Venerable Augustine Tolton is quickly becoming an American icon as his story becomes more and more well known. Part of that is due to a short film that dramatizes his childhood as a slave in 1863. That production, Across, has already screened at a number of film festivals and many church events around the country. Now, it is available for everyone to rent and watch at home.
“Word had gotten out about our film, and I would get requests to screen it every week at churches, schools, and civic events - and once even a retirement home for priests,” says Writer/Director Christopher Foley. “But with the Covid restrictions, most of those events have had to be cancelled. We wanted to reach out to all of those people, and maybe a few who know nothing about America’s first black priest.”
Across can be found on the Vimeo platform. Signing up for an account is free, and the rental is $2.99. It can be streamed to televisions via Apple TV, Chromecast, Amazon Firestick, Roku or Android. Foley said the film is appropriate for audiences 13 and up. All proceeds go toward the making of the full feature film about Tolton’s life, which Bolder Pictures hopes to put before cameras later this year.
Father Tolton was born on April 1, 1854, and the producers chose his birthday for the “home premiere” of the film. The hero of the story is being considered for sainthood by the Catholic Church, with Pope Francis naming him Venerable in 2019. That distinction means Tolton is only 2 steps away from becoming the very first African American Saint.