los Angeles; Best Short Documentary at the Barcelona International Film
10 Festival; Diamond Award for Best Documentary Feature at the SoCal Film Awards; Gold
11 Award for Feature Documentary at the Spotlight Documentary Awards; Award of
12 Excellence at the Indie Fest Film Festival; Honorable Mention: Documentary Feature at the
13 Los Angeles Film Awards; Finalist Feature Documentary at the Texas Film Festival; and
14 Semi-Finalist Feature Documentary at the New York International Film Awards; and
15 WHEREAS, additionally, the film is currently an Official Selection of the Rome
16 Prisma Independent Film Festival, and the Nieves International Christian Film Festival.
17 THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED that the Legislature of Louisiana does hereby
18 recognize and congratulate the creators of the film, The Five Priests, on their multiple award
19 winnings, in addition to being honored as an Official Selection and Monthly Winner at the
20 Cannes World Film Festival for independent filmmakers along with twenty-six other
21 international festivals of note.
22 BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that a copy of this Resolution be transmitted to the
23 Louisiana State University-Shreveport Foundation and the Cathedral of St. John Berchmans.
The original instrument and the following digest, which constitutes no part
of the legislative instrument, were prepared by Lebra R. Bias.
DIGEST
SCR 72 Original 2022 Regular Session Peacock
Commends the creators of the film The Five Priests on being honored as an Official
Selection and Monthly Winner at the Cannes World Film Festival for independent
filmmakers along with twenty-six other international festivals of note.
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