Los Traficantes - Behind the Scenes

They say there are over 5,000 Christians working in the entertainment industry today in Hollywood. Whether they are making a difference or living a missional lifestyle is a matter of debate. However, from my own personal experiences, I have met several people who are the real deal. One of those is Kurt Tuffendsam, who has been working professionally in the industry for over seven years. He may not be a household name, but Kurt has worked on numerous film and television projects in the roles of producer, editor, post-production supervisor and line producer. One of his recent films was the stylistic and film noir interpretation of The Job, which was shot in Detroit, Michigan.

Tuffendsam is very good at what he does. But what he excels at is embracing a lifestyle and a missions approach to his work. He is passionate about sharing Christ with the world and believes filmmaking is the universal language which can impact people throughout the world. That’s why he founded Rise, a nonprofit missions organization made up of Hollywood filmmakers who are using their skills, resources and expertise to bring compelling stories of Gospel transformations to the Body of Christ worldwide through filmmaking and social media.

Back in January was a first for Rise as a group of filmmakers from all over the world came to Tijuana, Baja, Mexico to produce their first motion picture under the Rise label. The film, Los Traficantes, retells the story of Esteban Mendoza Cruz, who was the former chief of drug trafficking for the Sinaloa Cartel in Mexico. Cruz committed his life to Christ while serving time in one of Mexico’s most violent and corrupt Federal prisons and has since led thousands of men to Christ and to freedom from drug addiction and their former lives of crime. He has planted more than 40 churches and mentored hundreds of leaders and pastors. It is an amazing story and, needless to say, life changing. The film will be primarily aimed at a Latino audience. Kurt just posted this behind the scenes look at the making of Los Traficantes.


Los Traficantes - Behind the Scenes from Kurt Tuffendsam on Vimeo.

Get a sneak peek at our new film Los Traficantes before the film comes out later this year. We shot this feature length movie on location in Tijuana, Mexico in January, 2011. For more information, visit our website at: missionrise.org.