Heritage of Hope

After a year of script revisions, location shoots, and video editing, the all-new Heritage of Hope DVD is finally complete and receiving rave reviews from those who have seen it. This new production is an updated version of the original Heritage of Hope video that was produced 20 years ago and has been used frequently as an orientation and education tool in our local ministry sites.

While the early 1990s may not seem that long ago, clothing and hair styles of the original participants looked dated. Healthcare facilities and equipment that was then touted as high-tech also looked old. These visual components, coupled with the fact that the original Heritage of Hope was produced on video tape that degrades over time, necessitated an update.

FHCM leadership, in collaboration with the Franciscan Sisters of Christian Charity General Council, decided early on that the original script was, with some revisions, usable for the new production. What was then expected to be a simple reshoot of most of the same scenes that were in the original, turned into a nearly complete redo. Only the historical reenactment footage from the original version was used again. The new video was all shot with digital equipment in high-definition format.

Coordinating lengthy video shoots and finding willing “actors” was sometimes a challenge, but the end result speaks for itself. As it is a showcase of the Franciscan Sisters’ sponsored ministries, an effort was made to give Silver Lake College and the healthcare ministry equal time in the video. For budget reasons, the film crew—led by Jim Parish of Parish Digital Cinema, the same company that produced the original video—could not travel to the system’s ministry sites outside of the Manitowoc, Wis., area. Because of this, the production crew was instructed to keep the healthcare scenes as generic as possible, so as not to be identifiable as a specific organization by most viewers.

The new video was funded jointly by FHCM and the Franciscan Sisters of Christian Charity. Copies of the DVD were distributed to several people, including mission leaders in each of the FHCM organizations. Special thanks to all the sisters at Holy Family Convent, Silver Lake College students and faculty, and Holy Family Memorial personnel for their help in making this project such a success. Click here to view the new 10-minute Heritage of Hope video.