Christian Video速 Magazine
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Christian Video Magazine is published monthly by Christian Video Magazine, Inc. Editor-in-Chief Steve Hewitt – steve@ccmag.com Production Daystar Digital Design Mike Hewitt Contributing Editors George Temple Gregory Fish Stewart H. Redwine Mark Carroll Jay M. Delp Martin Baggs Robert Kramer
November 2010 VOL. 3, NO. 11
Copy Editor Gina Hewitt
7 Greg’s Toolkit
A Storybook Christmas
Corporate Home Office Mailing Address: PO Box 319 Belton, MO 64012
by GREGORY FISH
10 Special Feature
Ten Ways for Churches to Use Video Right Now
Phone: (816) 331-5252 Fax: 800-456-1868
by JON BARNES, CEO THE MUNICH
Copyright 2010 by Christian Video Magazine, Inc.
GROUP, INC.
All Rights Reserved
11 Special Feature
Write of Passage Screenwriting Competition by JON BARNES, CEO THE MUNICH GROUP, INC.
14 Interview
Concerning C.S. Lewis and Narnia: A conversation with Robert Velarde by ROBERT KRAMER
Christian Video® Magazine
Editorial 3 Cover Story 4 GodTube is BACK! by STEVE HEWITT
Written materials submitted to Christian Video Magazine become the property of Christian Video Magazine, Inc., upon receipt and may not necessarily be returned. Christian Video Magazine reserves the right to make any changes to materials submitted for publication that are deemed necessary for editorial purposes. The content of this publication is the sole property of Christian Video Magazine. Copy or distribution of articles or content can be done so on an individual basis. Multiple copies or distribution may not be done without the express permission of Christian Video Magazine. Views expressed in the articles and reviews printed within are not necessarily the views of the editor, publisher, or employees of Christian Video Magazine, or Christian Video Magazine, Inc.
November 2010
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from the desk of the editor
by STEVE HEWITT
Our 2010 Christian Video Awards! It is that time of year again! It’s time for our second annual Christian Video Awards. Let me remind you of how this will work! First, there will be several different categories including; 1) Church Announcements - a video created by a church for the specific purpose of promoting an individual event(s). 2) Church Promotion – a video created by a church for the purpose of promoting their church and ministry. 3) Personal Testimony – this category will include any video designed to share a single individual’s testimony. It can be very moving, cleverly done, or simply speaking into the camera and sharing your testimony. 4) Humorous – a video that has a Christian message, but makes its point through humor. 5) Inspirational – a video that really inspires viewers to have a closer walk with Christ. 6) Innovative – a video with a Christian message that is viewed by the judges as being very pioneering and/or inventive. 7) Music—a category for Christian music videos. This is not the final list of categories as the list is still being developed, but the final list of categories will be announced, along with the prize awards, in the December 2010 issue of Christian Video Magazine. Second, to submit a video for the contest, simply go to: http://www.christianvideomag.com/videocontest/submit.php and fill out the information and provide the appropriate link. All submissions must be linked and made available for viewing between the dates of submission and February 28, 2011. A person or church can submit more than one video, BUT each video submitted can only be entered into one category. So, if you have a video that is very humorous and was created to promote an event in your church, you will have to decide if you want it to be in the “Church Promotion” category, or the “Humorous” category. Third, all videos submitted MUST be created during January 1 and December 31, 2010. Videos promoting a specific event, must promote an event that took place during the 2010 year. Videos submitted must not have been posted anywhere on the Internet prior to January 1, 2010, and must have been finished, and posted before December 31, 2010. Fourth, the winners of the First Annual Christian Video Awards will be determined by votes submitted by individuals who log onto a special website (to be announced in the December 2010 issue of Christian Video Magazine) where they can view and vote for their favorite videos in each category. These votes will count towards 33% of the deciding vote to determine the winners. An additional 33% of the vote will be provided by the sponsors of Christian Video Magazine who will submit one person from their company to cast their vote for their favorite video in each category. The final percent of the deciding vote will be provided by Steve Hewitt and George Temple. Fifth, there will be a preliminary judgment by the staff of Christian Video Magazine before a video will be place for others to vote. The video must have a Christian message or purpose, and it must be deemed appropriate. There you have it! If you are a producer of a video, either for your church or for distribution to the Christian marketplace, we hope you will submit it and see how well it rates. I am excited about seeing the best of the best for 2010, and hope each of our readers will encourage their church to submit videos they have produced this last year! Together We Serve Him,
Steve Hewitt steve@ccmag.com
Christian Video® Magazine
November 2010
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Cover Story by STEVE HEWITT
I
GodTube is BACK!
remember when I first heard of GodTube! YouTube was really beginning to take off, and it seemed like such a fantastic idea (and still is!) However, GodTube went away, sort of, for a bit, and many wondered what happened to it! Well, imagine my surprise and pleasure when I received an email a few months back with the subject line of “GodTube Must-See Video”! They’re back! I now receive their emails with new, exciting, inspirational, amusing, creative and touching videos on a regular basis. And, I had questions! What happened to them? What are they doing now? Where are the going? So, I contacted them and asked! And, now, as you enjoy this interview with Lindsey Neidenfeuhr, Brand Manager for Godtube.com, you will have the answers to your questions as well. Welcome back GodTube! Why did you guys switch back from Tangle to GodTube? We are so excited about the new changes to GodTube. In June of 2010, tangle/GodTube was purchased by Salem Web Network--a leading U.S. Internet content provider targeting audiences interested in Christian and familythemed content and conservative values. The Salem team identified a strong interest from the tangle user-base to bring God back into the name as well as implement technology that is more streamlined, bug-free and easy-touse. We wanted to make the user experience pleasant and meaningful and we felt that tangle wasn’t providing that in not only the name, but in also the functionality and layout of the
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site. With the world heavily relying on facebook for all social networking needs, tangle didn’t thrive in this area. We identified the real need in safe Christian/Family Friendly Video Sharing site—something we were already good at and can continue to excel in. Going back to GodTube was quite literally the path God led us down. What is different? The Internet is sadly becoming a scary place with dangers lurking in seemingly innocent places. GodTube is safe for everyone and enjoyed by all ages. Safety is incredibly important to us and we have spent a lot of time and resources developing the technology to ensure November 2010
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Cover Story
By STEVE HEWITT
appropriate screening measures are in place. We have a team of Customer Service representatives whose soul purpose is to moderate the site for any inappropriate, offensive or malicious behaviors. Our strict moderation policy only allows for family-friendly and Christian content to be uploaded to GodTube. Not only are we a user generated video site, we also have a staff that scours the Internet every day to bring our users the BEST Christian and family-friendly content to encourage, inspire, educate and entertain. No need to spend your precious time searching for videos--you can rest assured that every time you visit GodTube, you will find the best videos around. What services do we offer? Not only will you find the world’s best Christian and family friendly videos in one place, we now offer our members the opportunity to upload their own Christian and family-friendly videos, as well as the ability to comment on the videos they find interesting. Godtube relies on the keen sense of right and wrong from our community as well as a team of staff and volunteers to Christian Video® Magazine
identify objectionable content that violates our Terms of Service. We also provide two free Newsletter services: The Godtube Must-See Email and the Godtube Today email. The Godtube Must-See Email is designed to deliver the best daily video straight to your inbox. This email is sent 2-3 November 2010
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Cover Story
By STEVE HEWITT
times a week and the featured video is always encouraging, inspiring, educational or entertaining. The Godtube Today email is perfect to enhance your daily walk with God, offering a written devotional, bible verse and inspiring video. We are blessed to partner with Our Daily Journey to bring you thought-provoking and convicting written devotionals. On occasion, we are also fortunate to feature guest contributors such as Chris Tomlin, Sara Groves, Mandisa, Audrey Assad, Hillsong, pureNRG and more.
watch/?v=9EM911NU
Who is Godtube for? Simply stated, Godtube is for everyone! With a wide array of popular video categories, there is something here for everyone. Godtube is the world’s premier source for Christian comedy, music and more--which means all your favorites are in one place. We have great partnerships with entertainers such as: Tim Hawkins, MercyMe, Chris Tomlin, The Skit Guys, Skillet, tobyMac, Jeremy Camp, Bob Smiley, Coffey and more! So you can always expect to see all the latest and greatest videos.
Adorable Lord’s Prayer http://www.godtube.com/watch/?v=7YLLPLNX
What is the future of Godtube? Godtube is all-new, but we aren’t done yet! We are currently building new features and functionality to bring you in 2011. Please join our facebook page to get all the big updates: www.facebook.com/godtubecom
Amazing Prayer from Little Girl http://www.godtube.com/watch/?v=7YP6LLNX My Redeemer Lives - Team Hoyt http://www.godtube.com/watch/?v=JMEE1NNU Super Cute Baby Worshiping God http://www.godtube.com/watch/?v=9EB0J1NU Dad Life http://www.godtube.com/watch/?v=902EJ1NU
Coffee With Jesus http://www.godtube.com/watch/?v=7Y77WLNX Before I Eat http://www.godtube.com/ watch/?v=7YDWLPNX Revelation Song http://www.godtube.com/ watch/?v=7LDKYPNX Lifehouse Drama http://www.godtube.com/ watch/?v=GD6PNNNX Never Give Up in Life http://www.godtube.com/watch/?v=9191JMNU
Please enjoy some of our most popular videos: The Story of Jonah as Told by the Cutest Little Girl: http://www.godtube.com/ Christian Video® Magazine
November 2010
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Greg’s Toolkit by GREGORY FISH
A Storybook Christmas
I
n those days Caesar Augustus issued a decree... We know the words from Luke 2 by heart. We hear them every year around Christmas time, as we are reminded that our Savior came down from heaven to earth. I love those words and I love Christmastime. Christmas and Advent videos abound in Christian circles. There are new videos being made every year. This year, my new video features that same text, but like you have never heard it before. The next installment from my partners, The Bible in Rhyme, is “Luke 2”. We are very excited about it! Here’s the link so you can see it, and I’ll walk through the process of piecing it together: http://www.worshiphousemedia.com/mini-movies/20146/Luke-2. The first thing I needed was the narration. We had an idea of maybe using some kids to read, because that’s so cute and always a welcome choice. The author, Kyle Holt, sent his son’s audio, and I thought I’d record my kids and some others, but that was not necessary. His son did a fantastic job narrating this rhythmic, rhyming verse. He was so cute! It was perfect. Now the teachable point here is when coaching kids for readings the best results will come by breaking it up into pieces. You can have them read or repeat after you. Then you can edit yourself or any bad takes out. Very rarely will you get a flawless “one take”, especially from a child. That’s the beauty of editing. You can make a reading sound perfect and seamless. The narration was ready to go. Next is music. It was fitting to use the song “Away in a Manger” since the theme in the song and the passage are the same. I used a version from Digital Juice’s royalty free Holiday Stack-
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Traxx. These single themed collections have been retired, but every now and then you can find this one and others on Ebay. It’s layered music, so for example if I just wanted the Oboe, and no percussion I could render it out that way in the Juicer software. It is a very versatile way of achieving the perfect soundtrack for your production. I wanted to do a storybook type of approach that, at the end, would motivate people to tell the story as the shepherds left. For each page in the story I wanted a real photo of what was depicted. (Real photos tend to be better than other art, especially clipart, as I wrote in last month’s article). For this I borrowed a beautiful Nativity from some friends and had my wife take still pictures of each of the figures. They were with a black background which I keyed out using blend modes. I mostly used the “screen” blend mode, and sometimes “lighten” if it looked better. I still wanted some contrast, especially in
November 2010
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Greg’s Toolkit
by GREGORY FISH
the shadows of the figurines themselves. The dark portions of the pieces would have been transparent if not for a black vignette that I added behind the pictures. For this you can simply import a black solid and create a round mask that is feathered and play with the opacity until you get the look you want. Now, back to the storybook approach. The title was a leathery texture book cover that opens up by manipulating the orientation. Make sure you set the anchor point where you need it to pivot like a book cover. To close the book, at the end simply reverse the keyframes that you set up to open it. Once on the inside of the book, use a parchment texture for the pages. This effect utilizes the CC Page Turn which should come as part of your After Effects software. To get the page to turn you adjust the fold position parameter with whatever key frames you need to add. I did a little extra detail adjusting the next page in line when the page before is being turned. The corner of the next page curls slightly and goes back like as if it was sticking to the last page. It’s very important to design your pages in a precomp and then add the Page Turn effects in your main composition. To liven up the pages a little and add a lit-
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tle movement I included some glowing particles from CC Particle World. I used the twirl animation and faded spheres with a very small birth and death size. I did not want it to be distracting— just a subtle, barely noticeable ingredient that would give the impression of the story being alive.
November 2010
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Greg’s Toolkit
by GREGORY FISH
Whenever the paragraph called for a different picture for the second half I did an unmelt effect instead of a regular dissolve or opacity fade. For the next picture I reversed the keyframes of the unmelt effect so that it would come up as the other faded out. It turned out a little bit like a morphing effect, which is what I was trying to accomplish. The final piece that I have not mentioned yet, but is very important in design is the font. I chose Commercial Script and stayed consistent with it. In other videos, I usually try to mix up the fonts, but since this is a video of a storybook one font is all I needed. I wanted a script font since it’s an old story (though done in a new way). I didn’t want it to be hard to read. Many script fonts are harder to read, and this one has its moments where it is more difficult to make out certain letters. If it were not for the fine narration by the author’s son, I may have searched longer for another more readable font. With that awesome narration (or any narration for that matter) the font is not a huge issue. Anything that matches the look or style of what you’re trying to achieve will be perfect. I’m very happy about how this video turned out and hope that the recounting of my editing process may help you in a project of your own. For now, experience the joy and wonder of the Christmas story through the rhythmic, rhyming verse of Kyle Holt’s “The Bible in Rhyme”. Beautifully animated and narrated, adults and children will be amazed and inspired by this new interpretation of our Savior’s birth. http:// www.worshiphousemedia.com/mini-movies/20146/ Luke-2.
Christian Video® Magazine
Gregory is a preacher in South Texas with a passion for combining the timeless message of God’s grace with the technology of our day. On the side he produces videos for “FishXpressions” at various Christian video websites. Without formal training, he has set out to learn how to create better and higher quality films. Apart from this column, he also maintains a production blog with tips, helpful links, and other musings at www. fishxpressions.wordpress.com.
November 2010
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Special Feature
by JON BARNES, CEO THE MUNICH GROUP, INC.
Ten Ways for Churches to Use Video Right Now 1. Announcements: Instead of using a traditional PowerPoint slide show, use a video instead to draw extra attention to a special event. You can play it before and after the service as well as posting it to your church website. 2. Pastor’s Video Blog: One way for pastors to reinforce sermon points or to share other real-life experiences to encourage and challenge the congregation is to create a video Blog. This could be done weekly, bi-weekly, or monthly, depending on your time and resources. This helps add a personal touch that can reach the entire congregation with minimal work. No need to get fancy at first, just sit at your desk and start yakking. 3. Testimonies: Video can be a great aid when presenting people’s testimonies during a service or special event; especially for those who do not like public speaking. It is also helpful for situations where someone that is scheduled to share is unable to attend the service or event. With the approval of your “victims” you could even collect these and add them to an area on your website called “life changers” or “real-life.” 4. Event Follow-Up: Using video to provide a summary of an event is a great way to keep the congregation informed, to thank volunteers, and to allow others to see the success of your event. 5. Mission Trips: Video is a great tool for informing others about upcoming trips, to connect a missions team with the congregation, and for recording actual trip events to share once the team is back home. 6. Missionary Updates: Incorporating missionary video updates is a way to keep the congregation connected in a personal way with the missionaries that your church supports overseas. It provides a face to those who are far away as well as provides visual insight into the world and work of missionaries. Skype is also a tool that could be used to conduct a “live” update. 7. Sermon Illustrations: Websites like Sermonspice.com let you search by passage, topic or special event to find exactly the right kind of video content for you to use in a sermon. There are f great videos available on every conceivable topic; funny, serious and everything in between. The trick for pastors and ministry leaders is to not wait till the last minute to search the site. Start looking early! 8. & 9. Visitor and Welcome Videos: If you’ve ever visited a new church you know how important it is to have a welcoming environment: the people, the facility, the overall experience you have while you’re there and after you leave. A church welcome video is a great way to provide a campus tour for such locations as the children’s nursery and bathrooms. You can also introduce staff and provide a preview of the Sunday morning experience. You can post this on your church website and include it in a welcome basket. Keep it short, capture the action and help a visitor get to know your unique congregational vibe. 10. Ministry Spotlight: In order to highlight certain ministry needs, you can create a ministry spotlight video to communicate growth, needs and updates. This medium allows for a more focused visual update among all the busyness of a Sunday morning and often has a better chance of emotionally connecting with potential workers than a simple request for help. I hope these ideas serve as a tool to enhance the good works you are already doing at your church. May you be encouraged and challenged to try new things as you serve the Lord and minister to His people.
Christian Video® Magazine
November 2010
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Special Feature
by ANDREW TUTTLE
Write of Passage Screenwriting Competition
H
ow am I going to do this?
That was my first thought when I decided to enter the 2nd annual Write of Passage Screenplay contest. It was also my second thought. And, it happened a third time, too. The Write of Passage Screenplay Contest requires entrants to spend one week writing a script no longer than 12 pages based on a theme and Bible verse. This year’s theme “Second Chances” was coupled with Proverbs 28:13. The verse is not revealed until the clock starts on the writing period. The top 10 finalists have the chance for their scripts to be made into a short film for the 168 Film Project. I had never done this before. I have several feature length screenplays written and all the contests I typically enter are for already finished scripts. Writer’s block was a concern, as was whether or not I could even dream a plausible story based on the theme and verse. Second chances? OK, that might be easy enough. But how would I incorporate a verse from the Bible? The first thing I did was send an SOS email, of sorts, to my assigned Regional Competition Producer, Brian Kiang. All writers who enter the contest are paired with an RCP who provides feedback, help and even inspiration to get you to the finish line. After I sent the email I went for a walk. This is where I do my best thinking – by myChristian Video® Magazine
self out in the fresh air at night. As I walked my thoughts started coming together on how I would write the script. I started the beginning in my head. I knew who my main character was. Then the bumps and stumbles I wanted to put him through emerged. I didn’t bring pen and paper, how would I remember this? The ideas were starting to flow and I was getting excited about this project. By the end of my walk I had mapped out in my head the entire script. In fact, once I got home I did something I never do. I completed a hastily written outline. It was late and I wasn’t going to begin writing until the next morning so I didn’t want to forget. There was only one concern I had before shutting the lights out that night. The story I was replaying in my mind could not be done in 12 pages. How was I going to write a quality beginning-to-end screenplay in 12 pages? By morning, I decided to stop asking questions and start writing. I hadn’t had the joy of sitting and writing a screenplay in quite some time but I finally got in that long lost zone I cherish whenever I write. Nearly three hours passed before I stopped writing but it felt more like 30 minutes. My story centers around an arrogant surgeon cheating on his wife. He nearly kills a homeless woman and then himself when he crashes
November 2010
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Special FeatureStory By ANDREW TUTTLE
into a tree after several rounds of Scotch. He is sentenced to community service, which he completes at a homeless shelter. It’s there he meets the homeless woman he nearly killed who changes his life and helps him get a second chance. My first draft? 22 pages. Typically when I write, my biggest problem is length and it’s never too long. So having too much written has always been a welcome issue, but not this time. I reviewed the script and completed a preliminary edit, which knocked off three pages. I sent the first draft to Kiang for review and explained my problem.
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Appointing an RCP to every writer is where the ingenuity of this contest stands out. Kiang not only returned my email he called me in less than 24 hours. His advice and guidance on how to reduce my script without affecting the story were extremely helpful. And once I got that into my head I was able to return to my script with fresh eyes and begin editing. As with most writers, I think, what you have written is yours. You become married to it. And it’s hard sometimes to take what you’ve written and cut it up. (And it’s even harder to have someone else take a knife to your writings.) You realize there are themes or elements you really
November 2010
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Special FeatureStory By ANDREW TUTTLE
want to get across but in the end something has to go. A decision has to be made - what can you live with and what you can live without? If dropping a sentence, theme or even a character is the difference between success and failure—then obviously you take that painstaking task of cutting into what you have spent hours on and feel quite passionate about. So, first I tackled the dialogue and stripped some needless back and forth between characters and injected more “showing” into the script. It really is amazing when you get into a roll and you can identify and eliminate passive writing, extra words and duplicate statements. They practically pop off the page as if they are highlighted. My editor’s vacuum was on high by Day 4 of the contest and I continuously swept through my script and knocked it down page by page. Finally I had only 14 pages. Two pages to go. But really, how could I take away two more pages. It’s perfect now. It was also perfect at 22 pages and again at 19. Another email to Kiang. I had some style questions and if the answer was right I had room for editing. A main character is briefly introduced at the beginning of the story but her name is not known until the middle of the story. Turns out, I can name her when she’s first on scene. This allowed me to eliminate extra verbiage on several characters, which ended up causing a domino effect for other scenes and my page count quickly shortened. I was able to reduce and tighten so much of my screenplay that I added a scene Kiang felt was needed at the beginning in order to introduce another character earlier in the story. Twelve pages at last. Now it was perfect.
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At least as far as working in the confines of the contest. If it’s perfect it will do well. But the reality is no script is perfect. I am sure when I revisit this script I will find more areas I could have edited and elements I should have dropped and themes I could have added. But, more so than the script, I accomplished a number of things in seven days. First, I developed a brand new story even though, for quite some time, I had been stumped for ideas and even a little disillusioned with writing. Second, I wrote a complete script with a beginning and ending in 12 pages. I honestly did not see how I could write a 12-page screenplay that wasn’t the first 12 pages of a 100-page story. Whatever happens to my script in this contest, I had fun, I learned and I got in touch with some quality people in the writing and film industry. And, with a pretty good head start I have a story I really want to tell and can now go back and another 90 or so pages to “180 Hours.” More than 130 writers entered this year’s contest and of those, 44 went on to the semifinals. My script was selected to move on to the next round. Of those 44, only 10 became finalists. I was fortunate enough to be among those selected. I didn’t win, but making the top 10 of this competition was something I’ll always remember. Andrew Tuttle began writing nearly 15 years ago with his first novel about a serial killer. He has written several short stories and has four feature length screenplays that have placed as high as the semi-finals in various online screenplay contests.
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Interview
By ROBERT KRAMER
Concerning C. S. Lewis and Narnia: A Conversation with Robert Velarde CVM: You have become something of an
expert on Narnia and C.S. Lewis, what prompted you to devote so much energy to his stories?
Robert:
That’s a great question. To begin, I think C.S. Lewis would find it quite amusing that there are such people known as “experts” on his writings. He’d probably tell us to become experts on the many thinkers that came before him that influenced him such as Plato, Aristotle, Augustine, Samuel Johnson, Richard Hooker, and others, rather than becoming experts on him and his writings! Still, studying and writing about Lewis has become something of a cottage industry within publishing and even academia, to the point where there are, unfortunately, a lot of works about Lewis and Narnia that are not necessarily beneficial. One thing I attempt to do in my writing about Lewis is integrate his ideas across the spectrum of his writings rather than focus exclusively on a particular book or even a series. None of his works were written in isolation, but were influenced broadly by his overall worldview ideas. My interest in studying about Lewis and his writings began prior to my conversion to Christianity, probably with Mere Christianity, which I read when I was an atheist many years ago. Lewis posed something of a puzzle to me in that here was an obviously intelligent individual who also happened to be a Christian! Why? Following my conversion to Christianity, I became fascinated with Lewis and his writings, particularly the so-called space trilogy and the seven Narnia books. After that, I began to study
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his other writings, which were extensive, and eventually even lectured on Lewis at the graduate level, then began writing books about Lewis including The Golden Rules of Narnia and, more recently, Conversations with C.S. Lewis and my forthcoming work Inside The Screwtape Letters. I’ve devoted a great deal of effort to studying Lewis and writing about him because I believe there is still much we can learn from his writings and example as a Christian thinker. First, we can learn to become careful thinkers ourselves, examining various viewpoints carefully in order to understand them before we evaluate them. Second, we can learn a certain degree of humility—an essential component of the Christian life, whether one is an apologist, theologian, philosopher or not. Third, Lewis has a great wit that comes across to some degree or another in his works. Unfortunately, this tends to be lacking in much contemporary Christian writing. I think we often take ourselves a bit too seriously. Certainly, we deal with serious issues—repentance , redemption, and so forth—but that does not mean there’s no room for wit. Fourth, Lewis can help us balance reason and imagination. The name of my blog, “A Reasonable Imagination,” by the way, is influenced by Lewis. Too often we tend to favor either the intellectual or the imaginative, but as Lewis learned it is best to balance these aspects of our God-given creativity. Fifth, Lewis was able to influence the culture of his day, both Christian and non-Christian. This is something that often eludes us today or that many Christians may not even think about. We often continue to stay within our own Christian subcultures, entrenching ourselves, November 2010
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Interview
By ROBERT KRAMER
and avoiding influencing our culture, or we make the error of embracing culture without applying discernment. But Lewis had a way of writing and thinking and creating that could influence and engage all aspects of culture. I think much of this stems from the fact that Lewis allowed the Christian worldview to permeate all of his life and everything he did. This is a quality that is often lacking today.
CVM: Can you tell me a little bit about your books?
Robert:
I’ve authored several books on a variety of topics including my recent book The Wisdom of Pixar and an upcoming science fiction story in an anthology called Foreshadows: The Ghosts of Zero. My books about Lewis include
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Conversations with C.S. Lewis, which is a fictional series of dialogues between Lewis and a contemporary skeptic. I liken it to a cross between the Dialogues of Plato and A Christmas Carol. Lewis scholar Peter Kreeft even compared it to It’s a Wonderful Life and, a great compliment, to The Great Divorce by C.S. Lewis. Conversations with C.S. Lewis is a fun journey through the life of C.S. Lewis that also includes other people from his life such as J.R.R. Tolkien. The Golden Rules of Narnia is the most recent release of my book about the Chronicles of Narnia, previously published as The Lion, the Witch, and the Bible and The Heart of Narnia. It remains the only book about Narnia to date that concentrates exclusively on the ethics, morality, and virtue of the series. As the next Narnia movie approaches, I’m pleased to say there is quite a bit
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Interview
By ROBERT KRAMER
of material in my book covering The Voyage of the Dawn Treader. My forthcoming book Inside The Screwtape Letters offers an extensive look at The Screwtape Letters by C.S. Lewis, evaluating each letter carefully, noting biblical and literary allusions, as well as offering background information to the book and the topics it covers.
CVM: What have you thought of the recent film adaptations?
Robert: I think the key word in your question
that we need to keep in mind is “adaptations.” A lot of times people devoted to a book are discouraged when they see it on the big screen. We each have various ideas of what we think a book we have read should look like as a movie--what characters should look like, their mannerisms, etc. So the first thing I would say is that we need to understand that there are major differences between a 300 page novel and a film that might last 120 minutes or so. Films must condense a lot of material and at times even cut material in order to fit into their traditional three-act structures. The average screenplay, for instance, is about 100 pages long, not 300. With that said, I first heard about the upcoming Narnia movies as far back as 2003 or so when I heard it directly from Douglas Gresham, stepson of C.S. Lewis. At the time I was serving as a teaching assistant for a graduate course on the philosophy of C.S. Lewis, taught at Denver Seminary by the late Dr. Vernon Grounds. I had contacted Douglas about his participation in our class via our online discussion forums, which he agreed to. As it turned out, Douglas informed me he’d be in the Denver area and we arranged to have him speak at Denver Seminary for an extended question and answer session. Douglas was, in fact, in Denver to negotiate the terms of the movie version of The Lion, the Witch, and the
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Wardrobe with Walden Media. I remember him saying that if the Narnia movies were produced as major motion pictures he wanted them done right--remaining as true to the books as possible, retaining key plot points, themes, etc. I found the first movie in the series to be fantastic. The core message of The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe book remains. Consequently, we have a version of the Christian story of the sacrifice of Christ presented magnificently on screen in the form of Aslan. Prince Caspian, which deviated more from the book, did not come across as well to me, probably more because I was deeply familiar with the original story rather than because it was not a good film. Here’s where we need to keep in mind that the film versions are, after all, adaptations, but we also need to keep in mind that in some respects Prince Caspian as a book is not as strong as The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe. Prince Caspian the movie did not do as well at the box office, but that may have more to do with the fact that the title was not as familiar to the public as the previous Narnia movie. Understanding the limited time frame of a film and the fact that movies can only show what happens, not thoughts or anything not visual, have the adaptations been true to CS Lewis’ messages do you think? I’d say the films thus far have, on the whole, remained true to the spirit of the books. Every Narnia fan, me included, has their favorite sections in the books, but the reality is that sometimes our favorite sections are cut or changed and we don’t like that! But at times I think portions of the movies do indeed capture much of the spirit of the books. To some extent I think all the movies thus far have failed to truly capture the numinous awe that Lewis intended in the character of Aslan. I think the filmmakers have done a fantastic job with Aslan, so don’t get me wrong,
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Interview
By ROBERT KRAMER
but I think it’s almost impossible to capture this Christ like figure and portray him as such in film.
CVM: I understand you also saw an early version of The Dawn Treader, how does that compare to the novel?
Robert: Yes, I was fortunate to attend a pre-
screening of the film in early November. Although the filmmakers cautioned us that we would see an “unfinished” version of the film, it was indeed nearly complete as best I could tell, aside from a few minor matters. The film itself was about two hours long and included the special effects, music, and other elements. The effects, by the way, are fantastic, particularly a scene involving a sea serpent attack, though it may be too intense for children under 10. As you may know, the book The Voyage of the Dawn Treader is quite episodic, featuring one adventure after another. In general this approach doesn’t always work well on film, as the audience sometimes loses sight of a cohesive story or theme coming across, but I think it is handled well on screen. Lewis has written that he saw Dawn Treader as really being about the spiritual life, exemplified in the book by Reepicheep, though other characters, too, grapple with the topic, especially Eustace. I’m happy to report that both Reepicheep and Eustace are great in the movie. I did come away with a few quibbles, which your readers can learn more about on my blog in my early sneak peek at the film (I’ll post a full review in December). Overall, however, I found Dawn Treader to be a great film in the series and hope it does well enough for another Narnia film to make its way to theaters. As I noted earlier, I still find that the numinous awe one can experience from reading the Narnia books is not as strong on screen as it is in the books, but I grant that this may simply be my personal experience given the fact that I’ve read the books so many times and have built up certain expectations from
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them.
CVM: Does it maintain the same themes and principles as CS Lewis set forth in his story?
Robert: Generally speaking it does, but
the themes and principles in Dawn Treader are difficult to get across on screen. The book is addressing deeply spiritual themes such as longing and desire for God and heaven, as well as the personal transformation and repentance of Eustace. These are difficult themes to communicate in print and even more difficult to communicate on screen. The action sequences, on the other hand, are some of the best I’ve seen in any of the Narnia movies, while the production quality and special effects are first rate. The Dawn Treader ship itself is lovingly crafted right down to minute details. I definitely encourage your readers to see The Voyage of the Dawn Treader, especially on opening weekend (it opens December 10 in North America), as that is the barometer for Hollywood when it comes to considering approval of a sequel. For more of my insights on The Voyage of the Dawn Treader and the other Narnia books see my book The Golden Rules of Narnia and a chapter on Narnia and imagination in my book Conversations with C.S. Lewis. Bio: Robert Velarde, M.A., is an author, educator, and philosopher. His books include The Wisdom of Pixar, Conversations with C.S. Lewis, The Golden Rules of Narnia, and more http://www.amazon. com/-/e/B001JP8DR2. His blog, A Reasonable Imagination, is at http://robertvelarde.blogspot. com
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