Here\u2019s today\u2019s dispatch from the crossroads of faith, media and culture.<\/p>\n
UP, UP and away in 2014-2015.<\/strong> With sci-fi Noah <\/em>taking on water at the box office<\/a>, the UP TV network may just tap into that large swath of the audience thirsting for a more traditional (and decidedly less dark) retelling of the Biblical epic. The cable network known for its UPlifting Entertainment<\/em> brand has announced that the UP Original Movie will air sometime in 2015.<\/p>\n Noah<\/strong><\/em> is part of an impressive slate of films UP TV, which is projected to reach 73 million households in 2015, plans to showcase over the course of this year and next. That list includes:<\/p>\n Apple Mortgage Cake<\/em> (Easter Sunday, April 20) Where’s the Love?<\/em> (Saturday, May 3) My Mother’s Future Husband<\/em> (Sunday, May 11) Love Finds You in Sugarcreek <\/em>(Sunday, June 1) My Dad is a Soccer Mom<\/em> (Saturday, June 21) Comeback Dad<\/em> (Sunday, June 29) Rocky Road<\/em> (<\/b>Sunday, July 13)<\/b> Mary Jo’s Candy<\/em> (Saturday, August 16) Coffee Shop<\/em> (Sunday, September 14) Match Made in Heaven<\/em> (Sunday, October 12) Mistletoe Radio<\/em> (November) Christmas Tree Farm<\/em> (December) Paper Angels<\/em> (December) \u00a0Projects confirmed for production\/premiere in 2015 include:<\/p>\n Noah<\/em> Life of a King<\/em> Polka Dot and Luey<\/em> Music to My Ears<\/em> Demolition Girl Stars, Strips and Accessories<\/strong> <\/em> Mothers of the Bride<\/strong> <\/em> \u00a0In addition to these films, two scripted and two non-scripted series are in development to join the UP lineup in 2015. If all goes well, they’ll join the family drama Heartland<\/a><\/strong><\/em> and the reality show Bulloch Family Ranch<\/strong><\/em><\/a>.<\/p>\n Tomorrow: A look at the 2014-2015 plans of ASPiRE, UP’s sister network which focuses on positive entertainment aimed at the African-American audience.<\/p>\n ______<\/p>\n Not silenced.<\/strong> Alone Yet Not Alone, <\/i><\/b>a faith-based family drama that is perhaps best known for having its 2013 Best Song Oscar nomination controversially revoked<\/a>, is slated for a broad release in over 200 theaters nationwide June 13, 2014. The flagship production of\u00a0 Enthuse Entertainment stars Kelly Greyson <\/b>(Return To The Hiding Place<\/i>) \u00a0with Jenn Gotzon <\/b>(God\u2019s Country, Frost Nixon) <\/i>and <\/i>actor\/musical artist Clay Walker (Clay Walker: Jesse James).\u00a0<\/i><\/p>\n Alone Yet Not Alone<\/i> is based on the true story taken from the historical novel of the same name written by Tracy Leininger Craven that speaks of hope triumphing over despair, of faith overcoming fear and of victory prevailing over adversity.\u00a0<\/i><\/p>\n Last fall the movie was shown at 11 select locations as part of a “sneak peek\u201d week long release (Sept. 27, 2013), achieving\u00a0the second highest grossing per screen average (combining theater ticket sales with Seatzy ticket sales) in the country. \u00a0Alone Yet Not Alone<\/i> banked $11,434 per screen average in its limited release opening in Grand Rapids, Mich.; San Antonio, Houston and Dallas, Texas; \u00a0Knoxville and Franklin, Tenn.; Raleigh-Durham, N.C.; Atlanta, Ga. and Colorado Springs, Colo. \u00a0The\u00a0Christian\u00a0audience’s enthusiastic reception helped\u00a0rank\u00a0Alone Yet Not Alone<\/i>\u00a0as one of the highest per screen average independently released faith-based films to date.<\/p>\n \u201cPrevious success has sparked a heightened interest about the film and we are excited to now introduce Alone Yet Not Alone<\/i> to a wider audience this June,\u201d says Executive Producer, Ken Wales (Amazing Grace<\/i>, \u201cChristy\u201d TV Series).<\/i><\/b><\/p>\n For those of you who haven’t heard the song, here it is as sung by Joni Eareckson Tada<\/a>, a quadriplegic with limited lung capacity whose husband Ken pushed on a her diaphragm while she recorded the song to give her enough breath to hit the high notes. Hollywood missed a real opportunity for inclusiveness by dismissing this song’s Oscar participation on a technicality.\u00a0 But, the Lord works in mysterious ways — as the controversy has only increased interest in the song, the film and Joni’s story.<\/p>\n
\n<\/b><\/b> The film is based on the incredible true story of Angela Logan (Elise), a single mom who, with just ten days to come up with $4,000 to save her home, decides to market the delicious dessert she learned to bake at her grandmother\u2019s side.\u00a0 Four-time NAACP Image Award-winner\u00a0Kimberly Elise (Diary of a Mad Black<\/i> Woman<\/i>, Close to Home<\/em>) stars.<\/p>\n
\n<\/b>A romantic drama featuring two popular, married TV talk show hosts, played by Lamman Rucker (UP\u2019s Sugar Mommas<\/i>, Meet the Browns<\/em>) and Denise Boutte (Meet the Browns, Days of Our Lives<\/em>), who dispense relationship advice as their marriage starts to crumble.\u00a0 <\/b>The ensemble cast stars Terri J. Vaughn, Karon Joseph Riley, David Banner, Darian \u201cBig Tigger\u201d Morgan, Ahmed Lucan, Shirley Strawberry, LeToya Luckett, Kandi Burruss, Tommy Ford, Angie Stone.
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\n<\/b>A romantic light-hearted drama about 15-year-old’s quest to find her mother’s “future husband.” Lea Thompson (Back to the Future<\/i>, Caroline in the City<\/em>) and Matreya Fedor (Cedar Cove<\/em>) star.<\/p>\n
\n<\/b>In the heart of Ohio\u2019s Amish country, Rachel Troyer is a tireless policewoman with serious overprotection issues.\u00a0 Worried about the health of her Amish aunts, Rachel convinces the trio of old women to retire from running the Sugar Haus, an inn they\u2019ve owned for decades.\u00a0 When Joe, a penniless stranger, shows up on the Sugar Haus\u2019s doorstep, Rachel\u2019s aunts allow him to stay. \u00a0Joe\u2019s a charmer, but his reluctance to talk about his past raises Rachel\u2019s suspicions.\u00a0 When Joe\u2019s stay at the Sugar Haus extends into tenure as the inn\u2019s handyman, Rachel employs her police training to uncover his secrets.\u00a0 What she discovers is more shocking than she ever expected\u2026
\n<\/b>Filmed on location in Sugarcreek (Ohio’s Amish Country), this <\/strong>romantic mystery\/suspense drama stars Sarah Lancaster (Chuck, Everwood<\/em>), Tom Everett Scott (That Thing You Do!,<\/i> Southland<\/em>) and Kelly McGillis (Witness<\/i>, Top Gun<\/i>).\u00a0 Produced by Mission Pictures. Based on the book by Serena B. Miller<\/a>.<\/p>\n
\n<\/b>Marion “Mad Dog” Casey is one of the biggest, baddest names in football.\u00a0 But lately his performance on the field has left a lot to be desired.\u00a0 Marion is cut from the team and no one else is rushing to sign him.\u00a0 He is not happy but his wife Holly, who has spent many years being a stay-at-home mom for their 10-year-old daughter, sees this as an opportunity for her to pursue her career ambitions in interior design.\u00a0 After chauffeuring his daughter to ballet and theatre class, Marion discovers that she has a knack for soccer.\u00a0 He signs her up and begins his new life as a Soccer Dad – the only 300 pound, overbearing, ex-NFL player in the group!\u00a0 As he navigates the trickiness of being a hands on parent, Marion discovers the joy of his new relationship with his daughter.<\/p>\n
\n<\/b>Nima Babineaux looks like a woman who has it all \u2013 she is an accomplished pianist who runs her own music school and is engaged to Spence who adores her.\u00a0 But, in truth, she has never recovered from her alcoholic father walking out on their family and it has made it hard for her to truly trust anyone. \u00a0When her father, Othell, decides it is time to make amends and tries to reenter her life, Nima begins an emotional and eye-opening journey she could have never expected. \u00a02013 honorable mention winner in UP\u2019s Faith & Family Screenplay Competition at ABFF.<\/p>\n
\n<\/b>Mark Salling (Glee<\/em>) plays Harrison, a guy who has the corporate apartment, expense account and big office at his prestigious Wall Street firm.\u00a0 But it all comes crashing down in an instant when his firm suffers catastrophic losses and is forced to downsize.\u00a0 Harrison, now broke, returns to his parents’ house in a quaint New Hampshire township.\u00a0 Harrison pretends that he is taking a long overdue vacation, when, in fact, he is living his worst nightmare \u2013 moving back with his parents and working his old route in his father\u2019s ice cream truck business.<\/p>\n
\n<\/b>Candace “Candy” Myers is a popular news anchor who is devoted to her job.\u00a0 Her ordered life turns upside down when she learns that her biological father has been trying to contact her.\u00a0 After she discovers that he has recently passed away, her attention turns to her stubborn biological birth mother who rejects her advances.\u00a0 2013 Winner of UP\u2019s Faith and Family Screenplay Competition at ABFF.<\/p>\n
\n<\/b><\/b>Donavan Turner has not been successful in love, but she does have the support of her sister Becky, Becky\u2019s boyfriend Kevin and the wonderful cast of regulars that frequent her coffee shop daily.\u00a0 They are a close-knit group, more family than customers and employees.\u00a0 Things get complicated when Donovan begins a romance only to have her ex-boyfriend return to declare his love for her.\u00a0 Stars Laura Vandervoort.<\/p>\n
\n<\/b>Life would be perfect for Reverend Casey Hart if it weren\u2019t for parishioners who keel over during her sermons, steal money from the collection box and don\u2019t believe a woman should be a minister.\u00a0 Not to mention the very inconvenient feelings she is suddenly having for her long-time friend, fellow seminarian and verbal sparring partner, David Swenson.\u00a0 It isn\u2019t until Casey is thrust into the position of senior minister for her church, however, that she discovers the real cause of her discontent: her fear of failing has become stronger than her faith in herself.\u00a0 Stars Samaire Armstrong (Resurrection<\/em>), Brendan Penny and LeToya Luckett (UP’s For Richer or Poorer<\/em>).<\/p>\n
\n<\/b>Pepper Sweeney, a cynical radio show host in New York, gets suspended and begins working at a station in Harrison, Nebraska. Samantha McCoy, another radio host in Harrison, is unapologetically romantic and nostalgic, especially at Christmastime.\u00a0 She is immediately at odds with Pepper who never met a sentiment he couldn\u2019t twist into a punch line and has no use for Christmas. When Samantha and Pepper\u2019s \u201cwar of words\u201d catches the attention of the small town, their joint show becomes a hit and they start to see something in each other brought to the surface by the romantic holiday season.<\/p>\n
\n<\/b>Annie Logan grew up on a Christmas tree farm in rural Vermont.\u00a0 One day, as sickly trees were being cut down, Annie ran and saved her favorite even after the axe had made a gash in the trunk. Now, in her late twenties, Annie is living in Manhattan pursuing her writing career.\u00a0 Annie is devastated when she learns from her brother that the bank is foreclosing on her parents\u2019 tree farm and all the trees will be cut down to make way for a golf course.\u00a0 A depressed Annie has to prepare her boss’s home for the holidays and she orders a seven-foot tree.\u00a0 Much to her shock, she sees a distinctive gash on the trunk of the beautiful tree that is delivered. Certain that it is the tree of her youth (and a sign), Annie grabs \u201cher\u201d tree and travels back to Vermont to help her parents save the farm.\u00a0 Stars Lacey Chabert (Party of Five<\/em>).<\/p>\n
\n<\/b>Based on the book by country star Jimmy Wayne that describes how the Salvation Army Angel Tree program for needy kids helps two families find hope during the Christmas season.\u00a0 Abused wife Lynn takes her two kids and leaves her alcoholic husband, moving to another town.\u00a0 In that same town, we meet Kevin, whose company is on the brink of shutting down due to the economy.\u00a0 He is married to Jenny, who is in a difficult pregnancy with twins.\u00a0 Lynn’s son, Thomas, starts a new school and becomes the target of a bully who is threatened by how well Thomas plays basketball.\u00a0 Unable to join the high school team, Thomas goes to the community center where he meets Kevin and the two of them become unlikely friends.\u00a0 Little do they know the tremendous impact they will have on each other\u2019s family.<\/p>\n
\n<\/b>This biblical epic will present a new take on the well-known Bible story of Noah who, after hearing the voice of God, begins building an ark in anticipation of a great flood that will wipe out evil.\u00a0\u00a0 Noah’s own beloved sons as well as his nephew who is like a son to him, think Noah is crazy and don’t support him.\u00a0 But his devoted and loving wife decides to build the ark with him in a show of unconditional support and love.<\/p>\n
\n<\/b>The true story of Eugene Brown and his one-man mission to give inner-city kids of Washington D.C. something he never had \u2013 a future. \u00a0He discovered a multitude of life lessons through the game of chess during his 18-year incarceration for bank robbery.\u00a0 After his release and reentry into the workforce, Eugene developed and founded the Big Chair Chess Club to get kids off the streets and working towards lives they never believed they were capable of due to circumstances.\u00a0 The movie reveals his difficult, inspirational journey and how he changed the lives of a group of teens with no endgame.\u00a0 Stars Cuba Gooding Jr., LisaGay Hamilton, Dennis Haysbert and Richard T. Jones.<\/p>\n
\n<\/b>Penelope “Polka-Dot” Daught is a precocious 12-year- old forced to grow up quickly because she has a seriously ill mother.\u00a0 When she meets police officer Cooper and his dog, Luey, Polka Dot’s life changes for the better.<\/p>\n
\n<\/b>Jessica Terrill plays piano, sings and writes music.\u00a0 Jessica has stayed in Seattle to help with the family business leaving her musical dreams unfulfilled.\u00a0 Until…she is asked to help with the failing church choir in her community and her dream starts to come alive.<\/p>\n
\n<\/b>Inspired by a true story, Maggie, 18, lives in rural Louisiana.\u00a0 Pretty, extremely smart and a tomboy through and through, Maggie’s hobbies are riding a dirt bike and rebuilding engines. She has also received a full scholarship to Harvard in the fall.\u00a0 Hank, Maggie’s dad, is a hard-working blue collar guy who wants more for his daughter.\u00a0 Even though he taught Maggie to drive and work on cars when she was eight, he is upset when she announces that she is going to postpone college to enter the Mud Race in her own mud truck and beat all the guys who don’t think girls should be racing.<\/p>\n
\nAmanda Morton is at a crossroads in her life \u2013 her boyfriend has broken up with her because she is not serious enough and she has lost her job because she is not ambitious enough.\u00a0 She is at rock bottom when she sees an ad on TV for the Army.\u00a0 She heads to the recruiting office and becomes the ultimate fish out of water.<\/p>\n
\nJenna Wolf is getting married to her long-time boyfriend, Christopher.\u00a0 Jenna is extremely close to her mother, Debra, who told her at an early age that she was adopted.\u00a0 Now that she is getting married, Jenna would like to find her birth mother and share her happy news. \u00a0Much to everyone’s surprise, Jenna’s biological mom is a famous event planner.\u00a0 Debra, who dreamed of planning her daughter’s wedding, now finds herself competing with a professional for control of the wedding and Jenna is right in the middle of her two moms.<\/p>\n