Filmmakers John Ward and Todd Zeile have announced they are donating 1,000 free movie church screenings of their new Christian film, I AM. The decision to offer free church site licensing comes on the heels of securing a distribution deal with studio giant 20th Century Fox Home Entertainment. The innovative direct-to-church release schedule offers churches across the country to become a busy movie theater for 1 to 4 nights in October.
“Everywhere we go, we hear how churches are struggling. Too many seats are empty. People are hurting, and they are inundated by a cynical world telling them to run from the God who’s so angry he only wants you to feel guilty – if he even exists at all,” said John Ward, the film’s writer and director who also appears as one of the primary characters. “Nearly all churches have a screen of some sort, and churches themselves are essentially theaters – they hold a service every week. Why should we ask pastors to drive people from their churches, into movie theaters, when we can equip them with the same movie that they can use, to invite people inside their churches? Through offering free screenings we are giving a gift to help churches fill the empty seats.”
I AM will release exclusively in churches nationwide in October, 2010. The feature film has been often described as a “Christian Crash” both by Hollywood Executives and Christian Pastors. I AM is a modern parable in which ten strangers in Los Angeles see their lives intersect and collapse through a plot which follows the Ten Commandments, one by one. As the characters struggle with their various personal demons, each is sustained by their private conversations with the same mysterious stranger: a man they ultimately come to know as I AM.
I AM is not a film that pretends to show the perfect model for a perfect life. It is a tale of suffering and brokenness – a story of this spiderweb of a world in which we all live, and the struggle to break free of its sticky entanglements. Only at the movie’s conclusion do we see that this mysterious I AM -- who is there regardless of how terrible the decisions of a character may be -- is the quiet, steady source of redemption and peace for those who listen… and left brokenhearted for those who turn away.
“Everyone has a friend, co-worker, or family member with whom they have a serious religious disagreement. I AM gives those people a safe way to engage in that dialogue, and churches an historic opportunity to host it,” said co-filmmaker Todd Zeile. Todd Ziele who helped co-produce and acts in the faith-based feature film was drawn to the movie due to the movie’s story which is inspirational, but not preachy. Although producing films has been a primary focus for Zeile since the conclusion of his 16-year Major League Baseball career, this is his first feature faith-based film.
Ward and Zeile have put their money where their mouth is. Not only did they finance the film, but they are financing the giveaway. “It’s about doing the right thing,” Ward said. When asked about their fears that giving the movie away will hurt their ability to get their money back, Ward replied, “We believe strongly that if we reach out to help the church now, others will reach back and buy I AM later. In these difficult economic times, churches need help. Having the first look at a big movie helps them draw a crowd, so the least we could do is give that to them.”
The offer of free church screenings of I AM is available to the first 1,000 churches in the United States through http://www.IAmTheMovie.com. More information can also be found at http://www.Facebook.com/
“Everywhere we go, we hear how churches are struggling. Too many seats are empty. People are hurting, and they are inundated by a cynical world telling them to run from the God who’s so angry he only wants you to feel guilty – if he even exists at all,” said John Ward, the film’s writer and director who also appears as one of the primary characters. “Nearly all churches have a screen of some sort, and churches themselves are essentially theaters – they hold a service every week. Why should we ask pastors to drive people from their churches, into movie theaters, when we can equip them with the same movie that they can use, to invite people inside their churches? Through offering free screenings we are giving a gift to help churches fill the empty seats.”
I AM will release exclusively in churches nationwide in October, 2010. The feature film has been often described as a “Christian Crash” both by Hollywood Executives and Christian Pastors. I AM is a modern parable in which ten strangers in Los Angeles see their lives intersect and collapse through a plot which follows the Ten Commandments, one by one. As the characters struggle with their various personal demons, each is sustained by their private conversations with the same mysterious stranger: a man they ultimately come to know as I AM.
I AM is not a film that pretends to show the perfect model for a perfect life. It is a tale of suffering and brokenness – a story of this spiderweb of a world in which we all live, and the struggle to break free of its sticky entanglements. Only at the movie’s conclusion do we see that this mysterious I AM -- who is there regardless of how terrible the decisions of a character may be -- is the quiet, steady source of redemption and peace for those who listen… and left brokenhearted for those who turn away.
“Everyone has a friend, co-worker, or family member with whom they have a serious religious disagreement. I AM gives those people a safe way to engage in that dialogue, and churches an historic opportunity to host it,” said co-filmmaker Todd Zeile. Todd Ziele who helped co-produce and acts in the faith-based feature film was drawn to the movie due to the movie’s story which is inspirational, but not preachy. Although producing films has been a primary focus for Zeile since the conclusion of his 16-year Major League Baseball career, this is his first feature faith-based film.
Ward and Zeile have put their money where their mouth is. Not only did they finance the film, but they are financing the giveaway. “It’s about doing the right thing,” Ward said. When asked about their fears that giving the movie away will hurt their ability to get their money back, Ward replied, “We believe strongly that if we reach out to help the church now, others will reach back and buy I AM later. In these difficult economic times, churches need help. Having the first look at a big movie helps them draw a crowd, so the least we could do is give that to them.”
The offer of free church screenings of I AM is available to the first 1,000 churches in the United States through http://www.IAmTheMovie.com. More information can also be found at http://www.Facebook.com/
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