By John Ward, Writer/Director of the movie, "I AM"
Conventional wisdom claims a Christian film is a movie defined by its content – a clean, wholesome movie about good, nice people accomplishing the right thing for the right reasons. The same thing goes for television and novels for that matter.
Take for example Little House on the Prairie. For nearly two decades it was the number one show in Saudi Arabia. Yet, Christianity is illegal in that country. Therefore, how can it be Christian? It’s not necessarily. It’s clean.
In addition, the most successful R-rated movie in history was The Passion of the Christ. Many consider it to be the most gory and violent film ever made, yet how could one claim it was NOT a Christian film?
If content does not determine what is, and is not, a Christian film – what does?
I believe the Christianity of a film (better defined as the appeal to the faith-based audience), is determined by two critical elements:
Conventional wisdom claims a Christian film is a movie defined by its content – a clean, wholesome movie about good, nice people accomplishing the right thing for the right reasons. The same thing goes for television and novels for that matter.
Take for example Little House on the Prairie. For nearly two decades it was the number one show in Saudi Arabia. Yet, Christianity is illegal in that country. Therefore, how can it be Christian? It’s not necessarily. It’s clean.
In addition, the most successful R-rated movie in history was The Passion of the Christ. Many consider it to be the most gory and violent film ever made, yet how could one claim it was NOT a Christian film?
If content does not determine what is, and is not, a Christian film – what does?
I believe the Christianity of a film (better defined as the appeal to the faith-based audience), is determined by two critical elements:
1 . The relationship between the film and the bible.
The Passion of the Christ was groundbreaking because it pointed audiences to specific passages in the bible. A person could experience the film, and then go home and re-read the passages outlining the crucifixion with a new and more powerful understanding of exactly how intense the sacrifice of Christ really was. It aided their faith through a deeper understanding of scriptures they may have already known.
When I began making the Liquid films, I experimented with a similar philosophy. Each film was designed for bible studies, so the films had to parallel specific verses. While the setting was modern day, the plot points were exactly the same as the passages the groups were studying. For example, when we did a study on the parables – one was the Good Samaritan. In our film, the man on the road was a downed US Navy fighter pilot in Afghanistan, and the Samaritan was a local Muslim woman in a burka.
It was clearly a different setting, but showed a direct parallel to the passage nonetheless.
The Passion of the Christ was groundbreaking because it pointed audiences to specific passages in the bible. A person could experience the film, and then go home and re-read the passages outlining the crucifixion with a new and more powerful understanding of exactly how intense the sacrifice of Christ really was. It aided their faith through a deeper understanding of scriptures they may have already known.
When I began making the Liquid films, I experimented with a similar philosophy. Each film was designed for bible studies, so the films had to parallel specific verses. While the setting was modern day, the plot points were exactly the same as the passages the groups were studying. For example, when we did a study on the parables – one was the Good Samaritan. In our film, the man on the road was a downed US Navy fighter pilot in Afghanistan, and the Samaritan was a local Muslim woman in a burka.
It was clearly a different setting, but showed a direct parallel to the passage nonetheless.
2 . Cultural relevance -- the relevance of the film to the challenges of having faith in
our modern world.
Cultural relevance is a huge concern for people of faith. The stories of the bible are compelling, profound, and consequential; but often it’s hard to get past the antiquity of the setting. After all, most of the bible is written about nomads and farmers. Almost nothing of the world of the bible remains today -- only the existence of God and the humanity of the characters.
So in the end, I believe a Christian film is a movie that points us to God’s word, excites us about Him, makes us curious, and helps us better relate to His message for our lives. Just like the Bible itself, sometimes the story is tragic, sometimes puzzling, sometimes warm and fuzzy, and even occasionally terrifying. Yet, as long as the film
is rooted in specific passages from His word – it’s hard to see how we won’t be blessed.
our modern world.
Cultural relevance is a huge concern for people of faith. The stories of the bible are compelling, profound, and consequential; but often it’s hard to get past the antiquity of the setting. After all, most of the bible is written about nomads and farmers. Almost nothing of the world of the bible remains today -- only the existence of God and the humanity of the characters.
So in the end, I believe a Christian film is a movie that points us to God’s word, excites us about Him, makes us curious, and helps us better relate to His message for our lives. Just like the Bible itself, sometimes the story is tragic, sometimes puzzling, sometimes warm and fuzzy, and even occasionally terrifying. Yet, as long as the film
is rooted in specific passages from His word – it’s hard to see how we won’t be blessed.
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