'Roadmap to Reality': Film Profiles Blessed Carlo Acutis

The life of Italian teen Carlo Acutis, soon to be the first Millennial to be officially canonized a Catholic saint, is featured in Carlo Acutis: Roadmap to Reality, a documentary from Fathom Events, in theaters nationwide on April 27-May 1.

Who Was Carlo Acutis?

Born in London in 1991 to Italian parents and raised in Milan, Italy, Carlo loved soccer and video games, and was an avid, self-taught computer programmer, but he also adored the Eucharist.

That led him to create a website cataloging Eucharistic miracles around the world, as a way to bring his technology-obsessed fellow teens back to Christ's Real Presence in the Blessed Sacrament.

Carlo died in 2006 from leukemia at the age of 15, but his personal holiness not only inspired his parents to return to the full practice of their faith, but many others around the world. His cause for canonization began in 2013, and he was declared Venerable in 2018.

A healing miracle attributed to his intercession led to Pope Francis declaring Carlo to be Blessed -- the last step before canonization -- at Assisi in 2020, where, at Carlo's request, the teen is interred.

From Catholic News Agency:

With the beatification of Carlo Acutis in Assisi Saturday, the Catholic Church now has its first "Blessed" who loved Super Mario and Pokémon, but not as much as he loved the Real Presence of Jesus in the Eucharist.

"To be always united with Jesus, this is my life program," Carlo Acutis wrote at the age of seven.

The Film Attests to Acutis' Powerful Faith

Directed by Tim Moriarty and Christian Surtz, Roadmap to Reality is replete with never-before-seen snapshots of the photogenic teen. It features insights from well known Catholic leaders, including media personalities, such as author Rod Dreher; Chris Stefanick, author and president of Real Life Catholic; and Alex Jones, cofounder and CEO of prayer app Hallow.

Also offering praise for the youthful soon-to-be saint are educational leaders -- Sophia Carozza, Ph.D., postdoctoral researcher at Harvard University; and Msgr. James Shea, president of the University of Mary -- and spiritual leaders -- including Most Rev. Andrew Cozzens, bishop of Crookston, Minnesota.

And Carlo's mother, Antonia Salzano Acutis, offers a glimpse of home life with her son when he was just a toddler. Carlo's parents were, by all accounts, not deeply religious; but from his earliest years, Carlo encouraged them to greater faith.

At the age of three, Carlo often asked to visit churches to pray before the Blessed Sacrament

“I always say,” Antonia recalls in the film, “that Carlo was a little savior for me.”

Carlo, according to his mother, had a great love of dolphins. The sea mammal is sometimes used as a symbol of Christ, and there are often images of dolphins on catacombs.

One summer, while on vacation with his grandparents, Carlo was aboard a boat on the Italian coast. He had prayed that he might see a dolphin; but instead of a single dolphin, there arrived a pod of dolphins -– thousands of them.

Antonia reported that Carlo's grandfather, who was frequently at sea, had never seen such a thing. This, Antonia said, was the kind of gift that Jesus often gave to Carlo.

Pilgrimage Enhances Teen Pilgrims' Faith

Carlo's mother is not the only person who was deeply affected by encounter with the young saint-to-be.

Roadmap to Reality follows a group of high schoolers from four Catholic high schools in North Dakota. Led by officials from the University of Mary, the students embarked on a visit to Italy and the burial site of Blessed Carlo.

Typical high-schoolers, some expressed a resistance to the Faith.

“I just want to have fun with my friends,” said one of the teens, “and I'm not really expecting to get a lot out of it from the religious point of it.”

She continued, “My family's very devout Catholics... but sometimes it almost doesn't feel real. I don't know.”

One of her fellow travelers, a young man, explained his reasons for making the trip: “The biggest reason is I just want to have a good time -– see cool things, have Italian food.”

But then they saw Carlo, lying in his glass coffin and looking as though he was just asleep; and their hearts were opened to God's grace.

“When I walked in there,” said one of the students, “I didn't know what to expect. Carlo -– he was right there! That guy's in Heaven, but he looked like he could have sat up and started talking to us!”

“The realness of him right in front of us!” exclaimed another student. “A saint, right there!”

The young woman who had expressed her resistance to her family's Catholic faith was deeply touched.

“Just to see someone who's my age, becoming a saint!” she exclaimed. “I started crying when I saw him.”

No Phones, No Distractions

One challenging rule for the teen travelers concerned social media: On this pilgrimage, they were required to leave their cell phones behind in America, avoiding the Internet and instead focusing on what they were seeing and learning about Carlo, and on interaction with others in the group.

Although Carlo himself was an enthusiastic user of the Internet, he understood that social media had a power which can be used for a positive purpose; namely, for evangelization.

And unlike many who use Facebook or X with the intent to boost their own public images, Carlo focused not on his personal prestige, but on the Internet's ability to draw people away from social media, and into the Church.

That, explains Chris Stefanick, was his goal.

Why Should Families See Roadmap to Reality?

By highlighting the teen pilgrims, and how the encounter with Carlo affected them, the film illustrates how, while technology is a powerful tool of evangelization, nothing trumps the real world.

From the National Catholic Register:

“Carlo Acutis’ story addresses the anxiety, isolation and disconnection many teens experience today,” director Moriarty told the Register. “By highlighting Carlo’s balanced and intentional relationship with technology, we hope to offer viewers — especially young people — a positive example of reclaiming mental health and spiritual holiness through authentic relationships, meaningful experiences and a connection to the sacraments.”

Go to Fathom Entertainment for info on theaters and tickets.

Canonization Postponed

Carlo's canonization, which had been scheduled for April 27, has been postponed following the death of Pope Francis. A new date will be announced after a new pontiff ascends to the Chair, since only the Pope has the final authority to canonize a saint.

Image: Castletown Media

Kathy Schiffer writes regularly for the National Catholic Register and Catholic World Report, and for other Catholic publications, including Evangelization and Culture, Crisis Magazine, Aleteia, Zenit, the Michigan Catholic, and Legatus Magazine. She’s worked for Catholic and other Christian ministries since 1988, as radio producer, director of special events, and media-relations coordinator.