‘Sarah’s Oil’ Producer John Shepherd: ‘Have the Faith of a Child’

Producer John Shepherd recently spoke with ChurchLeaders about the inspiration behind his new movie “Sarah’s Oil,” a film he described as a faith-filled journey that captivated him.

Wonder Project and Kingdom Story Company have teamed up with Amazon MGM Studios to bring the true story of Sarah Rector to the silver screen. “Sarah’s Oil” stars Zachary Levi (“Shazam!,” “Chuck,” “The Unbreakable Boy”), Naya Desir-Johnson, (“The Equalizer”), Garret Dillahunt (“No Country for Old Men,” “12 Years a Slave”), and Sonequa Martin-Green (“The Walking Dead,” “Space Jam: A New Legacy”).

The film’s synopsis says:

“Sarah’s Oil” is the remarkable true story of Sarah Rector, an African American girl born in Oklahoma Indian Territory in the early 1900s, who believes there is oil beneath the barren land she’s allotted and whose faith is proven right. As greedy oil sharks close in, Sarah turns to her family, friends, and some Texas wildcatters to maintain control of her oil-rich land, eventually becoming among the nation’s first female African American millionaires—at eleven years old.

“What really hit me about Sarah was we didn’t set out to make a movie about faith,” Shepherd told ChurchLeaders.

“We set out to make a movie about the American dream,” Shepherd added. “But anybody who’s ever achieved a dream has had a lot of faith and a lot of help—a lot of friends, family, community.”

RELATED: New Film ‘Sarah’s Oil’ Tells the True Story of How an 11-Year-Old’s Faith Led to Millions in Oil

Shepherd continued, “And Sarah was somebody who—yes, she had help—but she helped others. And not only did she have this amazing dream, she just stuck to it.”

“Her family couldn’t afford the property taxes of $30 a year to keep her 160 acres of worthless land. But she believed this was a gift from God, and gifts were given for a reason,” he explained.

“That really resonated with me—that we’ve all been given gifts,” Shepherd added. “And sometimes it’s the world, or sometimes it’s ourselves, that says, ‘Oh, it’s worthless. It’s unsuitable for anything.’ But she believed, ‘No, there’s a reason, and I’ve got to use my gifts.’”