A 10th place finish by Heaven Is for Real over the four-day weekend kept Memorial Day weekend from being the first without a faith-based movie in the top 10 since February 21-23, the week before Son of God debuted in theaters.
Based on the bestselling book, Heaven Is for Real earned $2 million in its sixth week open. With a budget of $12 million, the film has thus far generated nearly $86 million.
X-Men: Days of Future Past won the extended weekend with $91.4 million.
Moms' Night Out which was heavily marketed to family audiences, fell from 10th to 13th over the weekend. The film made roughly $700,000, bringing its total haul to $8.7 million. The comedy, starring Patricia Heaton, cost $5 million to make.
March release God's Not Dead dropped out of the top 30 this week and Box Office Mojo contained no figures for the movie's financial performance. Posts on the movie' Facebook page informed viewers that Memorial Day weekend would likely be their last chance to catch the movie in theaters.
The movie is the seventh highest grossing Christian film and brought in nearly $60 million over its nine week run. The low-budget film, which cost $2 million to make, trails Mel Gibson's Passion of the Christ, three Chronicles of Narnia films, and 2014 hits Heaven Is for Real and Son of God.
Heaven Is for Real is the final well-known faith-based film in theaters until Exodus: Gods and Kings premieres in the U.S. on December 14. Christian Bale will star as Moses, Aaron Paul as Joshua, Joel Edgerton as Moses' step-brother and Pharaoh Ramses, Signourney Weaver as Tuya, Moses' Egyptian mother, and John Turturro as Seti, Moses' Egyptian foster father.
A film about the life of Mary is also scheduled for later this year.
Tuesday, May 27, 2014
Saturday, May 24, 2014
Michael Phelps and Julio Jones Make Surprise Appearance During Switchfoot Performance
Rock group Switchfoot was joined on stage by 22-time Olympic medalist Michael Phelps and NFL star receiver Julio Jones while performing at the Preakness Stakes on Saturday, May 17. While the band performed their smash hit "Dare You to Move," Phelps joined the ensemble on stage playing tambourine.
Jon Foreman (lead vocals) and Tim Foreman (bass) later tweeted:
@jonforeman: Wow! just played "dare you to move" with @Micheal_Phelps on tambourine - no joke! What a day #Preakness2014
@TimForeman: Had an impromptu jam yesterday with this guy named @michaelphelps playing some mean Tamborine. #preakness http://instagram.com/p/oJoeLwQt2K/
The Morrison Brothers Band posted video of the surprise guest on YouTube and ProVentures a pic here.
The Preakness is the second of the legendary Triple Crown horse races, traditionally occurring in Baltimore, Maryland.
Michael Phelps holds the most medals of any Olympian, earning eighteen gold medals, two silver and two bronze and in the 2004, 2008 and 2012 summer Olympics.
Jon Foreman (lead vocals) and Tim Foreman (bass) later tweeted:
@jonforeman: Wow! just played "dare you to move" with @Micheal_Phelps on tambourine - no joke! What a day #Preakness2014
@TimForeman: Had an impromptu jam yesterday with this guy named @michaelphelps playing some mean Tamborine. #preakness http://instagram.com/p/oJoeLwQt2K/
The Morrison Brothers Band posted video of the surprise guest on YouTube and ProVentures a pic here.
The Preakness is the second of the legendary Triple Crown horse races, traditionally occurring in Baltimore, Maryland.
Michael Phelps holds the most medals of any Olympian, earning eighteen gold medals, two silver and two bronze and in the 2004, 2008 and 2012 summer Olympics.
Thursday, May 22, 2014
Newsboys' God's Not Dead Digital Single Certified Gold
Newsboys' "God's Not Dead (Like A Lion)" single, from its 2011 project God's Not Dead, has been certified Gold by the RIAA. Selling more than 140,000 tracks since January, the song has experienced a phenomenal resurgence fueled by the popularity of the God's Not Dead movie, in which Newsboys performs the song.
"God's Not Dead (Like A Lion)" was a No. 1 radio hit on the Billboard AC Monitored chart two years ago and has consistently been the top-selling track from Newsboys' God's Not Dead album. Yet it was the box office release of God's Not Dead, which has earned more than $59 million to date, that pushed the single over the 500,000 certified sales mark.
Consequently, "God's Not Dead (Like A Lion)" can now be counted among an elite list of Christian tracks ever to secure such status. The song is included among those by prolific artists like Bob Carlisle, Steven Curtis Chapman, Casting Crowns, MercyMe, Skillet, and Switchfoot.
"God's Not Dead (Like A Lion)" was a No. 1 radio hit on the Billboard AC Monitored chart two years ago and has consistently been the top-selling track from Newsboys' God's Not Dead album. Yet it was the box office release of God's Not Dead, which has earned more than $59 million to date, that pushed the single over the 500,000 certified sales mark.
Consequently, "God's Not Dead (Like A Lion)" can now be counted among an elite list of Christian tracks ever to secure such status. The song is included among those by prolific artists like Bob Carlisle, Steven Curtis Chapman, Casting Crowns, MercyMe, Skillet, and Switchfoot.
Thursday, May 15, 2014
What's Behind the Current Resurgence of Faith Based Entertainment?
TheWrap.com has an article on the current resurgence of faith-based programming. It notes that 90 million Americans identify themselves as evangelical Christians — “the country's largest special interest group,” as many in the Christian film industry like to say — have been traditionally underserved; there is only limited appetite for films that are marked by subpar production and story, no matter the message. As a result, the gap in the market remained in place for years, with Christian audiences flocking instead to talk radio and special television networks.
That's where the rush of technology and financing come into play.
Russell Wolfe started Pure Flix in 2005 as both a production and distribution company, putting in place a plan to gradually invest more money into his movies as their quality and fiscal return improved. The P&A costs of theatrical releases was largely prohibitive, so they stuck to DVD and streaming services, but their prolific output quickly made them a profitable industry leader.
“Our market, the family market, we feel that there's few and far between good family movies that are appropriate for all ages, so we want to service that market,” he told TheWrap, “but at the same time, we'll stick to our roots on other films that are faith affirming.”
Not every movie is a huge seller, but the sheer volume available on their site, as well as places like ChristianMovies.com and even at Wal-Mart, make for a tidy profit. And while they may not please mainstream critics — the works of Candace Cameron Bure and Haylie Duff are unlikely to land in the Criterion Collection, though there may be some cult potential around the Danny Trejo film “The Bill Collector” — they hit the right notes with the right people.
The ability to service that market was helped greatly by the rise of digital technology that has made filmmaking accessible and a much more populist endeavor. Production costs went down, so they could spend more on recognizable actors like Teri Polo, as well as bigger names like Greg Kinnear, who starred in “Heaven is for Real,” which cost Sony's Affirm Pictures just $12 million overall and has made $75 million since its release in April.
The other huge religious hit of the spring, “God's Not Dead,” was made for even less — just $2 million — and green lit after extensive research and surveys by Wolfe and his team.
“We surveyed them and asked what does the church need, what kind of message do they need to hear?” Wolfe explained. “We heard several things back, they said marriage and family and money issues and things like that. But one of the things that came back was just to reaffirm with people why they believe what they believe. So much in the media is, when they look at Christians, they go, ‘You're out there, that's just blind faith.’ And it's not blind faith, there's reasons behind it. I think one of the things that made this movie so successful is that it ended up reaffirming with individuals why they believe what they believe, almost vindicating them in their belief in the face of mainstream criticism.”
There is now an overt feeling in the evangelical community that they are being discriminated for being religious — several court battles over government prayer have rallied them to the cause — and “God's Not Dead” played into that sentiment, as well.
read full article
That's where the rush of technology and financing come into play.
Russell Wolfe started Pure Flix in 2005 as both a production and distribution company, putting in place a plan to gradually invest more money into his movies as their quality and fiscal return improved. The P&A costs of theatrical releases was largely prohibitive, so they stuck to DVD and streaming services, but their prolific output quickly made them a profitable industry leader.
“Our market, the family market, we feel that there's few and far between good family movies that are appropriate for all ages, so we want to service that market,” he told TheWrap, “but at the same time, we'll stick to our roots on other films that are faith affirming.”
Not every movie is a huge seller, but the sheer volume available on their site, as well as places like ChristianMovies.com and even at Wal-Mart, make for a tidy profit. And while they may not please mainstream critics — the works of Candace Cameron Bure and Haylie Duff are unlikely to land in the Criterion Collection, though there may be some cult potential around the Danny Trejo film “The Bill Collector” — they hit the right notes with the right people.
The ability to service that market was helped greatly by the rise of digital technology that has made filmmaking accessible and a much more populist endeavor. Production costs went down, so they could spend more on recognizable actors like Teri Polo, as well as bigger names like Greg Kinnear, who starred in “Heaven is for Real,” which cost Sony's Affirm Pictures just $12 million overall and has made $75 million since its release in April.
The other huge religious hit of the spring, “God's Not Dead,” was made for even less — just $2 million — and green lit after extensive research and surveys by Wolfe and his team.
“We surveyed them and asked what does the church need, what kind of message do they need to hear?” Wolfe explained. “We heard several things back, they said marriage and family and money issues and things like that. But one of the things that came back was just to reaffirm with people why they believe what they believe. So much in the media is, when they look at Christians, they go, ‘You're out there, that's just blind faith.’ And it's not blind faith, there's reasons behind it. I think one of the things that made this movie so successful is that it ended up reaffirming with individuals why they believe what they believe, almost vindicating them in their belief in the face of mainstream criticism.”
There is now an overt feeling in the evangelical community that they are being discriminated for being religious — several court battles over government prayer have rallied them to the cause — and “God's Not Dead” played into that sentiment, as well.
read full article
Wednesday, May 14, 2014
Dancing With the Stars Finalist Candace Cameron Bure and Matthew West to Host K-LOVE Fan Awards at Grand Ole Opry
TV star and current Dancing With the Stars finalist Candace Cameron Bure and Grammy-nominated Matthew West will host the K-LOVE Fan Awards on Sunday, June 1 at the Grand Ole Opry House.
Voting for the K-LOVE Fan Awards is open now until Midnight ET on Saturday, May 31. Partnering with World Hope to aid in revival efforts for the city of Detroit, MI., every half a million votes cast for the Fan Awards will unlock a newly remodeled home for a family in need in Detroit, with a goal of two million votes and four homes total. The first week of voting alone eclipsed 500,000 votes, unlocking the first home.
Winners will be announced live at the awards show in the categories of music, sports, books and movies.
Last week, K-LOVE announced key performers for the award show includingy Chris Tomlin, Hillsong UNITED, Steven Curtis Chapman, MercyMe, Francesca Battistelli and many more.
This year, fans will have more opportunities than ever to see and interact with their favorite Christian music artists at the K-LOVE Fan Awards Weekend. Starting Friday night, May 30, the weekend will start with a bang at the official Weekend Kickoff Concert, featuring performances by Tenth Avenue North, Switchfoot, for KING & COUNTRY, Rend Collective and a surprise headlining artist.
All weekend, fans will be able to participate in the first ever K-LOVE Fan Zone, which will feature a variety of fan-focused events including tours of Jeremy Camp's tour bus, celebrity basketball games, autograph sessions and more. Saturday night will end with the new Songwriters Spotlight, hosted by Steven Curtis Chapman. On Sunday, Michael W. Smith will start the day off with a special Worship Service at the Opryland Resort. The events of the day will lead to the official K-LOVE Fan Awards Show nearby at the Grand Ole Opry House.
Voting for the K-LOVE Fan Awards is open now until Midnight ET on Saturday, May 31. Partnering with World Hope to aid in revival efforts for the city of Detroit, MI., every half a million votes cast for the Fan Awards will unlock a newly remodeled home for a family in need in Detroit, with a goal of two million votes and four homes total. The first week of voting alone eclipsed 500,000 votes, unlocking the first home.
Winners will be announced live at the awards show in the categories of music, sports, books and movies.
Last week, K-LOVE announced key performers for the award show includingy Chris Tomlin, Hillsong UNITED, Steven Curtis Chapman, MercyMe, Francesca Battistelli and many more.
This year, fans will have more opportunities than ever to see and interact with their favorite Christian music artists at the K-LOVE Fan Awards Weekend. Starting Friday night, May 30, the weekend will start with a bang at the official Weekend Kickoff Concert, featuring performances by Tenth Avenue North, Switchfoot, for KING & COUNTRY, Rend Collective and a surprise headlining artist.
All weekend, fans will be able to participate in the first ever K-LOVE Fan Zone, which will feature a variety of fan-focused events including tours of Jeremy Camp's tour bus, celebrity basketball games, autograph sessions and more. Saturday night will end with the new Songwriters Spotlight, hosted by Steven Curtis Chapman. On Sunday, Michael W. Smith will start the day off with a special Worship Service at the Opryland Resort. The events of the day will lead to the official K-LOVE Fan Awards Show nearby at the Grand Ole Opry House.
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