There and Back Again

'Come What May' Official Release Date

2009-02-09T18:53:00.000-08:00

I am very excited to announce that on March 17th, Provident Films will release Come What May to your local Christian bookstores and online retail stores.

Provident Films also distributed Facing the Giants and Fireproof. We are so excited to see what God is doing through Provident and the films they have distributed!

So, mark your calendars and be ready to storm your Christian bookstore on March 17th!

Pics from Day 1 and 2

2008-07-31T15:58:00.000-07:00

I realize that we sorta forgot to post the pictures and videos that I asked you all to enjoy. So...here are some pictures, and Christina will post the videos later. Most of the pictures we have are pictures of us in makeup and in character, which we aren't supposed to post, I think.
The following pictures are from the first 2 days. Pictures from yesterday will be posted as soon as they are uploaded. -Victoria

Austin and Christina

Austin and Chrissy

Clairen and Chrissy

Days 1 And 2

2008-07-30T19:43:00.000-07:00

Greetings from Colorado!

Christina and I are here in Denver shooting a short film with Epicenter Productions. We are here in our host house with Clairen and Ruth and we’re waiting for the boys to come pick us up so we can hang in downtown Denver because we have a day off. Yehaw!!

So far, shooting has been going fantastic. Monday was our first day on set, and it went well for a first day. Yesterday was amazing and we shot far more than we were supposed to, and thus, we get a day off.

We are having a wonderful time catching up with old friends and meeting new ones. The crew is awesome and we are all getting along well. Of course, the work is hard, but it’s so enjoyable. We’ll try to post some funny stories later.

Enjoy the pictures and video clips.

Love from us,
Victoria and all the girls

Sick?

2008-01-28T19:38:00.000-08:00

Howdy,
We'd really appreciate everyone's prayers right now. Almost everyone here is either sick or getting sick, and we are in desperate need of good health. My boss, Katherine, got sick today so I was the only makeup person on the set. And even though it was a lovely adventure, I hope she feels better soon.

Blessings,
Christina

On The Plane

2008-01-28T19:35:00.000-08:00

My little pod guy was a stubborn fellow. He wouldn’t listen to reason and he had an attitude problem. Enough was enough. I was ready to ditch him and move on with my life. I was about to post him for sell on E-bay last night when he got scared and started working. I’m sitting here listening to some sweet music, and the little pod guy and I are friends now. So don’t worry. Life is good. I just thought you all should know.

Ta!
Victoria

Airplanes are a funny thing. And they raise a lot of questions. For instance, why are the seats always blue? Why can’t they be orange? And why don’t they serve M&Ms for the snack instead of peanuts? And why did I have to loose an earring? (Note to self: Find it. Or else.)

I’ve had a lovely time so far, listening to John Mayer and eating Austin’s crackers. Life’s looking great. I just hope I don’t freeze when we get off the plane. It was 18 degrees outside during our layover in Salt Lake City, and it’s supposed to be 28 degrees when we get to Baltimore.

Yikes!
Christina

Join Us. Be In the Movie. Meet Cast & Crew

2007-12-06T22:35:00.000-08:00

This coming January 2008, Advent Film Group will be back on location in Purcellville, Virginia for a week to complete “pickup” filming for Come What May. Pickups are part of the post-production process, allowing the filmmakers to re-shoot scenes, add new shots, and get additional coverage footage for film and promotions.

You are invited to join us as we prepare a SPECIAL DAY (in late January) for our supporters to be IN THE MOVIE. Also, meet the cast and crew. Plus get autographs, movie posters, postcards, and T-Shirts.

To sign up, click here.
Visit the website for more information and updates.

Trailer for Come What May!

2007-10-25T11:22:00.001-07:00

Come What May - Official Title

2007-09-19T23:12:00.001-07:00

Website updated!

2007-09-01T19:56:00.000-07:00

The Advent Film Group has a new website, with pictures, news, and stories. Click here to check it out: http://www.AdventFilmGroup.com.

-Natalie

Pictures!

2007-08-20T14:28:00.000-07:00

Austin playing "Caleb," and Victoria playing "Rachel."

Katie, Victoria, Mrs. Jazek, Savanna and Christina.

Austin, Shiloh, Mr. Jazek, Victoria, Savanna and Christina.

Shiloh, Austin, Christina, Savanna, and Victoria.

At the airport saying goodbye to friends. (L-R: Mr. Jazek, Christina, Austin, Shiloh, Victoria, Travis, Savanna, and Mrs. Jazek)

Today's the big day!

2007-08-13T12:08:00.000-07:00

Christina and Victoria arrive home from Virginia tonight at 10:00 pm. We're excited!

-Natalie

2007-08-12T23:20:00.000-07:00

Credit for last pic: Katie

2007-08-10T19:34:00.000-07:00

Credits: See previous post.

The Begining Of The End

2007-08-09T16:00:00.000-07:00

Pictures taken by Christina, Victoria, Shiloh and Savanna. Edited by Austin.

National Moot Court Championship

2007-08-07T22:37:00.001-07:00

Yesterday we filmed some of the Moot Court scenes, especially Austin's climatic ending debate. I can't wait to see that scene edited, with music and all. It's going to be a very impressive scene...

-Christina

Swapping howdies.

2007-08-03T22:29:00.000-07:00

Hi everybody!

Funny how I always post at night when I really need to get to sleep, or I post early in the morning, when I really need to get to the makeup chair. Sorry about that. :-)

We have a big scene tomorrow, and I'm expecting it to be pretty intense. Please pray that it will all go well and smoothly. Thanks.

We are filming off campus tomorrow, and I don't have to be there until 3:30! Yes!! You know what that means-sleep, and lots of it!!!! :-) I'll be heading over to set at 1:30 to run lines with Austin. Even with the late call time, I need to get to sleep. I'm the only one with a late call time, and I don't want to waste it. :-)

Like the title says, it's time to swap howdies. We want to know if you are all still with us with this blog. :-) We love and miss you.

God bless,
Victoria

Always Music

2007-08-03T05:42:00.000-07:00

I'm here in our dorm, waiting to wake Victoria up so she can go practice lines with Austin before the call time this morning. Everything is going well...Yesterday I did my normal jobs, makeup and slate, but I also was able to help with props and set dressing, and I even got to be the AD (Assistant Director) for a couple of minutes. :) It was fun to yell "quiet on the set...roll cameras."

We've been getting some amazing footage. Last night we shot a scene of Austin and Victoria both playing the movie's theme song on their instruments. It was one of those special moments on set. I was rocking my head back and forth, and then I leaned over to look at the sound board, and Jeremy had his eyes close and was doing the same.

I have to go. Thank you all for your prayers.
-Christina

Pictures

2007-08-01T22:00:00.000-07:00

The whole cast and crew.

Christina, Victoria, and Austin.

Update from Natalie

2007-07-31T14:23:00.000-07:00

Christina and Victoria are back in Virginia for two more weeks of filming. For three days they're in Lynchburg, VA, at Liberty University, filming different Moot Court scenes. Everything is going well--the girls are glad to be back there at work once again. Victoria was really happy with how the scenes she filmed yesterday turned out.

Please pray:
1. That the girls (especially Victoria) will get plenty of rest.
2. That Victoria won't get sick--some of the crew members have come down with colds.

We had a great time being with the girls again this past week. I'll be posting about this past weekend's trip to Stevenson, Washington, very soon.

-Natalie

Good times

2007-07-31T14:22:00.000-07:00

Don't they look nice and spiffy! We try our best to keep him humble...
Waiting on set...Austin, Jake, Me, Shiloh, Katie, and Victoria

-Christina

Pics by Katie

Lighting

2007-07-27T01:01:00.000-07:00

-Christina

(Pics by Katie)

On Set

2007-07-26T12:07:00.000-07:00

Sign going into the Production Office

We use a very efficient system to communicate with each other...

Once a set is "dressed" and in use, it becomes a "hot set." No one touches anything!

Some of the lighting equipment in the hall

-Christina

(Pics by Katie)

Home Again

2007-07-26T11:53:00.000-07:00

This week, we've been enjoying out time at home. It was so wonderful to be at the airport and finally spot our family in the crowd. I missed them so much.

I've had lots of time to go over the script and my lines and it's been good to be able to really look at my character and make sure her character is coming out through my performance. :-)

Since being home, Christina and I have been doing all the animal chores. Natalie and Stephanie have been so gracious to take over them for us while we are gone, so now it's our turn.

Sleep is another thing we've been able to get caught up on. I'm preparing myself to have jet lag again-I don't want to be sleep deprived before we even get there! :-)

I love my job. But, it is hard work too-a lot of research is sometimes necessary(aka, watching movies). Yeah...a lot of studying is involved. :-) Actually, I was told to watch certain movies.

It's been good to be home and see people, but we are itching to get back to VA and get back to work. God is so good to us to give us this time in our lives.

Victoria

Website update

2007-07-26T11:33:00.001-07:00

Click to see the updated Advent Film Group website: http://www.adventfilmgroup.com/mooting_pics.php
This site is and will be updated during the rest of the filming. Don't forget to check it out.

-Victoria

Thank you for thinking of us.

2007-07-26T10:11:00.000-07:00

I send out our thanks to the people who commented on this blog, called us, and sent us snail mail. We can't tell you how amazing I felt when I saw the mail pile and saw that Christina and I had 4 pieces of mail in one day!!! I basically ran back to the office, smiling like a goof. We were so happy to hear from you, and you were so thoughtful to send such sweet and thoughtful gifts. Thank you. I think that was the day that I forgot to go have my makeup taken off. I was so excited and happy that the uncomfortable feeling of an inch of makeup didn't affect me. :-)

Thank you. You know who you all are.

Victoria

Pictures!

2007-07-25T18:44:00.000-07:00

More pictures, thanks again to Katie.

If it wasn't for Katie, you guys wouldn't be seeing most of these photos. -Natalie

Victoria.

Christina and Mr. Escobar (the director) at Christina's goodbye party. They had it before we told Christina that she would be going back to VA for the last 2 weeks of filming.

Austin, Victoria, Jeremy, and Christina.

Austin.

Victoria.

Jeremy and Christina.

Austin, Victoria, Jeremy and Christina.

Travis (props master).

Savannah doing Victoria's hair.

Mr. Jazek (play's the dad of "Caleb.") and Travis.

Christina jamming.

Shiloh and Victoria.

Christina and Savannah listening to music.

Victoria was put in charge of holding Mr. Escobar's (the director) banana.

Then Austin squeezed it.

Off to find a new banana.

Props

2007-07-25T18:39:00.000-07:00

Here is the Props Master, Travis...
He's holding a picture of a cute lil' Austin, that was used as a prop.

These are some of the baked goods that the baker from the cafeteria made for props...

Travis always puts these signs everywhere...Maybe he doesn't trust us?!?

Here's a painting of "Modern Art" that we helped make...

I firmly believe that it will be the highlight of the whole movie...

-Christina

(Pics by Katie)

My Jobs

2007-07-25T17:48:00.000-07:00

I thought I'd give you all a few details about what I do each day on the set...

First of all, I'm the Makeup Assistant. I do different people's makeup, depending on how many actors we have on a given day. While the main makeup lady Katherine does Victoria's makeup, I always do Austin's. Hmm...We'll have to get some better pictures...

I also did this actor's makeup... Katherine and I are also responsible for everyone's hair...
Here I am demonstrating how much Austin needed a hair cut...

Victoria trimmed it right before we left for Oregon

After we have everyone's makeup and hair ready for the day, we are always with them on set, giving touch ups as the takes go on.

This is called the "chip." They use it in post production to match colors. I hold it up in front of the cameras each time the lighting is changed. Thus, I have the nickname "Chip Girl."

I also do the slate...basically I hold it in front of the camera before each take and read off "Sound in A, Moot Courting, Roll 6, Scene 75.4, Take 7." And then I get to clap the top, which always brings me joy... :) My other nick name is "Slatey."

Okay, that is a quick overview of some of the jobs I have...
-Christina

(Pictures by Katie)

Back again.

2007-07-25T09:51:00.000-07:00

This is our 5th day back home and I haven't written a blog post until now. Why? Victoria is supposed to be a talker and a writer. How come there aren't any new posts? Well, the fact is I have the "blogger blues"; what all bloggers get when something really wonderful happens.

But yet, I have so much to write about that I'm just going to go ahead and write and see what comes out.

Blessings,
Victoria

Our Adventure to Bainbridge Island, Washington.

2007-07-23T09:18:00.000-07:00

Everything we didn’t expect to happen happened, on our recent adventure to Bainbridge Island in Washington.

Early Saturday morning, July 21^st, 2007—Dad, Mom, Stephanie and I loaded up the van with suitcases, instruments, snacks, and more, and then hit the road at 5:30 am. We started heading north on I-5. Stephanie and I slept most of the way until we reached Seattle, 7 hours later. And, that, is where the fun began to start.

We reached Seattle, and we drove to the airport, following directions from Mapquest.com.

We were trying to find parking (which isn’t always easy with the big 15-passenger van), and Stephanie and I thought it was quite funny, as we went on the same road that went around the airport quite a few times, trying different lanes to see if we could find parking in different sections.

Finally Mom ended dropping Dad, Stephanie and I off at the loading and unloading zone and she went to go find parking for the van.

We went inside, found the baggage area and looked around to try and find the girls.

We found Christina and Victoria, and then waited for their luggage to arrive.

There they are!

The Sisters.

We got Christina’s and then waited for Victoria’s. After 1 1/2 hours later, we realized that Victoria’s wasn’t going to arrive. Yes, Victoria’s luggage was lost, either in Denver, or still in Washington, D.C.

Normally this wouldn’t be much of a problem—you could just wait until the airport delivered your luggage. But, it was different with Victoria’s luggage…her performing outfit was in it, which she needed to wear 4 hours later for our performance. The airport offered to pay $25 to cover expenses, but $25 doesn’t cover a new wardrobe for a movie, and 4 new outfits.

Saturday, 2:00 PM—When the going gets rough, the going goes shopping. After getting lunch at Subway, we hit the SeaTac Mall and quickly went through every store, trying to find 4 matching outfits. You’d probably think it would be fun for 5 girls to go dress shopping, but it wasn’t fun. On Saturday it was quite a stressful job, knowing we HAD to find 4 new outfits in less then an hour. Thankfully we found 4 outfits. As it was raining, we called up the Bluegrass Festival coordinator, and asked how things were going. He said they were going well, except that they were an hour behind schedule, which was a relief to us.

To drive to Bainbridge Island via Seattle, you have to take a ferry to get there. We continued driving through Seattle...

…until we reached the ferry boarding place. After paying almost $50 to cross, we discovered that it takes 35 minutes to get across Puget Sound, and that the next available ferry crossing was leaving at 5:30 pm.

We waited with a lot of other cars for 5:30 pm to arrive (It was 4:15 pm at this point). Each of us girls went and changed into our outfits and then continued waiting in the van. We were tired and hot, so Dad had the air conditioning running. It was about 5:30 pm when Dad tried to turn the engine on, and it wouldn’t start. The battery was dead. As we watched all of the cars around us drive on to the ferry, dad hurried to find jumper cables. I guess it happens a lot to the cars waiting, as a security guard brought a big cart with jumper cable equipment and she and Dad jumped the van. We drove on to the ferry, right before it took off. We didn’t want to turn off the engine, because we were afraid it wouldn’t start up again. Dad went and asked a security person if they had more jumper cables on board, or if we had to turn off the engine at all for the ride across. “No, they didn’t have jumper cables, and, yes, we had to turn off the engine. But don’t worry, if your car doesn’t start up again, we’ll push you off the ferry.” Dad came and gave us the news and we looked out over the water, pretending not to notice that we were moving. Feeling guilty, we turned off the engine.

Dad, Stephanie and I went to explore the ferry. There were three different levels, I think: one for cars, one for people to sit inside and wait, and one on the top.

It was really windy, as you can see by the pictures of us. It messed up our hair…

We walked along on the second level, and went outside on the decks.

We arrived at the island, and the van started right up. We drove off of the ferry, and began driving to where the bluegrass festival was being held. I loved the island! It had a lot of hills, and everything was green. I wish we could have stayed longer and explored the town.

By this time it was raining really hard. We arrived at the outdoor venue of the festival, and people were loading up vans, packing everything up, there wasn’t an audience, etc. We guessed that they had canceled the festival, and had just forgotten to call us and let us know. Dad and Christina went out to investigate. They came back to report that they had moved the festival to another dry indoor venue.

We arrived, and starting at 7:45 pm, played for 45 minutes. It was so much fun! It was one of our best performances we’ve ever had, I think. This was really surprising, considering that we hadn’t played together for over 2 weeks, since we were at the cabin in Utah for the 4th of July. The grange where we performed at had great acoustics, and there was a decent audience of about 40 people, who had been willing to come to this other venue to finish watching the festival. I think it was disappointing for the festival coordinators, because the turn out for last year’s festival was about 1600.

By the time the festival was over, and we had finished packing up our instruments and CD’s, it was around 10:30 pm. We had had a really long day and were looking forward to relaxing in two rooms at a cozy inn that the festival was providing for our family. We arrived at the Poulsbo Inn, and discovered that the inn had given away our two non-smoking rooms, and that there was only one smoking room left, with only 1 or 2 full size beds. It wasn’t going to work.

We then went to the only restaurant in town that was open at 11 o’clock at night, and had dinner. Next, we drove to Bremerton, 20 minutes away, to rent some rooms at a hotel there. But, the hotels in that town, too, were already booked.

By this time we were so tired, and we didn’t know what to do. I suggested that we just drive home to Grants Pass tonight...it’s only 7 hours. J “Yes. Only 7 hours,” the drivers said. We ended up parking outside of a Super 8 Motel, and sleeping in the van for 6 hours.

We woke up, drove a ways, and then around 7 am, we pulled into a rest area and changed into our church clothes. We continued driving to Portland, Oregon, and attended Household of Faith church in Gresham, Oregon. We have friends from speech tournaments who go there, so it was great to see them again. We especially wanted to go there, because Austin Kearney’s (who plays “Caleb”) family goes to church there. It was great to see them and Christina and Victoria were able to give them updates about how the movie is going.

Victoria, Stephanie, Clairen, Moriah, Christina, Gavin, Will, and Natalie.

The Kearney Family, minus Austin.

They're representing Oregon well.

We stayed for their church’s fellowship meal, and then headed down to Grants Pass.

We arrived in Grants Pass at 6:30 pm, and headed down to Riverside Park, to see if our friends were still playing Ultimate Frisbee there. They were, and it was great to see everyone!

After that, a family invited us over for dinner, and we stayed there for a few hours visiting, and watching a little behind-the-scenes footage that the girls had filmed in VA.

We arrived home at 11:00 pm, and Christina went down to milk the goats. We unloaded from the van the things we needed most, and then took showers and went to bed.

It was an adventure.

-Natalie

Back To The Best Coast

2007-07-20T12:24:00.000-07:00

The good news is today's call time is 3:30 pm. And the even better news is the shooting today is all at night, 5pm-4am! And then we leave at 4:01 am to go to the airport, arriving in Seattle at 12:10 pm (3:10 pm EDT!), and then we drive to Bainbridge Island to perform at 6 pm. Sleep is a fleeting thought. Actually, we were told to stay up really late last night so we'd be able to sleep in this morning. :) So a bunch of us watched a couple of movies until 2:30 am...good times.

Once we're back in Oregon, we'll try to write some more stories and post more pictures. Then we'll be flying back next Saturday to stay for another couple of weeks. Yeah!!!

Poor people...it's going to be so boring without having us here....
-Christina

Production Clip

2007-07-20T10:58:00.001-07:00

This is a Week 1 Production Clip off of the Advent Film Group Website. http://www.adventfilmgroup.com/media1.php

-Natalie

More pictures!

2007-07-20T09:51:00.001-07:00

Thanks again to Katie for more pictures. -Natalie

Notice the signs in honor of Victoria and Christina.

Rachel and Caleb.

Austin plays "Caleb"

Victoria.

Victoria fixing the printer, I believe.

Austin and Victoria.

Christina was an extra.

Jeremy and Christina.

Savannah doing Victoria's hair.

Ta-Da!

I have pictures!

2007-07-19T10:03:00.000-07:00

Thanks to Katie M. for providing me with these pictures. -Natalie

Meeting of some sort.

Victoria's working on a blanket for the fair.

Christina, Travis, and Victoria.

Victoria.

Christina.

All of Victoria's clothes.

Victoria, Jeremy, and Christina.

Austin and Victoria.

Filming a sunset shot.

Filming another outdoor scene.

Wednesday-the 18?? I think...who knows...

2007-07-18T19:14:00.000-07:00

Howdy!

I wanted to write you all and update you with news. I have gobs of news. :-)

Today was an easy day for me. I only shot 2 scenes, and they were easy ones. There were just some problems today. Here's how it works: The "main" camera people(director, director of photography, gaffer, etc...) are working one set up. They have one-two cameras going. They shoot the bigger scenes. Then there is unit 2. Unit 2 takes the Assistant Director and the assistant sound tech, and about 2 other camera crew people. Unit 2 films montage footage and scenes that don't involve so many camera set ups and fancy lighting and gobs of people. I've been working with Unit 2 a lot and I love it. They are very cool people.

Christina is working out in the exercise room with Katherine the makeup artist right now. I would be there too, but I wanted to write y'all and get to bed early.

I was on standby for most of the day, which is fun. I get to hang out with people and talk. But I get really weird and crazy. And I really need to stop it. I guess that's what happens when you sit around too long with nothing to do and eating fruit snacks and crackers and cheese and stuff. Hmm...you see...I want jobs to do, but it seems no one lets me do them. They ask for a dolly handler and I offer to do it, but I'm told no because I might break a nail or fall down and hurt my face. Then, I was told to stop sleeping on the top bunk because I might fall out and hurt myself. I protested, and so then Chrissy was told to put her blankets and pillows around the bed in case I fell off. He was mostly joking, I think. :-)

I think I am losing the baby tooth that I've been trying to lose for years. Hmm...that will be interesting. Imagine that. Makeup will have fun trying to fix that smile. :-) No really...I hope it tightens back up again.

I forgot to have people take off my makeup...so I need to run...night y'all. Chat with you soon.

:-)

God bless,
Victoria

Site Updated

2007-07-16T18:38:00.000-07:00

The Advent Film Group website has been updated with information, pictures, etc., about the movie.

http://www.adventfilmgroup.com/projects.php

-Natalie

Advent Films Brings Full-length Feature to College

2007-07-16T18:34:00.000-07:00

BY SARAH PRIDE

July 11, 2007

CONTACT:

David Halbrook
Patrick Henry College
(540) 338-8727
OfficeOfCommunications@phc.edu

Chancellor Michael Farris takes direction
from Advent director George Escobar

Arriving on campus as a Literature major in fall of 2005, Patrick Henry College junior Peter Forbes had no idea that two years later he would be the Production Manager for an independent Christian film. Fascinated with moviemaking but aware that PHC didn’t yet offer a film program, Forbes assumed he would dabble in small student projects at his new school. And yet he felt God calling him to this small Christian liberal-arts college in northern Virginia.

Now, two years later, Forbes found himself crowded with more than thirty other Christians from across the nation into PHC’s Nash Auditorium for the first day of filming on a full-length feature.

“Quiet on the set!” calls PHC graduate Daniel Noa. Other graduates Ben Adams and Mike Holcomb are serving here as Associate Producers, while students Mari Davis, Daniel Silver, and Abby Cossette chart scenes or await further commands. Everyone waits for the word “Action” from the film’s director, George Escobar, founder of the new Advent Film Group (AFG).

The soft-spoken Escobar, a long-time PHC friend and patron, considered the College a promising setting from which to launch an independent Christian film program. Though no formal business relationship exists between PHC and Advent, the proximity of a pool of talented students with sights on impacting the culture for Christ, many already producing videos and films, seemed like a perfect fit.

“Why is it that major ‘Christian’ films in Hollywood such as Amazing Grace and The Chronicles of Narnia are done by secular directors?” he asks. “Because no Christians are qualified to direct with $100 million budgets.”

Since the Hollywood movie culture effectively excluded Christians., Escobar sought an alternative.

“Film school right now is a failure for Christians,” he adds. “My thought has been, let’s not just talk about movies or play around with poor-quality student films. Let’s go make movies!”

And Escobar knows how. Former Producing Fellow from the American Film Institute’s Center for Advanced Film and Television Studies, he spent many years in the Hollywood system before deciding that the nation’s entertainment media needed something very different. Christian films in particular, he felt, needed a facelift.

“We don’t want poor-quality movies that evangelize to Christians because nobody else can tolerate them,” he explained. “We want to make authentic movies about Christians facing tough moral, real-life issues; imperfect people who happen to hold a Christian worldview.”

Along those lines, AFG’s first project, which bears the working title of Moot Courting, follows the story of Caleb, a recent transfer to PHC, caught in a moral tug of war between his parents—a newly Christian father, and a feminist Supreme Court attorney mother. As the PHC moot court team and the Supreme Court simultaneously grapple with legal cases involving abortion, Caleb clashes with his mother and his own conscience over difficult issues of truth, compromise, and success in the intense world of collegiate moot court.

Escobar plans to film and produce five such movies over the next three years in collaboration with PHC, following the model of Facing the Giants, a “microbudget” Christian feature filmed for less than $100,000. He has raised all the money for “Moot Courting” from independent investors, and he expects that it will pay for AFG’s second movie from sales inside the homeschool community alone.

“We know this model works,” he says. “We don’t want to get ahead of the Lord.” But then he leans forward, eyes bright. “I have the audacious vision that Christians can overtake and match the quality and quantity of Hollywood productions over the next few decades. And we need to.”

PHC Trustee and AFG investor Paul de Pree agrees. “It also has always been a mission of PHC to get involved in cinema and change the way that industry presents reality. Our world is so in tune with video these days, that this is a great way to reach the common person. This also begins to share the story of PHC very effectively, in a way we had not been able to explore yet and may not be able to do otherwise.”

Escobar invites any Christian interested in participating in or donating to AFG to visit adventfilmgroup.com for more information.

Hat Shopping

2007-07-15T19:35:00.000-07:00

Good times....

-Christina

The Whole Fam!

2007-07-15T19:02:00.000-07:00

We are representing Oregon well...

The whole family going to church...

Savanna (Age 13) wants to tell you all about our day...

"Mr. Jezek (aka dad, aka Don Hogan) kept saying "don't make me pull over,"and "don't make me count to 3." Of course there's a story that all of us partook of in the car about that particular subject l.o.l. This pic is the VERY sweet image of the whole fam! If only you could've been there, oh wait, I don't think you would've wanted 2 be there. l.o.l. The wild section of the party was the back of the car where Tori, (aka Rachel) Shi, & Austin (aka Caleb) were sitting. We all (Austin) kept thinking of funny sequals 2 Moot Court. Whether it be "Moot Court part 2," "Rachel goes Gothic," or "World War 3 at PHC," one that they end up working 2-gether on the front lines, etc.... How hilarious!! We also had lots of fun going 2 a delicious Tai resturant & a very exciting trip 2 Wal Mart, where Austin didn't get the very cool hat that Chrissy & I wanted him 2 get. He did (thankfully) get something very stylish. A RAD pair of black & white shoes. Video coming soon (o: G.2.G. In Christ. Savanna"

Here's a picture of Austin in the neat hat. Don't you all like it? :) I think we might need to go back...

Blessings,

Christina

Wow. We serve a great God.

2007-07-14T10:15:00.001-07:00

Hello!!!

I am blow drying my hair right now, so I figured I could write to you all!!! Lets see if I can type one handed. :)

We have been here almost a week and the time has just flown by. If I had to leave right now, I would come away a different person. And I mean different in a good way. I have learned so much from different people here that I think it's changed me a bit. But...I stil have many weeks left, so I
pray that I will grow even more.

But I miss all of you. I want to know what all is going on at your house, and what's been happening. I know a lot of you have blogs, but right now, I don't have time to look them all up. So, could you send emails, if you have time sometime? sisters4@gmail.com

Or, you could even do it the old-fashioned way:

Victoria and Christina Emmons
Advent Film Group
One Patrick Henry Circle
Purcellville, VA 20132

That would be really really awesome. :)

Today, I slept until 11:30. I had breakfast/lunch and the only thing that I've been told that I have to do is go to a meeting at 3. We will be reading through the script in more detail. I'm not sure if this meeting is for everybody, or just the principals. We will see.... So...that is my day...so far. :)

My hair isn't quite dry yet. hmmm....

I must say again how kind people are here. Last night, the director came up to me and asked if we wanted to go to their home to sleep. Because he was really worried about me. And it was just so thoughtful. God has truly blessed me.

Alright, I need to head out now. God bless all of you. Thanks for reading this, and for leaving your comments. We LOVE them.

Victoria

Wet Days In The Sun!

2007-07-13T18:26:00.000-07:00

Hello all! We had a grand day today. Our call time was at nine a.m. After our morning meeting, some of us went to look at a location that we'll be shooting at on Monday. Then after lunch at the cafeteria, we went back to the production office and Jeremy (sound guy), Austin, Victoria, and I had a jam session in the wardrobe room. It was a wonderful time to just relax and play. Hopefully we'll be able to do it again tomorrow. After that Austin was nice enough to teach me some things on the guitar, and then I practiced them for about a half hour. Maybe he can teach me some more new things tomorrow.

This afternoon Dr. Farris had Victoria and Austin watch a Moot Court video so they'd know what they were doing...and then he sat with us at dinner and answered their questions. He is such a nice, kind man. Funny too! The film crew is taking turns filming his Moot Court classes for a DVD, and yesterday I was asked to film it. I really enjoyed listening to his class.

While Vic and Austin were watching the video the documentry team, Chloe Anderson and Logan Hurche, interviewed me about the movie and production. Maybe you'll see a part of my interview in the coming weeks on the production website. (www.adventfilmgroup.com)

Also, the Jezek Family has arrived. Mr. and Mrs. Jezek are playing Mr. and Mrs. Hogan, Caleb's parents. The pictures below are of their daughters, Savannah and Shiloh. They are real sweeties. Take a look at the sign pictured below. :)

This evening we shot some B-roll of Victoria, Austin, and Josh running around after each other with super soakers. Don't worry, Victoria got Austin pretty wet! :)

Right now we are at the director's house along with Austin. Victoria and I came so she can hopefuly get a good night's sleep, and Austin came along to "bond" with his on-screen parents, who are also staying here.

Thank you all for the encouragment!

Blessings,

Christina

Pictures!

2007-07-13T10:37:00.000-07:00

We have some pictures! -Natalie

Victoria

Christina

Austin, who plays "Caleb." He was having too much fun!

Victoria

Can I Hear An Amen?

2007-07-11T21:25:00.000-07:00

Hello all,
It's 1:10 am here, and I think I might be tired enough to go to bed! :)
Actually, it's been a very full day...we were working from 8am-11pm, with a few minutes break to eat lunch and dinner. Today I helped in makeup and I did the slate again. And as far as Victoria, all she really did today is act for about twelve hours. Slacker... :)

As some of you know, she is playing the lead female role, Rachel, and Austin Kearney is playing the lead male role, Caleb. Both of them have been doing an exceptional job. They are both working so hard to do their very best. I've been working with them each day, reading over lines, analyzing the characters, doing blocking, memorizing lines, working on facial expressions, etc. Even the director has mentioned several times how impressed he is with their commitment and work ethic. They are always walking around muttering lines to themselves. :) They are also working with Josh who plays the part of Dave, Caleb's roommate. He has also been a huge asset, using his humor to keep everyone happy.

We have really enjoyed working with Dr. Michael Farris. Since I'm in charge of waiting with the actors until it's time for them to be driven over to the set, I also get to enjoy his humor and stories. Which reminds me, you all may be interested in the procedure to get the "talent" on to the set. First, they each have a call time to come to wardrobe, and then to makeup. (Austin's favorite part...jk) Then they wait under my care until I get a call that the set is ready for them. Then they are driven over to the set, which is only about 200 yards away. By the way, yes, I have to walk. :) Don't worry, they aren't being driven by choice. We just don't want to have the weather affect their makeup.

Tomorrow's call time isn't until 10 am. (Can I hear an amen?) We'll try to post some pictures tomorrow. Also, feel free to post questions. I'd be happy to answer them.

Please pray for Victoria! She still isn't sleeping well at all, and we don't want her to get sick, or worse. This is very important...please pray.

Thank you all.
Blessings,
Christina

Day 2

2007-07-10T19:10:00.000-07:00

Hey you guys!

I'm going to sleep. :-) I think. I hope. I pray. Thank you. I'll write soon.

God is so good!!!!!!!! That's all I can say. :-)

-Victoria

07-10-07, 4:15 pm.

2007-07-10T15:56:00.000-07:00

I just got off the phone with Victoria. She said the filming for today went really well. They ended early...it's only 7:00 pm East Coast Time. She's going to go for a run to try and get really tired, so that she'll fall asleep easily tonight. She said Christina was working with some crew on a special behind-the-scenes feature. We weren't able to talk long, as she saw the director coming towards her, and she had some questions for him.

Victoria told us to tell everyone, "hello!" for her. She doesn't have computer access at the moment. She told me she wore one of my shirts for filming today...it'll be weird seeing my shirt on screen, with Victoria wearing it. Not that I mind... :)

-Natalie

Update from Natalie

2007-07-10T12:33:00.000-07:00

Hello everyone!

The first day of shooting went well yesterday, praise God! We talked with Victoria this morning, and she was rehearsing the day's scenes with Austin. She was about to go to wardrobe and makeup. :)

The girls are having really long days. Getting up early, rehearsing, going to wardrobe/makeup, waiting a long time, filming, waiting, filming, then finishing filming around 9:30 pm, etc.

Victoria went to bed last night at 10:00 pm, but couldn't get to sleep until after midnight, so please pray that she'll be able to get some rest tonight.

Christina has been put to work. We found out yesterday that she's the makeup assistant, and she also did the slater while filming. She called us last night around 9:45 pm, (12:45 am, her time) saying that she had just got out of a meeting with some of the production people. She's soaking up the whole filming experience.

Please keep them both in your prayers!
-Natalie

Sunday, the 8th of July

2007-07-08T19:51:00.001-07:00

Alrighty!! Life is really good here. Really good. But, I'm still really tired, so I'm going to bed now.
Cast and crew meets at 9 tomorrow morning. I go to wardrobe at 12:15, and makeup is 12:45. We're on set at 3:45. Please pray for everybody here.

At dinner tonight we talked about the movie, and the focus, and how we all need to put the focus on Christ and not ourselves, and do our very best. It was really good to hear that everyone thinks that way and lives it out in their lives.

But please, if you think about it tomorrow afternoon, pray that all would go smoothly tomorrow, and that each person involved would give their all.

It's a little strange because the screenplay was changed again tonight, and the scene we were going to do tomorrow is now completely different. So, we can't study it tonight. But, it's a good thing, because the change was a really good one, and it's going to be so much better! :-) Just you wait...

God bless you all. We will have pictures up as soon as possible.

-Victoria

PS. I just wanted to say that I thank those of you who left us comments. They really mean a lot to us. Right now, I'm not able to write you back, but I truly do appreciate them. It's really awesome that you all are supporting us, and lifting us up in prayer. So....keep the comments coming. Please. Pretty please. :-) I'm going to bed.

Sunny Sunday

2007-07-08T12:59:00.000-07:00

Victoria and I are in our room right now with the wardrobe lady, Mel. They are going through all Victoria's clothes, deciding which ones Mel will take with her to the wardrobe room to use for the movie. After that she'll look at Austin's wardrobe , and then we're all going to the Escabar's house for an informal cast and crew dinner.

And then tomorrow the fun really begins!

-Christina

2007-07-07T21:08:00.001-07:00

We are here now! Everyone is so nice and friendly and happy. We are tired, so we'll write later.

God bless,
Victoria

2007-07-07T18:00:00.001-07:00

At the airport this morning, 5:30 am. As you can see they had quite a bit of luggage. Some of the bags weighed over the 50 pound limit, so they had to shuffle stuff around in all 4 suitcases to fit the requirement.

They called a couple hours ago, saying that they made it safely to the airport in Washington, DC.

-Natalie

The night before flight

2007-07-07T01:26:00.000-07:00

Phew. This was a very long day. I woke up at 6:55 this morning as I was still on "Utah time". This means that I was very tired. :-) We've been packing, shopping, and we went to a concert. Yes...the Emmons are crazy...

I just finished packing three overstuffed huge suitcases. I could hardly lift it, so dad weighed it, and the biggest one is 50 pounds. Yeah. :-)

For the person who this would interest: I packed over 9 pairs of shoes. yeah. I couldn't believe it either. :-)

We are leaving for the airport at 5 or something, so I need to shift some things around in the suitcases, and get some sleep.

God bless you all. And just so you know...I'm just as excited as I am tired. :-) yeehaw!!!

-Victoria

Unpacking from Utah, and packing for Virginia.

2007-07-06T07:56:00.000-07:00

It's good to be home! I will spend today running around town picking up stuff that I need for this trip, and packing. Christina and I fly out tomorrow morning from the Medford airport. We will be gone two weeks, then we'll be back for a week, and then mom and I fly back out for two more weeks.

We will try and keep you updated at every point in this journey. It's going to be fun... :-)

Blessings,
Victoria

The Wait Is Over

2007-06-30T17:37:00.000-07:00

Here's the deal: I'm going to be in a movie.

We get home from Utah next Thursday/Friday, and on Saturday, Christina and I fly out to Virgina where the filming will take place.

I am playing the role of Rachel, and Christina will be helping with production.

What is the movie about? Here is the basic story:

Caleb, a new believer and gifted college student, transfers to Patrick Henry College. He partners with Rachel, the National Moot Court champ. Together they compete for another championship. Except this time, it's a clash of world views played out at the U.S. Supreme Court and leads to a battle for Caleb's heart and soul. (And courting is not moot after all.)

Check out the website, www.adventfilmgroup.com for more details regarding this movie. This is still a BETA site, so go back to the site on July 9th and everyday thereafter, as they begin to update the site with production photos, clips, script pages, audio and music.

I'm very excited about this as you can imagine. God just dropped this part into my lap and I can't wait to get back there and start filming. God did awesome things in how this all worked out and I can't wait to tell you!

Please pray for this project. It really is an incredible story, and the movie is going to be great. So many people are working really hard right now as all the pieces are being worked out. Pray for them.
Please pray for me and the other actors as we work on our lines and prepare for this trip.

Thank you. Let me know your questions, and I'll be updating you all with news.

All for Him,
Victoria

Hello!

2007-06-27T22:59:00.000-07:00

Welcome to There and Back Again-a traveler's tale. Who is the traveler and where is she going?

Stay tuned...