Warsaw’s largest church, the Temple of Divine Providence, has closed its doors this week after being rented out as a location for the filming of the latest series of Apple TV+’s science fiction show Foundation.
The management of the church, a concrete-and-copper construction that opened in 2016, say that they decided to cooperate with filmmakers for the first time to help fund the modernisation of the building’s energy system.
Jesteśmy przekonani, że to filmowe dzieło pokaże prawdziwe piękno architektury wilanowskiej Świątyni – mówi pełnomocnik Zarządu COB.https://t.co/NUvQXTfsSF
— eKAI (@ekaipl) April 5, 2024
The temple is being used between 4 and 13 April by cast and crew filming the third season of Foundation, an American science fiction show loosely based on Isaac Asimov’s eponymous series of stories.
During the period of filming, worshippers wishing to attend mass at the temple can do so in one of its chapels and must inform security staff when they enter the premises. The church authorities have apologised for any inconvenience.
This week, some locals noticed a large flag with an unusual symbol hanging outside the building amid filming.
Dziś wizytacja z Gryfindoru pic.twitter.com/S6ZjBEX58t
— Tobiasz Piątkowski (@tobiasz_p) April 9, 2024
“For the first time we decided to cooperate with filmmakers,” said Marek Drabik, a spokesman for the board of the Divine Providence Centre that manages the site, quoted by Catholic press agency KAI. “There are two important reasons behind this.”
“First, the film’s vision corresponds with the depiction of the temple as a place of refuge for people, building community,” he explained.
“Second, thanks to this production it will be possible to finance an important element of the modernisation of our energy infrastructure,” continued Drabik.
“The construction of an energy turbine will significantly reduce the costs of electricity, which is a huge component of the fixed operating costs of the complex.”
The spokesman added that they are “convinced that this film will show the true beauty of the architecture of the temple”.
The interior of the temple
Set in the distant future after a catastrophe, Foundation tells the story of a group of outcasts who must rebuild civilisation and save humanity in the face of the collapse of the Galactic Empire.
Until 7 April, preparations for filming took place in and around the temple. From April 7, fiming began – mainly in the evening and at night – and will last until 13 April. The museum located in the church complex will also be closed to the public from 8 to 10 April.
The Temple of Divine Providence is the largest church in Warsaw. Its origins datee back to 1791, when the idea for the construction of the church was presented during the session of parliament that adopted Poland’s Constitution of 3 May, which is considered Europe’s first modern, written constitution.
However, Poland’s subsequent tumultuous history saw the project repeatedly delayed, with construction only finally beginning in 2003.
The temple against Warsaw’s skyline (credit: Emptywords/Wikimedia Commons, under CC BY-SA 4.0)
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Main image credit: Adrian Grycuk/Wikimedia Commons (under CC BY-SA 3.0 PL)
Agata Pyka is an assistant editor at Notes from Poland. She is a journalist and a political communication student at the University of Amsterdam. She specialises in Polish and European politics as well as investigative journalism and has previously written for Euractiv and The European Correspondent.
