"Fatima" Update to Hit the Big Screen in 2017

New York, NY, August 12, 2015 --(PR.com)-- New York City-based Echo Park Films recently announced its plans to produce a feature film based on the events surrounding the 1917 appearance of the Virgin Mary to three shepherd children in Fatima, Portugal. Echo Park Films' managing partner Arturo Navarro disclosed some details about the film, entitled "From Heaven: The Story of Fatima," while speaking to alumni from USC’s Film School. He noted that Echo Park Films has secured the rights to the “A Pathway Under the Gaze of Mary,” the recently released biography about Sister Lucia Santos, the oldest of the three children, written by Sister Lucia's Carmelite Order in Coimbra, Portugal.

Navarro commented, "My co-author, Patrick Buckley, and I have long known that the story of Fatima has needed a comprehensive update and not just a remake of the 1952 Warner Brother's production. The classic film ends with the 1917 Miracle of the Sun, but there is much, much more to the Fatima story, some of which continued to unfold even after that movie was released. In the decades following the events at Fatima, Sister Lucia continued to be visited by the Virgin Mary and faced many challenges to her efforts to spread Mary's Fatima messages as well as to obey Her command to keep some of those messages secret. This Second Act, if you will, of the Fatima story is just as dramatic and inspiring as the events that took place within the children's community in 1917. We believe we have developed a highly detailed and differentiated script that thoughtfully weaves together both primary story arcs and holistically explores Fatima's messages and many religious, social, and political themes."

Navarro said that the project has benefited from the writers' strong and privileged relationship with the Carmelites in Coimbra and others who were close to Sister Lucia, as well as the World Apostolate of Fatima, USA. In fact, Echo Park Films has committed a portion of the proceeds to the cause of Sister Lucia's beatification. The company intends to begin filming next spring with the movie's release set for May 5, 2017, just before the 100th anniversary of the Virgin Mary's first appearance at Fatima, at which time Pope Francis is scheduled to host commemorative events at the Fatima Shine.

About the Authors

Arturo Navarro is a former Paramount Studios Music Production Executive and Screen Actors Guild Business Affairs and Production Representative. He is actively involved in several non-profit organizations including serving as an advisor to the Best Practices Forums at the United Nations, USC Department of Economics and Latin Economic Forum, and Naval War College Center on Irregular Warfare and Armed Groups. He holds degrees from USC and Harvard.

Patrick Buckley, PhD, is a former speechwriter and strategic analyst for senior U.S. defense officials, including two Chairmen of the Joint Chiefs of Staff and General David Petraeus, having previously served as an Assistant Professor of Economics at West Point. He holds degrees from West Point and MIT.

About Echo Park Films

Echo Park Films LLC is an independent film company that develops and produces high quality, widely distributed feature films. Given the team members’ diverse, but specialized backgrounds, the company is able to develop dramatic movies that involve broadly compelling subject matters, particularly well-known historical religious topics and true-life narratives related to national security and international relations.