Salt + Light Family    Mary Rose Bacani, Producer

Mary Rose can remember three special transitional moments in her life when she felt called by God to do something. One was to go to Rhode Island - to join the Regnum Christi movement as a consecrated member after one year at the University of Toronto (she was a consecrated member of Regnum Christi from 1995-1998). The next one was to go to California - to attend Thomas Aquinas College for her Bachelor of Arts in Liberal Arts (she went through Thomas Aquinas College's rigorous program from 1999-2003). The third one was to quit hopping around the United States and go back home to Toronto, Ontario. She did, partly to be with her family again and partly to follow what she felt in her heart she had to do - to check out Salt + Light Television in its infancy in the old World Youth Day 2002 office.

The day she visited the S+L office in June 2003 led to a series of interviews, on-camera auditions, and a two-week internship. Ever since she became part of the staff in September 2003, she has produced magazine shows, documentaries, service productions, as well as doing commentaries, hosting talk shows, and being a guest on other TV shows. It has been a great adventure of discovering what she enjoys the most.

Producing stories for Salt + Light Magazine introduced her to the Catholic world and the simple everyday people who are part of it - the single mom, the hockey player, the sacristan, and the hardworking student. Working on Journey of Light took her on a spiritual journey to the Holy Land and helped her realize her talents for creative storytelling in the audiovisual medium. Her most involved service project in the past two years has been The World I Know: Virtues in Action, a 10-part half-hour TV series for elementary and high school students co-produced with the Dufferin-Peel Catholic District School Board. This was her first intense project involving 30 schools, 11 student hosts, and over 60 tapes of material. This was also another chance for her to work creatively on another project with her Journey of Light Co-director, Richard Valenti. Beloved: The Dominican Sisters of St. Cecilia took Mary Rose to another world, where love for God is most real and tangible in the lives of young women who see him as their beautiful husband. This hour-long documentary allowed her to enjoy what she does best --- telling stories of faith and love. It was also her first time to collaborate heavily with Salt + Light editor Marc Boudignon.

What Mary Rose believes she offers Salt + Light is a heart that can find the beautiful story in any project assigned to her and make that a reality on-screen. She has successfully taken on projects ranging from African cows to Sisters who play sports in habits, and has loved them all. Her greatest treasures are the relationships she has made and the memories she will keep of the faithful and beautiful people who make of their life something beautiful for God.

Her short-term plans include finishing her two-year correspondence course with the Institute of Children’s Literature, spoiling her little niece Emma, and going on spontaneous weekend excursions.

 

Mary Rose Bacani's Filmography

Salt+Light TV Series

• Producer/Host, Salt and Light Magazine (2003-2004)
• Reporter, Salt and Light Catholic News (2005)
• Producer/Host, Vox Clara (2005)
• Producer, Moments in Church History
  -5-minute TV fillers (2005-2008)
• Segment Producer, In Your Faith (2005-2006)
• Producer/Host, Catholic Focus (2005-2009)
• Producer/Host, The Holy Land Experience
  -5-minute TV fillers (2006)
• Producer, Reflections on the Saints with Michael Knox, S.J. - 3-minute TV fillers (2008)
• Producer/Director, The World I Know:  Virtues in Action - 10-part half-hour TV series (2008-2009)
• Host, Zoom (2009)
• Events Segment Producer, Salt + Light Radio (2009-Present)

Salt+Light TV Documentaries

• Segment Producer, The Gift of the Lay Movements and New Ecclesial Communities in the Church (2004)
• Producer, The Episcopal Ordination of Bishop Anthony Daniels (2004)
• Director/Writer, Journey of Light (2005)
• Director/Writer, Holy Cows! (2006)
• Writer, Children of the Batey (2006)
• Director/Writer, Coady’s Dream (2006)
• Director/Writer, The Catholic Women’s League - For God and Canada (2006)
• Director/Writer, Beloved:  The Dominican Sisters of St. Cecilia (2009)
• Writer/Host, Mary MacKillop: Australia's First Saint (2009)
  
• Writer/Director, God's Doorkeeper: St. André of Montreal (2010)

Salt+Light TV Specials

• Host, Salt and Light Christmas Special (2003)
• Commentator, World Youth Day Prime Time (2005)
• Producer/Host, 2-part Catholic Focus episodes on the University of St. Thomas in Houston, Texas (2008)
• Segment Producer, 2008 International Eucharistic Congress in Quebec City - Daily Updates on Zoom (2008)
• Producer/Host, World Youth Day 2008 in Sydney, Australia - Daily Updates on Zoom (2008)

Special Projects

• Director/Writer, Gaetano Gagliano: Laying New Tracks to the Future - promotional video for St. Joseph Communications (2006)
• Director/Writer, The World I Know:  Virtues in Action (2007) - 10-part series (10 - 11 minutes each) co-produced with The Dufferin-Peel Catholic District School Board (2007)
• Director/Writer, Holy Ground - 15-minute promotional video for Catholic Cemeteries - Archdiocese of Toronto (2008)
• Director/Writer, 100 Years of Phenomenal Care:  Saint Elizabeth Health Care - 30-minute Catholic Focus episode & promotional video for Saint Elizabeth Health Care