The 2006 San Antonio Independent Christian Film Festival
It is with great excitement that Brett and I bring your attention to the third annual San Antonio Independent Christian Film Festival and the second annual Christian Filmmakers Academy, two growing projects of Vision Forum Ministries. These two events, slated for October 16-21, will draw maverick Christian filmmakers from around the globe to challenge the status quo presented by Hollywood.
We love the vision of both the academy and festival to foster the continued growth of an independent Christian film movement. As America becomes increasingly discontent with Hollywood, the film academy and festival provide an avenue for Christians to stop cursing the darkness and to start lighting candles.
These events are designed, not only to showcase the work of aspiring Christian filmmakers, but also to connect them with fellow enthusiasts and to equip them through seminars, workshops and training by seasoned industry professionals.
Through the work of Vision Forum an increasing number of Christians are learning how to create films that powerfully combine high-end technical quality with a presuppositionally Christian worldview. Few events better demonstrate the three pillars of the Rebelution: Character, Competence, and Collaboration.
But beyond the regular great films, informative workshops, evening entertainment on the famed River Walk, Paseo del Rio, the numerous Best of Category awards, and the $10,000 Best of Festival grand prize, this year promises several new and exciting features for academy and festival attendees.
Panavision and Final Draft Sponsor Film Academy
Panavision and Final Draft, the motion picture industry’s leaders in high-precision camera systems and script-authoring software have joined as sponsors of the Christian Filmmakers Academy.
Panavision will be sending James Finn to lecture on cinematography and the future of high-definition technologies, as well as one of their a cameras with lenses so that students can learn about proper setup and handling of industry-standard 35mm film equipment. An exciting presentation for all serious students of filmmaking.
Final Draft will be assisting Academy students in the craft of writing and reading the complex screenplay format. Their software program is used by director Tom Hanks, along with other leading directors. A contest will be held for students to win a personal license for the Final Draft software.
Advanced Technology for Academy Students
As last year, Academy participants will receive over sixteen hours of formal classroom instruction from seasoned industry professionals over the three-day filmmaking bootcamp. But this year, thanks to sponsor Extreme Meetings, students will have yet additional advantages students in other film courses do not enjoy.
According to reports from Vision Forum, every student will be equipped with a wireless keypad with which to interact live with instructors during the lectures.
“We try to only cover the material the students need,” says instructor Geoffrey Botkin. “This phenomenal tool helps us fine-tune our lectures as we go.”
A Behind-the-Scenes Look at Facing the Giants
Many of our readers have emailed us about the film, Facing the Giants. Produced by independent Christian filmmakers from Georgia with an all-Christian cast and crew, the film is being shown in theaters across the country this weekend.
Produced and co-written by Stephen Kendrick and directed and co-written by his brother Alex—who also plays the film’s lead role—Facing the Giants represents a landmark in independent Christian filmmaking.
Stephen Kendrick will be a special guest speaker at this year’s Film Festival, where he and Ken Carpenter (producer of the film The Making of Facing the Giants) will give Film Festival attendees a behind-the-scenes tour of how the film was made.
In-Depth Academy and Festival Blog Coverage
Brett and I attended the first film festival in San Antonio in November 2004. In October 2005 we returned as members of the press, live-blogging the Academy and Festival with up-to-the-minute quotes, seminar recaps, film reviews, photos and interviews with faculty and filmmakers.
For this reason we are very glad to announce that we will be flying down to San Antonio on October 14th—again with press passes to cover both the academy and festival, live, here on The Rebelution. And this year, thanks to YouTube, we’re going to try to integrate video coverage as well.
Vision Forum has targeted a strategic medium of cultural education and for this reason we applaud and support them in their vital work. We invite you, if at all possible, to join us in San Antonio in October, to catch a vision for independent Christian filmmaking and for cultural rebelution of the silver screen.
September 30th, 2006 at 7:37 pm
Sounds fantastic guys! I can’t tell you how many people benefit from this coverage. Excited to hear about it.
September 30th, 2006 at 9:36 pm
Great news, guys! Thanks to your excellent coverage last year I was able to keep up with what my brothers were experiencing at the festival, and almost feel as though I were actually there (I was only able to attend the League of Grateful Sons premiere). This year my brothers will return as semi-finalists and I am looking forward to being there with them. I will look forward to seeing the Rebelution duo at work!
September 30th, 2006 at 9:49 pm
Wow! I would love to go. Film is such a powerful tool and I hope to someday be able to ise it to reach others for Christ.
September 30th, 2006 at 10:10 pm
Our family will attending Vision Forum’s Uniting Church Home conference next week! We would love to make to the Film Festival this year, but won’t be able to. Dad and Sean really want to go though, but dad doesn’t have enough vacation time left! Maybe next year! Have fun!!
September 30th, 2006 at 10:21 pm
Oh yeah! Will you guys be staying with the “H” family again? Are ya gonna do some Country English Dancing with them? Gee, I wish I could go!
October 1st, 2006 at 2:50 pm
I’m glad you’ll be covering the film festival again! My family and I were able to go last year and had a great time. In fact, that’s where we first heard about your blog - from Tom Parker who we saw at the Alamo before the festival. Sadly, we won’t be able to make it this year, so I look forward to your reviews!
October 1st, 2006 at 5:10 pm
Vision forum sounds great. We Christians could always use a creative way to reach out to the world using the gifts that God has given us. Thanks guys, for allowing us to partake in this ministry even when being so far away.
I have a cousin who would be greatly interested in this - he is constantly making “movies” with his friends, adding an impressive amount of graphic effects to his scenes. I’m sure that he would love an opportunity to learn more about the movie making industry! Thanks again.
October 2nd, 2006 at 10:04 am
Oops, my above post was supposed to say that is great news.
October 2nd, 2006 at 12:21 pm
That sounds like an awesome opportunity to learn more about making movies. Unfortunately I won’t be able to make it this year. Maybe next time. Thanks!
October 2nd, 2006 at 1:11 pm
“As America becomes increasingly discontent with Hollywood, the film academy and festival provide an avenue for Christians to stop cursing the darkness and to start lighting candles.”
Discontent with Hollywood immorality and irrationality and the egocommercialism that accounts for it is nothing new, as evidenced by the popular 1938 novel, I Lost My Gir|ish Laughter by “Jane Allen”. In the 1939 radio version found at http://mercurytheatre.info, a playwright is invited to accompany a film producer as his play is adapted to screen as a vehicle for [moviestar X] and [moviestar Y], the title changing from “The Asylum” to “Lady in a Cage” to “That Gentleman from the South” as stars jump on and off.
October 2nd, 2006 at 8:19 pm
Shelbi: That\’s great! Which one is your brothers\’ film?
October 3rd, 2006 at 12:34 pm
Hey, Alex, Brett. I figured out why I can’t visit your website!
It’s the cookies! If I delete my cookies, I can return just fine. It is somewhat frustrating though, because then I have to relogin to all my software. At any rate, I’m here, and I wanted to suggest something.
There is a software out there called ‘VlogIt’. It’s designed to quickly and efficiently upload video in a flash format specifically for use in blogs. It’s got some pretty nice features for just getting things online in a superfast way.
At any rate, I was also planning on getting some video coverage of the festival and uploading it using VlogIt.
You can find the software at www.seriousmagic.com/products/vlogit
Looking forward to seeing you at the festival!
~ In Christ, John.
October 4th, 2006 at 6:13 am
Alex and Brett, Since I will not be able to attend the festival again this year, I am really looking forward to your live coverage. Last year your coverage of the academy (before I arrived at the festival) made me feel like I was “right there”. Thanks, –Bryce
October 5th, 2006 at 12:19 pm
Vision Forum has correctly identified film as a medium which can be used by those who are pushing the cultural antithesis, to use Rushdoony’s term. However, it is sometimes forgotten that filmmaking was at its conception a primarily Christian industry, or at least exhibited largely Christian social aspects, and held to a standard which if not overtly Christian was at least essentially Christian. We should seek to retake, to reclaim the medium of film which is now being used against our culture, and most especially against our generation. We need people of our generation to learn how to write screenplays which are glorifying to God; to learn the technological aspects of production; yet most of all, we need the commitment to accomplish films which fulfill a vision Biblical in its entirety, no matter what the cultural pressure to compromise. “Seek ye first the Kingdom of God, and His righteousness.” We are to seek the Kingdom and glory of God in everything, filmmaking not excluded in the least.
We would greatly appreciate the chance to attend the conference and academy, but as we are not able to do so this year, we will find it a blessing to be able to receive the reports of it on this blog. Thank you for your commitment, time and work in this blog to exhort this generation to live faithfully in accordance with the Scriptures.
October 10th, 2006 at 7:26 pm
Hi Alex, sorry for this late response. I guess I should have been a little more specific: my brothers are semi-finalists in the trailer category, not film. They do hope to enter a film next year, though. With all of their wedding videography commitments this year, a trailer was all that they could handle.
October 10th, 2006 at 7:29 pm
Also, their trailer is called “Redifining Beauty”, should you happen to see it.
October 13th, 2006 at 9:34 pm
[…] Tomorrow morning Brett and I will be flying down to San Antonio to live-blog the Christian Filmmakers Academy and Film Festival. The filmmaker’s academy starts on Monday morning and goes to Wednesday evening, with the opening ceremonies for the film festival kicking off on Thursday night. […]
October 15th, 2006 at 5:24 pm
Thanks so much Guys!
I will not be able to attend this year and what makes it worse is I have a film in the semifinals, I was wondering if anyone did this and now I wonder no more.
Be Not conformed
August 1st, 2007 at 1:21 am
Jessie…
free hosting…
September 12th, 2007 at 12:32 pm
What are your thoughts guys about this article on Doug Phillips’ methods of making films?
Doug Phillips, Raising the Allosaur
March 15th, 2008 at 8:30 am
I happened upon your site and the above comment and would like to hear your response to the article that is cited about the film “Raising the Allosaur.” Isn’t truth crucial to Christian film? Please respond.
visit Killingtheallosaur.com, raisingthe allosaur.com to see photos, video interviews and documentation that will give you the information you should be aware of. Thanks