Vatican presents cartoon on life of Pope John Paul II
There have been many books and several movies about the life of Pope John Paul II, but for the first time a Spanish film company in collaboration with the Vatican has put together a cartoon on the life of the late Polish Pontiff.
The 60-minute multilingual DVD by Cavin Cooper Productions, presented today, is titled John Paul II - Friend of all Humanity and is aimed at families.
The animated film is divided into two parts, the first devoted to Karol Wojtyla's youth and life in Poland up to his election as Pontiff on October 16, 1978, while the second tells the tale of his 26 years as pontiff. He died on April 2, 2005.
The principal narrators are two doves, but the cartoon includes other invented characters including the Pope's pen and diary.
The presentation came a day after the anniversary of his election, a day marked by John Paul's successor, Pope Benedict's XVI, with a message for Polish TV paying tribute to John Paul
Benedict referred to John Paul as the Poles' "great fellow citizen" and recalled his long illness and suffering before his death.
