Your Gifts are there for a Reason

Our New Educational Initiative targets Christian Teens
Written by shanesooter on October 5, 2012 - 5 Comments

For as long as I’ve been working with City on a Hill Productions, I’ve been fielding calls and visits from parents of creative teens. Seeing that we’ve found a way to use our creative gifts and passions in a way that supports and deepens our fait

h, they’re hopeful that we can help their kids do the same. Quite often, they’re desperate for help, and I can’t blame them. While there are plenty of arts-intensive programs in high school and college that can help their kids develop their gifts, its almost impossible to find one designed to help them grow in their faith

as well. But finally, we’re ready to address that problem. Watch and see:

The eureka moment for us came as Apple moved to take over educational publishing by providing a platform for the creation of interactive, multimedia textbooks (if you havent yet watched this video, its a must-see). Imagine a 2-year iPad high school film curriculum, where lectures, on-set examples, and interactive multimedia drive the learning experience. Amazing, right? Working in partnership with Christian Academy of Louisville and Cuyahoga Valley Christian Academy, we’ll develop this program to the beta-testing stage by the 2013/2014 school year. Our vision is to see the program go live with Christian schools and homeschoolers across the country in the fall of 2014.

Know a Christian school, homeschool, or young person who needs to have access to this curriculum? Leave me a note in the comments below.

zp8497586rq
Click here to comment

Wrestling with the Problem of Pain

First Director's Journal from the set of Acts of God
Written by shanesooter on August 7, 2012 - 1 Comment

Last week I opened the floodgates, and for the next weeks and months expect to see a wealth of clips, trailers, and behind-the-scenes content for our upcoming project, ACTS OF GOD. This is both our most ambitious and most complex

project to date, consisting of a full-length feature film, a 6-part TV miniseries/small-group study, a suite of church campaign tools, and a book. Post production is buzzing here in the studio, additional scenes are being planned for filming this fall, even as we’re deep into pre-production for our upcoming production of THE SONG.

To set the stage, I want to share this on-set Director’s Journal filmed as we were creating the stormy night that begins the movie. Here are my thoughts on the purpose behind this project, and what I hope it will accomplish:

So how would you address the problem of pain? What questions would you like to see explored? And as we work through this project, what would you like to see to better understand the production process? Let me know in the comments below!

Click here to comment

Introducing ACTS OF GOD

New project, new partnership, new direction for ministry
Written by shanesooter on August 1, 2012 - 2 Comments

The prolonged period of silence on this blog marks the most daunting, exhausting, and thrilling period of artistic activity in my life. Last Friday, we screened an early cut of our newest effort at City on a Hill – ACTS OF GOD. F

ilmed over the past two months, its the most ambitious project we’ve ever tried to tackle. And fittingly, it explores the toughest question our ministry has looked at to date: If God is good, why does he allow so much suffering? If we follow God, how do we respond to pain?

ACTS OF GOD is an ensemble drama, and at its heart are three

women who have been lifelong friends. Each have their own struggle to face, and each in turn helps the others on their journey. Many, many peeks at this project will be coming your way over the coming weeks and months, but lets start by hearing a perspective from the women we came to call the Three Amigas:

Its important to note that, in addition to being our most challenging project to date, ACTS OF GOD is significant in two major ways. First, this represents a new creative partnership with Southeast Christian Church Founding Pastor Bob Russel. He provided the theological guidance for the project, serves as the on-screen teaching pastor in the series, and plays a character in the story as well. And second, ACTS OF GOD will be our first feature film – in addition to being the TV miniseries and suite of church products our ministry is known for.

So what do you think? Are you eager to see more? Have you struggled with these questions yourself? Let me know in the comments below!

Click here to comment
← Older Entries