Producer Karen Covell Discusses the importance of redemptive films

Does this film go beyond just making a movie?

Thanks to the latest development in digital video, it seems that everybody has become a filmmaker. That’s especially true in the world of Christian filmmaking. I’m sure you know the story of Sherwood Baptist Church. They have written the book on how to make low-budget Christian films.

What if you were approached to donate or invest in a Christian movie? What would you look for? How would you know if it was a good investment with tangible results? If you’re a filmmaker ask yourself if there is more to this than just making a movie? In other words, is there a bigger picture beyond the Christian movie?

Here are three questions you should ask yourself before you invest in a movie or decide to produce one:

1. Does this movie have the ability to point people to Christ? Of course, that’s the main reason most Christians get involved in filmmaking in the first place. But it’s more than just making a Christian movie. To be more effective requires us to expand our horizon. A redemptive, transformation, or cautionary tale can be more Christian in terms of its nature than most Christian movies are in terms of their content. You want something that’s effective and has an impact. Forget about just reaching a Christian audience. Can you go beyond that and actually attract a mainstream audience to your movie?

2. Does this movie provide opportunities to reach out to nonChristian media professionals? Most often Christians only want to work with Christians. What an opportunity we miss. Filmmaking is a collaborative process that presents opportunities to build trust, relationships, and friendships; therefore, our movie crews should have both Christians and nonChristians working together. Looking for outreach opportunities? Well you just found one. I can’t think of a better way to have an impact on the industry.

 

3. Does this movie have opportunities to train and mentor the next generation of Christians pursuing a career in media and film. Are we disciplining future media missionaries? My experience has taught me that most Christian filmmakers are pre-occupied with the process of making the movie. They don’t see this as a golden opportunity to help the next generations of Christians who want to be filmmakers. I realize working with interns and students who don’t have experience is a time-consuming process,. But I believe the whole point of making the movie in the first place is to provide opportunities for future media missionaries. That’s big-picture thinking.

But making the time and effort to train people requires first a determination to do it. You need a plan on how things get done. You need a buy-in from department heads such as the director of photography, production manger, production designer, etc. You also need a budget because it will take more time to work with inexperienced interns. You also will need to think about designating an education coordinator who’s responsibility is to oversee interns and students. They need to create a discipleship model as well as providing training before the production process starts.

The final ingredient is access. The best education you will ever receive is on-the-job training. That means the key people on your production must make themselves available and be willing to teach as they are in the process of making a movie? Unfortunately, none of this is easy. Few people do it because it is just easier to make the movie.

Final thoughts

One movie is just one movie. Today most films have a very short shelf life. You get your 15 minutes of fame, and you’re off the stage. What is going to last and stand the test of time is the impact that we have on the lives of the people who worked on the film. Let me put it this way. Future filmmakers can go on and have a career spanning 40 years. Think about the number of projects and films they will work on throughout their career. How many people will they come into contact with who are nonbelievers? How many opportunities will they have to share Christ? Yes, making your film is important. But there is a bigger picture to think about. So the next time you are approached to give or invest in a movie, maybe, you should ask the questions: Does this film go beyond just making a movie?

"Leonard - The Story of Salvation Mountain and Leonard Knight" Documentary

By Cheryl Wicker
Christian Movies Examiner

Forty years ago, a troubled drifter came to believe he was called to tell the world, “God is love” and created the colorful desert artwork known as Salvation Mountain in his quest. Documentarian, Patrick Rea, who has been chronicling the life of the folk artist, Leonard Knight, since 2007, began a Kickstarter funding campaign for his documentary film “Leonard” on April 5, 2012.

It was just as the world’s most famous hobo “went viral” as a result of his cameo in the film, “Into the Wild" that Rea was captivated by Knight’s story. After capturing nearly 50 hours of footage over the past four and half years, Rea is seeking the funds to finish his film through the now infamous crowdfunding site, Kickstarter.com which has selected Rea’s film “Leonard - The Story of Salvation Mountain and Leonard Knight” for a 40 day internet funding campaign.

After twelve years, Knight who is affectionately known as “Leonard,” tried one last time to launch his “God is Love” hot air balloon, from the remote desert squatters camp of Slab City, near the Salton Sea, in 1984, and failed. He decided to stay and find a different way to honor God, and after decades of trials, developed engineering innovations with natural materials. The structure that resulted is now known as Salvation Mountain, the largest adobe art Installation in the world. To date, over half a million people have visited the mountain and listened to Leonard talk about God.

Continue reading on Examiner.com Patrick Rea launches Kickstarter campaign for documentary film 'Leonard' - National Christian Movies
Examiner.com http://www.examiner.com/christian-movies-in-national/patrick-rea-launches-kickstarter-campaign-for-documentary-film-leonard#ixzz1rnsM2v6l
 

How Hot will it Get ?

Do you know the real message the media culture is communicating? Is there a singular story, a general theme? Whether it’s on a conscious or subconscious level, we are being told, “You, as an individual, are the center of the universe.” You are more important than anything else. Your needs, wants and desires must be met at any cost.

The message comes in the form of instant gratification and the glorification of wealth, power and sex. This helps to explain our obsession with consumerism, which is at the root of most of our problems.

Businesses and corporations want to sell you something. Media outlets need cash to produce programming. In turn, they are able to create content that can influence the culture. Their influence turns into desire. As desire increases in the culture, it creates demand. Demand fuels the cycle, which takes us back to square one.

Craig Detweiler, a professor at Fuller Seminary in California, puts it this way. “The media is a process lived in the marketplace, driven by consumerism, fueled by advertising, and obtained by celebrity.”

The media crisis is everybody’s issue. Every Christian must play a part in finding a workable solution. Our ability to function as a Christian and be effective in our ministry is directly proportionate to our response as the Body of Christ to the media culture crisis. Currently, we have no plan. We have no strategy. No unified effort. I think we need one.

Consider this analogy. Have you ever tried to work outside in the sun on a hot summer day? Let’s say a really hot summer day at 105 degrees. How productive are you? Everything is a challenge. It takes every effort just to stay cool and survive. What would happen if you turned the temperature down to say 90 to 95 degrees? It would still be hot. But it would be a little bit more bearable. Perhaps we would be more effective and productive in our work. What if we could get the temperature down to 80 to 85 degrees? Now the environment would no longer be in the way. We could be fully productive and no longer concerned with just trying to survive. The media culture is like a hot summer day at 105 degrees. It makes us ineffective. Somehow, we have to find a way to turn down the temperature. By doing so, no matter what our ministry, we will be in a better position to further the cause of Christ. The reason that ministries are not successful is because of the environment the media culture has created.

This is every Christian’s issue—yours and mine. No matter what the cause or ministry, from the pro-life movement, outreach, youth ministry, teaching, local church, family counseling, etc., we all can play a part that will make a difference. Our part is to turn down the temperature. Everyone playing their small part equals the whole. The first place to start is by not believing everything the media is trying to sell you. Search for the truth by looking for media choices that supports a different view than the one that is being communicated by today's media culture

Act One offers Educational Programs with a Purpose

Act One, Inc., exists to create a community of Christian professionals for the entertainment industry who are committed to artistry, professionalism, meaning, and prayer, so that through their lives and work they may be witnesses of Christ and the Truth to their fellow artists and to the global culture.

Act One graduates are prepared for careers marked by integrity and excellence, in writers’ rooms, on sets, and in studio and network offices.

Act One's vision is to produce cinema and television that respect and serve the global audience, combining mastery of craft with depth and substance. Act One's emphasis is on transforming the content of Hollywood entertainment and the culture that produces it.

In service of this vision, Act One offers a variety of educational programs endorsed by industry insiders, including the Writing for Film & Television Program and the Producing & Entertainment Executive Program.

The Act One offices are located in the hills beneath the iconic Hollywood sign in the historic neighborhood of Hollywoodland. This location reminds us to pray always for the Hollywood community that we serve

Weekend Report: 'Hunger Games' Three-peats, Passes $300 Million Over Easter

Despite the entrance of two competitive titles to the marketplace over Easter Weekend, box office phenomenon The Hunger Games had little difficulty taking the top spot for the third-straight frame. American Reunion opened in second place, though its debut doesn't compare favorably to earlier series entries, while Titanic 3D wound up on the low-end among 3D re-releases. The Top 12 earned an estimated $117 million this weekend, which is up 14 percent from the same period last year but off a bit from Easter 2011 (which was later in the month).

The Hunger Games dropped 43 percent to an estimated $33.5 million. That's the seventh-highest second weekend of all-time, and it's the best since Alice in Wonderland in March 2010. Based on Lionsgate's projections, the movie will pass $300 million on Easter Sunday, which is only its 17th day in theaters. That's the sixth-fastest pace ever, and it ranks second behind Avatar among non-sequels. Its estimated $302.8 million total is more than the final tally of all of the Twilight movies and all but two of the Harry Potter flicks. Based on its current trajectory, The Hunger Games should end up with at least $350 million.

American Reunion took second place with an estimated $21.5 million from 3,192 locations. That's much lower than the opening weekend for American Pie 2 ($45.1 million) and American Wedding ($33.4 million), and it's even noticeably off from the original American Pie in estimated attendance. Still, it didn't drop quite as far from its predecessor as Scream 4, which was last April's attempt at resuscitating a long-dormant franchise for a fourth outing.

There are plenty of possible reasons for American Reunion's underwhelming debut. Women may have been distracted a bit by The Hunger Games and Titanic 3D, which earned over $50 million combined. Also, Easter weekend can be a tough time to open an R-rated movie—American Reunion's $21.5 million is actually the best R-rated Easter debut since Panic Room a decade ago. In comparison, the first three American Pie movies were all released in the Summer, which is prime real estate for raunchy R-rated fare.

While timing surely played a role, the bigger problem was probably with the brand itself. While the first three American Pie movies played a part in establishing the model for risqué sex comedies in the new century, they haven't really held up that well (when the average person is asked what they think of American Pie, the standard response seems to be: "I liked the first one, but the sequels? Not so much.") Also, after seeing ads for cheesy direct-to-video spin-offs for the better part of the last decade, people were probably less likely to pay much attention to the ads for American Reunion. Those spin-offs were meant to prolong the brand, but in doing so they also wound up diluting it a bit.

Universal is reporting that 61 percent of the audience was 25 years of age or older, and it also skewed slightly male (51 percent). They awarded the movie a solid "B+" CinemaScore, which doesn't really give a strong indication regarding word-of-mouth.

The Real Jesus

Other than at Christmas time, the Easter season is perhaps the one time of the year that people start to think about Jesus. Who was he? What was his mission? And what does he want me to do? For the past 2,000 years, we’ve been asking those questions. In some ways, Easter has become for the Christian church our Super Bowl—our opportunity to engage people who are asking these questions.

I read an article this week from Andrew Sullivan titled Christianity in Crisis. He put a different spin on the issue of Jesus, the Church, and the seeker. He thinks the church has gotten it wrong. We have forgotten the simple messages that Jesus tried to teach us. And, as a result, it has placed our faith and Christianity in crisis. Perhaps, the Easter season is a good time to take stock of our situation.

Andrew says that maybe we put too much value on the physical miracles that Jesus performed and not enough on the spiritual miracles. Jesus offered some truly radical ideas that we have somewhat forgotten. It seems that throughout the ages we have recreated Jesus to fit into our image of who we think Jesus ought to be. We want him to fit into our plan. But have we missed the spirit and the very essence of who Jesus is in the process?

First, Jesus made it very clear that we are to put God first in all things. He said ultimately God is our Father, and we were made in his image. He said we are to love one another, but he also went on to make it clear that we are to also love our enemies and to forgive them. Ask yourself this question. Do we really do that in the Body of Christ?

Jesus also taught us that we need to give up power over others. Ouch! I think that’s one the church has a lot of problems with. Jesus submitted himself to the cross and did not make any attempt to challenge any earthly authority. If you try to obtain power over others, it will always come with the implied use of violence. Jesus’ ministry by all accounts neither tried to obtain power nor the use of violence.

A clear examination of the Gospels also indicates we are to give up our material wealth and follow him. Do we do that in our current materialistic and wealth-driven culture? When’s the last time you heard a sermon on that topic?

And, finally, Sullivan points out we are to become servants and humble ourselves. Ask yourself this question. Does this look like any form of Christianity that you see here in America? Would the real Jesus be welcome in today’s church or at Easter service? Would we recognize him if he showed up? Or perhaps the version we have created fits comfortably into today’s modern view of the Christian faith. Maybe, during this Easter season, these are things we can think about and reflect upon and pray for wisdom and discernment.

We need the real Jesus—not one that has become politicized or wrapped up and disguised as the American Dream personified.