NEWS STORY: Filmmaker Announces Second Mormon-Related Movie Project

c. 2000 Religion News Service (UNDATED) Mormon filmmaker Richard Dutcher, whose missionary drama “God’s Army” has earned $2.5 million at the box office this year, has announced he will start shooting his second movie on themes related to the history of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, “Brigham City,” next week in rural […]

c. 2000 Religion News Service

(UNDATED) Mormon filmmaker Richard Dutcher, whose missionary drama “God’s Army” has earned $2.5 million at the box office this year, has announced he will start shooting his second movie on themes related to the history of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, “Brigham City,” next week in rural Utah.

Plans call for the film to be released around Valentine’s Day, he said, adding that “God’s Army” will hit video stores Nov. 15.


An affectionate but critical story of Mormon missionaries pounding the pavements of Los Angeles, “God’s Army” debuted March 10 after Dutcher convinced regional and national theater chains to give his movie some screens in areas where many of the nation’s 5 million Mormons live, specifically Utah, southern Idaho, Arizona and Nevada. It has been a hit among church members and is now in 33 theaters nationwide.

It wasy to premiere Friday (Sept. 29) in Fort Collins, Colo., Pensacola, Fla., Manchester, N.H., Beaumont, Texas, Moses Lake, Wash., and Madison, Wis., and across the province of Alberta, Canada.

With a cast of unknowns, “God’s Army” was shot in North Hollywood, Calif., on a $300,000 budget, with the initial $25,000 from an elderly, now deceased, Christian Science woman in Wisconsin. The budget for “Brigham City,” a contemporary murder mystery set in a small, predominantly Mormon town, is just under $1 million.

Dutcher said money was much easier to raise for the new movie than for his last film’s considerably smaller budget, with most of the new money coming from fellow church members.

“Instead of taking me four years to raise the money for `God’s Army,’ it now has taken me four weeks,” said Dutcher, a one-time missionary in Mexico.

The larger “Brigham City” budget means Dutcher has been able to hire noted character actor Wilford Brimley to play the town’s retired sheriff.

Dutcher and actor Matthew Brown were the stars of “God’s Army” and reunite as stars in “Brigham City” as the sheriff and deputy sheriff, partly to attract the prior film’s Mormon fan base. “I’m working with an extremely low budget, under a million dollars,” Dutcher said. “I need to get as much marquee value as I can.”


The video and DVD of “God’s Army” go on sale Nov. 15 from the mainstream distributor Major Video Concepts.

(OPTIONAL TRIM FOLLOWS)

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints does not make official endorsements, but the success of “God’s Army,” was built on positive Mormon word-of-mouth and friend-to-friend e-mails. Dutcher said he has met privately with Mormon’s leaders, including the church’s ruling Council of Twelve Apostles.

“From my own local church authorities all the way up to basically the top of the church, I haven’t received anything but positive feedback and encouragement,” he said.

“Brigham City” begins shooting Tuesday (Oct. 3) in the small town of Mapleton, Utah, 54 miles south of Salt Lake City and home to both Dutcher and his Zion Films production company. “God’s Army” was shot in 18 days. Dutcher said his new movie enjoys the comparative luxury of a slightly longer shoot.

“Four weeks _ that’s one week longer than I had on `God’s Army,”’ he said. “I’m in the big time.”

DEA END FINNIGAN

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