With faith-based films on the rise, it’s no surprise that faith-based TV shows might make an appearance in the near future as well.
In 2017, a short film titled “The Shepherd: A Story of the First Christmas” debuted on VidAngel, depicting the life of Jesus Christ. The film garnered so much attraction that the director, Dallas Jenkins, decided to turn it into a multi-season television series. “The Chosen” will chronicle the life of Jesus and all those that He came into contact with while He was on Earth.
Jenkins is using crowdfunding to push the project forward, already has raised $4 million of his $13 million goal.
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“God has been teaching me that my job isn’t to feed the 5,000, it’s just to bring my loaves and fish,” Jenkins told The Christian Post. “And it’s been humbling and overwhelming to see so many people add their loaves and fish. I don’t know exactly what God’s going to do, but it’ll be fun to watch him multiply it.”
Jenkins partnered with VidAngel, a family-friendly streaming service, to create the show, and is planning to use the $13 million to create and market season one.
Over 5,000 different “angel” investors have put money towards the project, hoping that the money will contribute to the quality of the production, and in turn, increase the audience that it garners.
“What I’m hearing from supporters is more meaningful than their investment,” Jenkins added. “They’re just so desperate to see this impact the world. We’ve had multiple people invest five and six figures, but one woman wrote a check for $452. That’s clearly the exact amount she could afford. Shame on me if I don’t cry out for God’s help to make sure I justify her faith in this project.”
Recently, “The Chosen” became the only Christian project in the top 5 crowdfunding film projects ever, placing at number 4.
Many Christian leaders have gotten behind the project, including Ravi Zacharias, Anne Graham Lotz, Phil and Kay Robertson, Alveda King and NRB President Jerry B. Johnson.
“My original idea in making ‘The Shepherd’ was simply to create a short film about the birth of Christ in a fresh way. As I shared it with friends, ministry leaders, and entertainment professionals, I kept getting the same response: ‘I want more,'” Jenkins said last year.
“As a result, we’ve decided to make an entire TV show about the life of Christ through the eyes of those who encountered him called ‘The Chosen.’ And when I say ‘we,’ I mean we literally, because you can be a part of this unprecedented project,” he added.
You can view the pilot episode HERE, and you can also donate HERE, as they are still looking for investors.
(H/T: Christian Post)
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