Bosco Films will release on September 11 in Spain Sagrado Corazón, a French docu-fiction that, after attracting more than half a million viewers in France, will arrive in Spanish theaters with a proposal focused on one of the most deeply rooted devotions in the Catholic tradition.
Directed by Sabrina and Steven J. Gunnell and produced by Krea Film-Makers, the film traces the origin and present-day relevance of devotion to the Heart of Jesus through a combination of historical reconstructions and contemporary testimonies.
The feature film begins with the apparitions of Jesus to Saint Margaret Mary Alacoque, a religious of the Order of the Visitation, which took place between 1673 and 1675 in Paray-le-Monial, France. The revelations, recognized by the Church, spurred the spread of devotion to the Sacred Heart throughout the world and profoundly shaped Catholic spirituality in the centuries that followed.
Beyond the historical account, the film incorporates nearly twenty testimonies from people who recount how this spirituality has transformed their lives. According to its directors, the purpose of the work is to show that the message of the Heart of Jesus remains fully relevant and continues to speak to contemporary humanity.
Before its arrival in Spain, Sagrado Corazón has received significant international acclaim. According to data released by the distributor, the film has surpassed 500,000 viewers in France, in addition to gathering around 300,000 in Poland, 100,000 in the United States, and 70,000 in Italy, figures that are uncommon for a production with religious themes.
A devotion with deep roots in Spain
In 1733, Blessed Bernardo Francisco de Hoyos, a Jesuit from Valladolid, claimed to have received the so-called Great Promise, in which Christ expressed his desire to reign in a special way in Spain.
That tradition reached one of its most emblematic moments in 1919, when King Alfonso XIII officially consecrated Spain to the Sacred Heart of Jesus during the inauguration of the monument at Cerro de los Ángeles, in Getafe. A century later, in 2019, the Church in Spain renewed that consecration in a celebration presided over by the then Archbishop of Madrid, Cardinal Carlos Osoro, before thousands of faithful.
The idea for the film originated in 2023, after its directors made a pilgrimage to the Marian sanctuary of Notre-Dame-du-Laus, in the French Alps. From that moment, they decided to address cinematographically a devotion that, in their view, continues to offer a response to the spiritual concerns of the contemporary world.