Untitled

For the better part of always I've had a story in me to tell and in the last few years I've decided to write a script.  Right now it's called untitled, cause I don't have a title... Untitled takes place in college because that time in your early 20's is when everyone you meet has the potential to impact you life, for better or for worse.  For me, my life was impacted for the better and for that I am forever grateful.  College holds such a special place in my heart that setting a script in any other environment was just out of the question.

Clarification

My last post makes little sense.  I am well aware of this so here's some clarification. My beef with most christian films out there is that they strive so hard for a "family friendly" label that they become homogenized and content ineffective.  The message is there because the message is Jesus Christ but they shoot for so many demographics that there's not really anything there to satisfy anyone.

Progress (writing a christian film that isn't...)

My writing was going very well for a while then slowed to well standstill.  I'd say that content wise I have 75% of my script done.  Right now it's super unorganized and to anyone else but me it would look like a 6th grade media arts project gone wrong.  I am learning as I go.  I can't stress that enough.  I'm hoping to get my hands on some screen writing software to give my script a glimmer of credibility and structure.  So that's my progress...

Question.

Does a christian film have to be family friendly?  That's what I keep thinking about lately.  Not that my little project is NC17 or anything, I just don't feel like I would necessarily want to write something the whole fam could gather round the living room and enjoy together.  That's Pixar's job.  When I troll the Internet for anything about christian films I keep seeing buzz words like, "family friendly", "up lifting", "positive", "encouraging".  What about real? When did that become such a bad thing?  I'm trying to create some "real fiction" with my script.  There has to be some balance between using the medium for a message and creating a medium with a message. Ya, so that's either incredibly brilliant or the dumbest thing anyone has put out on the blog universe.  I just want to write a script that's smart, funny and talks about God in a natural way.

a few notes

I am...

Besides having an overwhelming desire to create a quality christian film, I... am a christian I was 18 years old and a college freshmen when God relentlessly pursued me and called into Himself. Now I am 28 years old and I live in Minnesota. I work for a small corporation called Wal-mart. I went to college for four years but never graduated. While I was in college I was a mass communications major and was in the process of switching to the film program when I dropped out. I don't know why I didn't stick with it and graduate. I think on some level I was freaked out by the fact I could actually do something I loved. So now here I am 10 years later and two years away from the big 3 OH. I've been focuses on writing a screen play for years now but two things kicked everything into high gear. One of my friends suggested that I write a 30 before 30 list( 30 things to accomplish/try before you turn 30) and write a blog ( suggestions were made during two different conversations). My 30 before 30 list turned out to be a 10 in 2 list. There really aren't 30 things I have a desire to do before I turn 30. Ten is kind of a stretch too.  I realized that all I really want to do is write a screen play and that is what this blog is about. I get that hardly anyone will read this blog and I am OK with that. If nothing else this blog keeps me accountable to myself. I've written more in the last few days than I have for years.

What have I been doing between dropping out of college and working for walmart? Well, for the last four years I have been reading how-to books and used film studies text books. I also find reading published scripts for movies that have already been made very helpful. I watch an embarrassing number of movies and listen to the DVD commentary. Yes it probably would have been easier to graduate from college, but I am a maverick.

Mission Statement

I would like to see a relevant well written, well produced, well acted movie about people who happen to be Christians. I would like to see a movie about concepts like faith, forgiveness, integrity, purity, and redemption to name a few. I would like to see a christian movie that has contemporary dialog and non cheesy music. I think Casting Crowns and Thirdday are great bands but I am sick of hearing their songs in "faith films" in lame montage form. I want to watch a christian movie with an awesome soundtrack straight from my itunes. I want there to be songs on the soundtrack from Eleventyseven, Hello Kelly, Everyday Sunday, Hawk Nelson, Heath Mcnease, Love Out Loud, Family Force Five, John Reuben, FM Static...I would like to see a movie that seems like the offspring of Fox Faith and Fox Searchlight Films if they ever mated. For all of you who aren't film geeks let me put it this way, if Juno and Amazing Grace had a baby. I have tried in vain to find such a cinematic gem. I have watched just about everything netflix has to offer from it's Faith and Spirituality section stopping short of Veggie Tales. How cool would it be if Veggie Tales did a salute to Family Force Five?...I digress. In my quest to find a christian movie that speaks honestly and well doesn't stink I have come across some just plain badness. I won't list specific titles, but com' on man...I want to see a movie that draws people to Christ honestly without pulling punches and sugar coating His truth. I have decided if I ever want to see this movie I must write it. This is my quest, to write a non cheesy christian movie that believers can identify with and non-believers will hear and know truth from.  Please follow along with me as I write a screenplay with no formal training, just a stack of  used text books from Half Price Books and a lot of ambition.