{"id":5767,"date":"2015-01-12T10:28:40","date_gmt":"2015-01-12T15:28:40","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/faithmediaandculture\/?p=5767"},"modified":"2015-01-12T10:28:40","modified_gmt":"2015-01-12T15:28:40","slug":"top-five-faithfamily-media-stories-january-12-2015","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/faithmediaandculture\/2015\/01\/top-five-faithfamily-media-stories-january-12-2015.html","title":{"rendered":"Top five faith\/family media stories: January 12, 2015"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>Here\u2019s today\u2019s dispatch from the crossroads of faith, media and culture.<\/p>\n<p><strong>1. Christian retailer gets into movie-making biz.<\/strong>\u00a0 Family Christian Entertainment (FCE), the recently-launched sister company of\u00a0 Family <span class=\"xn-person\">Christian Stores, has announced its first project. Production of <em>90 Minutes in Heaven<\/em> will commence January 26th in Atlanta. The film is based on the 2004 New York Times bestselling book <\/span>(7 million-plus copies sold) about Pastor <span class=\"xn-person\">Don Piper&#8217;s<\/span> 1989 near-death experience.\u00a0Kate Bosworth (<em>Superman Returns<\/em>) and <span class=\"xn-person\">Hayden Christensen<\/span> (Star Wars, <em>Jumper<\/em>) star.\u00a0Michael Polish (<em>Twin Falls Idaho, Big Sur<\/em>) directs.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;We know our audience, we know the power of stories, and we plan to make at least two films a year,&#8221;\u00a0 says producer Rick Jackson. Jackson, along with two other investors is the co-founder of Family Christian Ministries, a non-profit holding\u00a0company that owns Family Christian Stores, Family Christian Entertainment and the IDisciple app that, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.idisciple.org\/\">as its website states<\/a>, &#8220;delivers sermons, devotionals, and music from hundreds of top Christian authors, speakers, ministries, and music artists to any device, anytime.&#8221;\u00a0 Family Christian Ministries reportedly gives 100 percent of the profits from its companies to Christian charities.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;In production&#8230; in quality, budgets and professionalism, the Christian and family markets are maturing, and we&#8217;re upping the ante again,&#8221; Jackson says, adding that Family Christian Entertainment is open to all sources for ideas&#8211;from developing original scripts to ideas that come in the door.\u00a0&#8220;And we&#8217;ll stay true to the story,&#8221; he said. &#8220;When faith is a factor, it stays in.&#8221;\u00a0 <b>\u00a0<\/b><\/p>\n<p><span id=\"yui_3_16_0_1_1421056836238_2453\"><strong>2. Upcoming Pure Flix film asks <em>Do You Believe?<\/em> <\/strong>The question is also the title of the film from the makers of last year&#8217;s surprise box office hit <em>God&#8217;s Not Dead<\/em>. <em>Do You Believe?<\/em> is set for theatrical release on March 20th. The ensemble cast includes <\/span><span id=\"yui_3_16_0_1_1421056836238_2477\">Mira Sorvino, Cybill Shepherd, Sean Astin,<\/span><span id=\"yui_3_16_0_1_1421056836238_2480\"> Alexa PenaVega, Ted McGinley, Brian Bosworth, Andrea Logan White, Delroy Lindo, Madison Pettis, and Lee Majors.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><iframe title=\"Do You Believe? Official Trailer 1 (2015) - Drama Movie HD\" width=\"500\" height=\"281\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/ogIX2Q7tEdc?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe><\/p>\n<div id=\"yui_3_16_0_1_1421056836238_2431\" class=\"base-card-body\">\n<div id=\"yui_3_16_0_1_1421056836238_2349\" class=\"msg-body inner  undoreset\">\n<div id=\"yui_3_16_0_1_1421056836238_2430\" class=\"email-wrapped\">\n<div id=\"yiv1447252490\">\n<div id=\"yui_3_16_0_1_1421056836238_2429\">\n<div id=\"yui_3_16_0_1_1421056836238_2428\">\n<div class=\"base-card-clear\"><span id=\"yui_3_16_0_1_1421056836238_2424\">\u201cThe massive success of <i>God\u2019s Not Dead<\/i> proved that audiences want to rally together with their friends and family to see movies that will edify them on compelling issues,\u201d says producer and Pure Flix founding partner David A.R. White. \u201cWith <i>Do You Believe?, <\/i>\u00a0we wanted to create a film whose message will encourage, but at the same time convict, audiences concerning one of the most critical faith questions they will ever be asked.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<p id=\"yui_3_16_0_1_1421056836238_2508\" class=\"yiv1447252490Pa4\"><i>Do You Believe?<\/i> tells the story of several people whose lives unexpectedly intersect as they discover the healing power of faith in Christ.\u00a0 The <i>God\u2019s Not Dead<\/i> writing team of Chuck Konzelman and Cary Solomon wrote the film which is p<span id=\"yui_3_16_0_1_1421056836238_2507\">roduced by White, Michael Scott, Russell Wolfe, and Elizabeth Travis. \u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p id=\"yui_3_16_0_1_1421056836238_6088\"><strong>3.<em> Surprised by Love<\/em> surprises.<\/strong> Hallmark Channel\u2019s first original movie of 2015\u00a0 garnered a 2.3 household rating and 2.4 million total viewers.\u00a0 The film, which debuted on January 3rd, boosted Hallmark Channel to be the #1 rated and most-watched cable network among total viewers in its time period.<\/p>\n<p class=\"yiv1447252490Pa4\">The film&#8217;s ratings success comes on the heels of Hallmark Channel\u2019s most successful <em>Countdown to Christmas <\/em>campaign in the network&#8217;s history.<\/p>\n<p id=\"yui_3_16_0_1_1421056836238_16744\" class=\"yiv3660235184MsoNormal\"><span id=\"yui_3_16_0_1_1421056836238_16736\"><strong>4.<em> Growing Pains<\/em> on UP TV.<\/strong> The family-friendly network has acquired all 166 episodes of the classic eighties series &#8220;Growing Pains&#8221; in a deal with Warner Bros. Domestic Television Distribution. <\/span><span id=\"yui_3_16_0_1_1421056836238_16739\">The show can now be seen in\u00a0 HD weekdays from 5:00 PM to 7:00 PM (ET). Besides helping launch the careers of Kirk Cameron and, in its final season, Leonardo DiCaprio, notable guest stars during its seven-year run included <\/span>B<span id=\"yui_3_16_0_1_1421056836238_16743\">rad Pitt, Matthew Perry, Hillary Swank, Heather Graham, Dennis Haysbert, Candace Cameron Bure, Annette Funicello, Dick Butkus, Cuba Gooding Jr., Hank Azaria and many others. \u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"yiv3660235184MsoNormal\">Pr<span id=\"yui_3_16_0_1_1421056836238_16765\">emiering in September 1985, <em>Growing Pains<\/em> centered on Dr. Jason Seaver<\/span><span id=\"yui_3_16_0_1_1421056836238_16761\"> (Alan Thicke), a psychiatrist who <span id=\"yui_3_16_0_1_1421056836238_16760\" class=\"yiv3660235184r-rhscol-19\">had moved his practice into his Long Island, N.Y. home so that his wife, Maggie (Joanna Kerns) could resume her career<\/span> as a local TV reporter.\u00a0 As Maggie juggled work and home, Jason took care of the kids, including\u00a0 girl-crazy Mike (Cameron), bookish honors student Carol (Tracey Gold), and rambunctious younger son Ben (Miller). Fourth child Chrissy (Ashley Johnson) was born later as Maggie transitioned from TV news anchor back to home. A young Leonardo DiCaprio (<a href=\"http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Leonardo_DiCaprio\">I wonder what happened to him<\/a>) was added to the cast in the last season as homeless teen who the Seavers take in. <\/span><\/p>\n<p id=\"yui_3_16_0_1_1421056836238_16768\" class=\"yiv3660235184MsoNormal\">UP Senior V.P. of Programming Sophia Kelley says <span id=\"yui_3_16_0_1_1421056836238_16770\">&#8220;We are really excited to add <em>Growing Pains<\/em> to our weekday afternoon block and Tuesday primetime schedule.<\/span><span id=\"yui_3_16_0_1_1421056836238_16767\"> &#8220;This beloved comedy series is a great fit for our brand, and it is a timeless favorite for everyone who comes to UP for great family entertainment.&#8221;<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"yiv1447252490Pa4\"><span id=\"yui_3_16_0_1_1421056836238_16779\">5. <\/span><strong>The Singing Priest.<\/strong> Finally, I&#8217;m told that Father Ray Kelly has recorded his forthcoming debut album in his parish home in Oldcastle, Ireland. The Catholic priest captured the hearts of over 39 million people (and counting) with his soulful rendition of Leonard Cohen&#8217;s <em>Hallelujah<\/em> while presiding over a couple&#8217;s wedding ceremony.<br \/>\nIn case you missed it:<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p><iframe title=\"Original Big surprise for Bride and Groom...Chris and Leah Wedding 5 April 2014\" width=\"500\" height=\"281\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/XYKwqj5QViQ?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe><\/p>\n<p class=\"yiv1447252490Pa4\"><em>Encourage one another and build each other up \u2013 <\/em><strong>1 Thessalonians 5:11<\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Here\u2019s today\u2019s dispatch from the crossroads of faith, media and culture. 1. Christian retailer gets into movie-making biz.\u00a0 Family Christian Entertainment (FCE), the recently-launched sister company of\u00a0 Family Christian Stores, has announced its first project. Production of 90 Minutes in Heaven will commence January 26th in Atlanta. The film is based on the 2004 New&hellip;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":225,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[8,9,3632,13,7533,24,25,31,1],"tags":[4733,7800,7780,7788,6659,7776,7797,414,7789,3156,7784,7785,7778,7787,3443,7790,7777,7783,7801,7793,3246,7781,3679,7771,1445,7779,7795,7775,7774,7799,6395,7796,7798,363,7792,7773,7791,2823,7770,4019,7802,7794,7786,6137,5238,7782,1232,7418,7772],"class_list":["post-5767","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-catholic-church","category-christianity","category-christmas","category-family-matters","category-homlessness","category-movies","category-music","category-television","category-uncategorized","tag-dennis-haysbert","tag-90-minutes-in-heaven","tag-alan-thicke","tag-alexa-penavega","tag-andrea-logan-white","tag-annette-funicello","tag-big-sur-directs","tag-brad-pitt","tag-brian-bosworth","tag-candace-cameron-bure","tag-cary-solomon","tag-chuck-konzelman","tag-cuba-gooding-jr","tag-cybill-shepherd","tag-david-a-r-white","tag-delroy-lindo","tag-dick-butkus","tag-elizabeth-travis","tag-family-christian-entertainment-fce","tag-family-christian-ministries","tag-family-christian-stores","tag-father-ray-kelly","tag-gods-not-dead","tag-growing-pains-on-up-tv","tag-hallmark-channel","tag-hank-azaria","tag-hayden-christensen-star-wars","tag-heather-graham","tag-hillary-swank","tag-idisciple","tag-joanna-kerns","tag-jumper-star-michael-polish-twin-falls-idaho","tag-kate-bosworth-superman-returns","tag-kirk-cameron","tag-lee-majors","tag-leonardo-dicaprio","tag-madison-pettis","tag-matthew-perry","tag-michael-scott","tag-mira-sorvino","tag-pastor-don-piper","tag-producer-rick-jackson","tag-pure-flix-film-asks-do-you-believe","tag-russell-wolfe","tag-sean-astin","tag-surprised-by-love","tag-ted-mcginley","tag-up-senior-v-p-of-programming-sophia-kelley","tag-warner-bros-domestic-television-distribution"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v23.9 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>Top five faith\/family media stories: January 12, 2015<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/faithmediaandculture\/2015\/01\/top-five-faithfamily-media-stories-january-12-2015.html\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Top five faith\/family media stories: January 12, 2015\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Here\u2019s today\u2019s dispatch from the crossroads of faith, media and culture. 1. Christian retailer gets into movie-making biz.\u00a0 Family Christian Entertainment (FCE), the recently-launched sister company of\u00a0 Family Christian Stores, has announced its first project. Production of 90 Minutes in Heaven will commence January 26th in Atlanta. The film is based on the 2004 New&hellip;\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/faithmediaandculture\/2015\/01\/top-five-faithfamily-media-stories-january-12-2015.html\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Faith, Media &amp; Culture\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2015-01-12T15:28:40+00:00\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"John W. 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The film is based on the 2004 New&hellip;","og_url":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/faithmediaandculture\/2015\/01\/top-five-faithfamily-media-stories-january-12-2015.html","og_site_name":"Faith, Media &amp; Culture","article_published_time":"2015-01-12T15:28:40+00:00","author":"John W. Kennedy","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/faithmediaandculture\/2015\/01\/top-five-faithfamily-media-stories-january-12-2015.html","url":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/faithmediaandculture\/2015\/01\/top-five-faithfamily-media-stories-january-12-2015.html","name":"Top five faith\/family media stories: January 12, 2015","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/faithmediaandculture\/#website"},"datePublished":"2015-01-12T15:28:40+00:00","dateModified":"2015-01-12T15:28:40+00:00","author":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/faithmediaandculture\/#\/schema\/person\/e5d5ef9caeb6b01bcbf08ca6de6591c2"},"breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/faithmediaandculture\/2015\/01\/top-five-faithfamily-media-stories-january-12-2015.html#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/faithmediaandculture\/2015\/01\/top-five-faithfamily-media-stories-january-12-2015.html"]}]},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/faithmediaandculture\/2015\/01\/top-five-faithfamily-media-stories-january-12-2015.html#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/faithmediaandculture"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Top five faith\/family media stories: January 12, 2015"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/faithmediaandculture\/#website","url":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/faithmediaandculture\/","name":"Faith, Media &amp; Culture","description":"Beliefnet Voices - John W. Kennedy","potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/faithmediaandculture\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/faithmediaandculture\/#\/schema\/person\/e5d5ef9caeb6b01bcbf08ca6de6591c2","name":"John W. Kennedy","description":"John W. Kennedy is the founder and Dir. of Development of The Creative Universe Entertainment\u2122, a media consultation and development company focusing on the creation, development and support of high-quality mainstream entertainment that upholds positive timeless values, including trust in God. Current projects include \"Bryant Park\" (an uplifting romantic-comedy) and \"Photo Finish\" (an award-winning sci-fi TV pilot). He has written over 100 children's novels based on episodes of the Cartoon Network series \"Ben 10\", \"Ben 10: Alien Force\", \"Ben 10: Ultimate Alien\", \"Ben 10: Omniverse\" and \"Generator Rex\" among others. He also writes Beliefnet\u2019s \"Faith, Media &amp; Culture\" blog. Previously, he has produced successful news and talk programming for CNN, Fox News, Pax TV and SiriusXM. Specialties: Script Writing, Movie\/TV Novelizations &amp; Adaptations, TV Content Creation and Development, Creative Consultation, Producing and Booking News and Talk shows. He can be reached for writing, producing and consulting services at 516-640-1182.","url":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/faithmediaandculture\/author\/jkennedy"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/faithmediaandculture\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5767","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/faithmediaandculture\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/faithmediaandculture\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/faithmediaandculture\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/225"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/faithmediaandculture\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=5767"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/faithmediaandculture\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5767\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":5772,"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/faithmediaandculture\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5767\/revisions\/5772"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/faithmediaandculture\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=5767"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/faithmediaandculture\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=5767"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/faithmediaandculture\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=5767"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}