In addition to the March release of I Still Believe, Kingdom Studios is working on Jesus Revolution, about the life of California pastor Greg Laurie and the Jesus Movement of the late ’60s and early ’70s. Other upcoming titles include Apostles: Resurrection of Christ and The Drummer Boy, a musical in development with Christian group For King and Country.
The multi-year “first-look” deal with Lionsgate is helping the Erwin Brothers follow their father’s advice about dreaming big. And they predict huge ramifications for Christian outreach, too. “We believe we’ve only scratched the surface of what can be achieved” in the field, Jon says.
‘If God’s Calling You…Never Give Up’
The Erwin Brothers, who maintain close ties to their hometown, work to encourage other entrepreneurs and filmmakers. In October, at the sixth annual Lion’s Den competition at Samford University, they received the Operator of the Year award, given to participants “who have excelled as examples of Business as Mission companies.”
Each year, Lion’s Den acts as a Shark Tank-style competition for start-ups that produce financial, social, environmental, and spiritual results. The Erwin Brothers, who participated in the inaugural Lion’s Den in 2014, created a video for this year’s event, where they were honored as role models.
In the four-minute video, the Erwins, along with producer Joshua Walsh, describe their vision and the journey so far. “Our dream,” says Jon, “was to make…movies that are wildly entertaining that are emotionally relatable no matter what you believe, but that really are built to draw people to the gospel.” By fostering others in the industry, says Andy, their team can “tell the stories that we all want to tell on a bigger scale.”
The tight-knit, family-like team has “gone through a lot” together, admits Walsh, who adds, “I’m excited to see where things go.”
Just as the Kendrick Brothers (another Christian-filmmaking pair) helped mentor the Erwin Brothers, the Erwins are eager to pay it forward. At the end of their Lion’s Den video, Jon addressed the entrepreneurial hopefuls gathered in Birmingham: “Keep dreaming; keep believing,” he said. “If God’s calling you to do [something], just never give up.”
To moviegoers seeking faith-based entertainment options, Jon also has a message: “As Christians…our movie ticket really is our vote.” He explains, “When we show up in mass numbers, culture takes notice. It’s sort of like Joshua in the battle of Jericho. He marched around the city seven times, but in the last step everyone had to yell at exactly the same time, and that’s when the walls fell down. Our industry is like that. When we join our voices together at the same moment, that creates cultural power.”
This is “truly an exciting time” for faith-based films, Jon adds, and he promises that Kingdom Studios won’t disappoint audiences. “We control the content, you’re not going to be offended, and it’s going to represent your values,” he says of upcoming releases. “We hope to steward the moment well.”
