Annie Moses Band Welcomes Special Guest John Rhys-Davies

Annie Moses Band, known for its impeccable artistry and genre-defying music, announces today that eminent Shakespearean and acting legend John Rhys-Davies, one of modern cinema's most recognizable character actors, will join them as part of the 15th anniversary celebration of the Annie Moses Summer Music Festival this July in Nashville.

Best known to moviegoers as Gimli in The Lord of the Rings, or as Indiana Jones' (Harrison Ford’s) comic sidekick, Sallah, in two of Paramount's INDIANA JONES adventure films, Rhys-Davies will lend his talents as a guest performer, masterclass instructor and gala host during the annual Annie Moses Summer Music Festival. This performing arts intensive for young musicians will be held July 8 -15 at The Factory at Franklin (conveniently located just south of Music City) and other premier Nashville performance venues.

As part of the week’s festivities, Rhys-Davies will perform the starring role as the narrator in the world-premiere of the brand-new Broadway-style musical by Robin Donica Wolaver and Bill Wolaver, Merry Christmas Uncle Scrooge!, which is based on the Charles Dickens classic story A Christmas Carol. Additionally, Rhys-Davies, a notable alumnus of the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art (RADA), will teach a masterclass for young actors at the event and then host the final gala featuring all of the festival performers alongside Annie Moses Band.

“We are so excited and honored to announce our special guest John Rhys-Davies!” exclaims Annie Wolaver Dupre, founder, lead vocalist and violinist of Annie Moses Band. “Not only is John an iconic character and exceptionally talented actor on the world stage, he has a true heart for the same mission and purpose of the Annie Moses Summer Music Festival and Annie Moses Foundation – a passion for the world of the arts and raising up a brand new generation of young artists who are committed to godly excellence in the arts.”

The Annie Moses Summer Music Festival takes a kaleidoscope of instruments and artistic disciplines and fuses them together in a series of professional shows through exceptional instruction from faculty that includes alumni from prestigious music programs such as The Juilliard School, Boston College and Belmont University. Combining instruction with live performance opportunities, the festival is designed to give students life-changing experiences of real-world excellence, while building life-long friendships and taking their art form to the next level.



This flagship event has become the centerpiece for the band’s vision for the arts and the mission of the Annie Moses Band’s music education 501C3 non-profit – the Annie Moses Foundation. Celebrating its 15th year, the Annie Moses Summer Music Festival was founded by the Annie Moses Band, whose members write, direct and arrange the performances for the 200+ young performers who will gather to put on five shows over a single week. The shows are genre-specific and include Jazz, Americana, Singer/Songwriter and Classical and will be open to the public as ticketed events.

Can Beyond the Mask Uncover the Secret of God's Not Dead?

After a successful campaign in theaters across the U.S., producers have just pacted with Freestyle Releasing to distribute Beyond The Mask on June 5 for traditional, weeklong runs. The film stars John Rhys-Davies (Killing Jesus, The Lord Of The Rings). The same co-writer of the faith-based phenoms Fireproof and Courageous, Stephen Kendrick, also co-wrote this film.

Freestyle Releasing also distributed God’s Not Dead on behalf of Pure Flix last March to great success. On a $2M budget, they earned a hefty $60.7M gross.

The agreement with Freestyle comes after producers have already pre-sold more than $470K before bowing in theaters this past Monday. Each showing of the $4M-budgeted film played for one night only in each theater. So far, they have played on 365 screens in all 50 states. On Monday, when Beyond The Mask opened on 181 theaters, it had taken in $242K, which translated into a per screen average of $1,300.

The film was co-written by Kendrick (Courageous, Fireproof) and Paul McCusker. It co-stars Kara Kilmer (Chicago Fire) and Andrew Cheney (Seasons Of Grey).

The production, marketing and distribution of Beyond The Mask has been completely grassroots. They started off with a Kickstarter campaign in 2011, raised the money, produced the picture and then worked out a deal with Gathr to help distribute the film. They marketed through churches, social media, home-schooling communities, and with volunteers from across the country.

And this one has a bit of a twist in that it is a period piece. Beyond The Mask follows a leading mercenary for the British East India Company who was double-crossed and is on the run in the American colonies. Working to redeem his name and win back the affections of the woman with whom he’s never been fully truthful, he hides behind a new mask in hopes of thwarting his former employer. As his past life closes in on him, he must somehow gain the trust and the help of his beloved Charlotte — as well as Ben Franklin — while he races against time to defuse a plot of historical proportions. It is being marketed as “a faith-based adventure celebrating grace, liberty and the true freedom that can only be found in Christ.”

“What would I do if we had a huge success? The first thing that comes to mind is creating more films to spread the hope and word of the Gospel and bring stories to families who can enjoy watching them together,” producer Aaron Burns said.

New Faith Film "Beyond The Mask" Hopes to Make Name with Special Effects

A new faith film "Beyond the Mask" is coming to theaters on April 6 bringing history to life with a talented cast, powerful script and quality special effects.

Starring John Rhys-Davies (Raiders of the Lost Ark, Lord of the Rings), Andrew Cheney, Kara Killmer, and Adetokumboh M'Cormack, "Beyond the Mask" features the adventures of William, a leading mercenary for the British East India Trading Company who has just been double-crossed and is on the run in the American Colonies. In order to redeem his name and win back the affections of the woman whose trust he lost, William hides behind a mask in hopes of thwarting his former boss. William must race against time to defuse a plot of historical proportions with help from his beloved Charlotte as well as Ben Franklin.

Written by Paul McCusker with help from "Courageous" scriptwriter Stephen Kendrick, "Beyond the Mask" celebrates grace, liberty, and true freedom that can only be found in Christ.

"It's unlike just about any movie I've ever seen," Kendrick said.

The Christian filmmaker, who co-wrote "Fireproof" along with his brother Alex Kendrick, went on to praise "Beyond the Mask" for ushering in a new era for faith-based films.

"This movie has more green screen shots and CG effects than any other live action Christian film in history," Kendrick explained. "The real adventure has been their creative climb of that digital Everest."