A Review of

Lights, Camera, Action!

Highlights from the

2009 Christian Filmmakers Academy

By David A. Cox

“Someone is discipling the nations, and it’s not [Christians]!”  Geoffrey Botkin

Film, which is perhaps one of the most powerful mediums that influences our culture today, is controlled not by Christians but by those who actively seek to destroy Christianity and it’s virtues.  This dominance has led Christians to either reject film as fundamentally wicked, or to subject themselves to the Hollywood paradigm and ultimately loose the salt of the Gospel.

About five years ago, Vision Forum began the Christian Filmmakers Academy to equip Christian filmmakers to shape culture and disciple the nations for the glory of God.  Their vision was to inspire young Christians who will go on and make films that will awaken culture with the message of the Gospel.  They point out that Jesus often spoke to the spiritually blind in parables to communicate eternal truths.  They say it is this process of storytelling which can be used to reach down into the soul of a person and articulate eternal truth in the heart and conscience.

Some fruit of the Academy can be seen in the recent blockbuster independent film, Fireproof, which was written and directed by Alex & Stephen Kendrick and produced with the help of their church.  Although the Kendrick brothers were making films long before the first Christian Filmmakers Academy in 2004, Stephen credits the things he learned from a past Filmmakers Academy with helping him write the script for Fireproof. 

The message Stephen Kendrick gives about the story of Fireproof is alone worth the price of the CD Album, Lights, Camera, Action! Highlights from the 2009 Filmmakers Academy.  Stephen gives glory to the Lord for how He guided so many details from story concept to the final editing process.  Perhaps the most important thing he shared was the admonition for us all to be in God’s Word on a daily basis because it is a lamp unto our feet and a light to our path by which we have understanding and direction.

Throughout the Filmmakers Academy is an appeal for young filmmakers to be done with the trivialities of empty entertainment and to be deliberate about the message their films communicate.  Geoffrey Botkin states “every film has a message!”

Also addressed is the potential that the Science Fiction genre provides to Christian filmmakers. Doug Phillips powerfully points out that “there is no film genre that has done more to drive Americans away from a biblical view of history, a biblical view of faith, and a biblical view of science, than Science Fiction itself.”  Doug asserts however that this genre can and must be reclaimed by Christians since the Science Fiction genre can be used for tremendous good in shaping views of life, genetics, technology, and future scientific development.

The Highlights from the 2009 Filmmakers Academy covers not only the theological and cultural implications of good or bad films, but also gets into the technical nuances of filmmaking.  Although many aspects are only covered in basic survey, they include everything from scriptwriting, storyboarding, composing, and using color, light, sound and stunts to communicate a compelling message.  Student filmmakers will get an excellent overview of what is necessary in a good film of which they can incorporate in their own productions and use as a reference for further study.   

Professional stuntman Jimmy Broyden gives an exciting presentation on how to do stunts that look realistic but don't kill the stuntman. The lecture also addresses the biblical use of violence in film and the need to not use gratuitous violence as Hollywood does.

In the message, How to Improve a Film in 10 Minutes, Geoff Botkin and his son Isaac examine technical aspects of good film making which they draw from the filmography of directors such as Walt Disney and Stephen Spielberg.  They were quick to point out that although the messages of many of their films are contrary to biblical law, filmmakers can still learn from the mistakes or achievements of those who are masters of their craft.

Vision Forum also hosts the San Antonio Independent Christian Film Festival (SAICFF) immediately after the Filmmakers Academy.   One exciting aspect of this years Film Festival was the $101,000 prize to the film which earned Best of Festival.  To this end, the Doug Phillips gave a message How to win the $101,000 Best of Festival Award.

One disappointment of the Highlights from the 2009 Filmmakers Academy CD Album is that there were a number of film clips that were reviewed throughout the Filmmakers Academy which obviously were not visible with the CD recordings.  This does not mean it was impossible to understand what was being taught, just difficult to follow the teacher’s discussion at times since the visual component was not there.  Also missing from the Album is the message A Biblical Worldview for Film by Doug Phillips.  I feel that without this talk, the listener will not have a necessary context for Christian filmmaking.  However this message can be obtained separately from Vision Forum. 

Overall, I think that the Highlights from the 2009 Filmmakers Academy is an essential for any Christian filmmaker.  It exceeded my expectations and inspired me as I’m sure it will do for many others.   Lights, Camera, Action!