What is Worth Dying For?

Next weekend marks the 10th anniversary of the release of a video showing ISIS beheading of 20 Egyptian men and one Ghanaian on a beach in Libya. On Friday and over the following several days, you will be able to watch the Oscar short-listed animated film The 21. MORE Productions worked with the global Coptic community and a team of more than 70 artists from over 24 countries to produce this film, which tells “the rest of the story.”

If you prefer to see the film now, you can do so by registering here. Registration will also give you access to four short documentaries we produced to give some history of Coptic Orthodox Christianity, explain what icons are, explore the importance of religious liberty and show the making of the film. 

Six years ago, my wife Leanne and I visited “Garbage City” in Egypt with Mama Maggie, the “Mother Theresa of Cairo.” Not only did we see families living above the garbage they recycle and children wandering the neighborhood, without a public system to educate them, but we also saw photos of the 21 men who were martyred for their faith. 

The 21 are considered saints by the Coptic Orthodox Church, the oldest Christian communion outside of Israel. Saint Mark, author of the Gospel which bears his name, brought Christianity to Egypt and was thus the father of the Coptic church. He was martyred for his faith, the first of millions of Coptic martyrs. After our trip, I wanted to know more about who the 21 were. Now, six years later, Clapham’s sister production company MORE Productions has released the animated short film that tells the story of what happened to the men after they were captured.

The idea for the use of animation came to me from a photo of one of the martyrs, Kirollos Shokry Fawzy, and a well known icon from an Egyptian monastery which I have in my office. The icon is called Christ the Pantocrator.  

The Coptic (Egyptian) communion considers itself the “church of the martyrs” and has experienced persecution since its founding in the First Century. Coptic men and women tattoo crosses on their wrists to identify themselves in case they are killed. They are often vulnerable to attacks by extremists, especially in rural areas. Copts have a rich and ancient culture, including a unique form of Iconography, which has a cartoon-like aesthetic. Rather than produce a traditional documentary, or (even more challenging) a scripted film, we decided to allow what is otherwise unseen by human eyes be seen through the use of icon-inspired animation.

This 12-minute film was an opportunity for Coptic iconographers, illustrators, animators, musicians and voices to partner with a global, multifaith team to tell their story. We also have been able to work with Jonathan Roumie, an Executive Producer on the film, to share the film with a worldwide audience. Jonathan plays Jesus in The Chosen and his father is from Egypt.  

Last week Leanne and I had the privilege of going back to Egypt, this time to the small town of Samalut where many of the martyrs were from. There at the church built in the martyrs’ honor, we premiered the film to their widows and families. It was a humbling experience, to say the least. The families were blessed by the images of Jesus being with the martyrs throughout the ordeal, and overwhelmed with the global support expressed by the artists’ collaboration around the film. 

In 2023 the 21 were added to the Roman Martyrology, the Catholic Church’s official list of saints. It was the first time in history that saints from a different communion had been added. From now on, the 21 will be celebrated on February 15th by both Roman and Orthodox communions. This February 15th, being the 10th anniversary of the martyrs’ deaths, presents a unique opportunity for us  to premiere the film, which will be viewable every year going forward for all communities and ages to celebrate this remarkable story of faith.

We were pleasantly surprised that the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences voted to shortlist The 21 for Oscar nomination consideration. Some felt it might be too controversial. However, we are thankful that not just the excellence of the craft was recognized, but the story of an indigenous people group who have stayed faithful to their beliefs despite a 2,000-year history of persecution.

After the global premiere on our website, Youtube and other platforms next weekend, we will be screening it at film festivals throughout the year, including the Justice Film Festival in NYC next week and Animatex in Cairo at the end of February. Our partner Coptic Orphans has been helping us with screenings, including this week on Capitol Hill and at the religious freedom summit. 

After watching the film, feel free to plan a small screening with your friends and family next weekend.  We hope that it blesses and encourages you personally, and that it strengthens you in your own beliefs as we each ask ourselves: “what is worth dying for?”