Comments on: Do We Really Want Hollywood Paying Attention to the “Christian Market?” (What Christian Filmmakers Can Learn From Musicians.)

By: "The Road," Coming Soon to a Church Near You | Faith & Geekery

"The Road," Coming Soon to a Church Near You | Faith & Geekery — Wed, 18 Nov 2009 19:31:49 +0000

[...] back I talked a little about the trend of marketing movies to Christians — both Christian film directors talking [...]

By: Faith & Geekery | Faith & Geekery

Faith & Geekery | Faith & Geekery — Tue, 23 Jun 2009 12:02:18 +0000

[...] linked and commented on an essay by Dallas Jenkins and the world of Christian’s movies in the past, and the man was nice enough to respond. It [...]

By: Justin

Justin — Sun, 03 May 2009 18:31:58 +0000

Dallas and Nathanael,

Thank you for your responses. Sorry I’m taking so long to respond, I’m packing for a long vacation!

Dallas, I agree – it’s not like Christians aren’t going to Pixar films. There are a few other studios and directors who get a lot of attention from Christians thanks to their commitments. Still, the idea of Hollywood catering to a church market (however that is done) still gives me pause. I don’t want to be another demographic so predictable that consultants and marketers are setting their budgets based on catering to how they perceive me….and I don’t want followers of Jesus to be an that easy a target to hit.

By: Dallas Jenkins

Dallas Jenkins — Thu, 30 Apr 2009 17:13:30 +0000

Thanks for the article, man. Well done. One thing I disagreed with: “It seems to me that Christians are making good films — they’re just not the ones other Christians want to watch.” Christians ARE watching the Pixar films. They do go out and see films with good values, which is one of the reasons those films do so well. We’re talking about films with explicit Christian content that are marketed directly to the church market.

Also, in my article there’s a link to another article I wrote that addresses another one of your points, which is the question of whether it’s a good thing for Hollywood to be pursuing the Christian market. I think you’d find it interesting.

By: Nathanael

Nathanael — Thu, 30 Apr 2009 16:30:27 +0000

This is a great article, very well articulated and with a lot of good things to say. I’ll be honest, though, that as much as I enjoy discussion about this issue, it always leaves me wondering if we’re asking the right questions.

I mean, I can think of so many people who were heros in the media of their day who still seemed to be able to let the message come through loud and clear without watering down the artistic excellence that has made their works endure to today.

I’m talking about Bethoven, Bach, and especially Handel, whose masterpiece is good enough to be performed all around the world at Christmas and Easter time and actually has led people to the Lord. Or John Bunyan, whose blatently obvious imagery is still presented well artistically and has also reached the lost all over the world.

The list could go on with Dickens, Flannery O’Connor, Dostoevsky, Lewis, and many more, but the point is the same that there are many who have figured out how to sacrifice neither the message nor the media. As a result, these have left a message, standard, and testimony for many generations. These are the people I wish I could interview, to hear what they have to say about the subject.

My guess is that they would say their excellence was done for God, who demands it both in the media and the message. I believe that the “Christian” industry will reach the standards we’re all longing for when the movies aren’t made for Hollywood or for the Christian market, but for the God we represent.

(Sorry for the long comment, I just wanted to give some thoughts and generate discussion.)