Holy Frit – The documentary about an artist creating the largest stained-glass window is picked up by Abramorama 

Abramorama announced today that they have acquired North American distribution rights from ROCO Films to the award-winning documentary Holy Frit, chronicling one artist’s journey to create the largest stained-glass window of its kind. Abramorama will open the film in New York at Village East by Angelika on October 27th, and in Los Angeles at the Laemmle NoHo on November 10th.

Holy Frit won the Audience Award when it world premiered at the 2021 Slamdance Film Festival. Since then, the film has played dozens of other festivals all over the world, collecting awards and accolades including Best Documentary awards at Edmonton International Film Festival, San Diego Film Festival and San Luis Obispo Film Festival and the Audience Awards at the Annapolis Film Festival, Dances With Films Festival, Florida Film Festival, Port Townsend Film Festival, and Naples International Film Festival.

Tim Carey and Justin Monroe were next-door neighbors back in 2014. Over beers one night, Tim asks Justin (a filmmaker) if he would do him a “small favor” … would he make a short promo video for Judson Studios, a family-owned stained-glass company where Tim was the lead artist. Tim believed Judson needed something special to help them stand out among the 60 companies they were bidding against for a monumental project in Kansas City. This was a once in a lifetime opportunity for any artist who won the job. Not only was the project to make a gigantic window for the biggest mainline church in America – the United Methodist Church of The Resurrection – but it was also led by Adam Hamilton, a hugely influential pastor and author who spoke at President Obama’s 2nd Inauguration. But even with all this potential “bigness” and glory ahead of Tim if they landed the project, little did he or Justin know just how much a “small favor” would change both of their lives forever.

In this visceral, three-year race against time, Tim, a talented, yet unknown LA artist bluffs his way into winning the commission to create the world’s largest stained-glass window of its kind. The problem is, Tim doesn’t know how to make it. After a desperate search, he finds someone who might have the answer… a world-famous glass maestro named Narcissus Quagliata. As the fates of three communities hang in the balance, Narcissus arrives like a storm, and changes everything.

Abramorama partners Karol Martesko-Fenster and Richard Abramowitz said, “We are thrilled to be collaborating on the theatrical launch of Holy Frit with ROCO Films and GATHR, to bring Tim’s astounding journey to the big screen. Justin Monroe has crafted an insightful and entertaining film, galvanizing viewers to revel in the creative process around the unthinkable.”

Annie Roney, Founder & CEO, ROCO Films stated, “It’s a rare film that has the power to make an all-age audience laugh out loud, cheer a hero attempting the impossible, celebrate a coming-of-age story, and marvel at the talent of a cigar-smoking Italian. Holy Frit is one of those stories that reveals truth can be stranger…and funnier than fiction.”

Writer and Director Justin Monroe added, “Believe me, I know… at first hearing, a documentary about a stained-glass window, no matter how big it is, sounds like it would be boring as hell. My mind immediately thinks of slow-moving shots, backed by a deep-voiced, old man with tales of ancient windows and why we should care. As a writer/director of projects I usually write the scripts for, I’m not sure I could have written a fictitious story about the creation of a monumental piece of art that is nearly as climactic and inspiring as this real-life story turned out to be. The crazy, synchronistic back-story, the dynamic cast of characters, the dramatic flair, the high stakes and humor were much more than I could have predicted when I first began filming in November of 2014.”