Production Notes
A Note From the Director
I'll be right up front with you when I say that this was
the biggest project I, or KTF Productions had ever undertaken.
That's true for the scale of the production and the level
of conviction we hope it will induce. At the onset of this
endeavor, I believed that it would be our biggest and best
movie we've ever created. We have the tools that I've always
hoped for and we've grown in our abilities. But as time
passed, I realized that God had much more in store for this
movie than I initially imagined. You see, I have said in
the past that the reason we make the videos that we create
is more important than the videos themselves. In that, I
mean we pray that God will use not only the video to touch
lives, but our very effort in the creation of the video
to change lives. When others understand what we wish to
accomplish with the videos, and how God provides our every
need, they can grab hold of the spirit of what God is doing,
even before he does it, because God is always at work.
In both of the previous movies, during production, the actors
and crew members began to understand that the message we
wish to portray in these movies is bigger than ourselves,
even bigger than the movie we were creating. That message
is Jesus Christ. The lives of the cast and crew were touched
during production which helped me know that God is in control.
"Great Awakening" takes us a step beyond the videos
that God has used in the past. The Lord is challanging KTF
Productions to be bold with the message of Christ. With
this movie, the vision of all that we've been and all that
we wish to become as a non-profit video production company
is coming to light. The impact that this movie can have
on the life of an individual can truely cause the scales
to fall from their eyes.
As the director of "Great Awakening", I want you
to know my whole heart. I know from experience that videos
can do wonderful things. They are immortal, far reaching,
able to deeply impact lives, and when broadcast, are free.
They're creative, intuitive, thought provoking, and can
leave a lasting impression. I have high hopes for "Great
Awakening". I believe that God will use this beyond
the ability to touch lives, but to change lives. Please
pray that this movie will accomplish the goals set out before
it, and that God may have complete control over all aspects
of this movie. Join us in this effort to make a difference
in the kingdom of Heaven.
Your brother in Christ,
-David M. Evans
Introduction
There comes a time in each one of our lives
when we ask ourselves 'what happens when we die?' Eddie
Hughes never gave much thought to that question, but soon
he would be faced with the answer. "Great Awakening" peers
through the eyes of Eddie Hughes, a father and business
executive who finds his life falling apart from the pressures
of this world. With seemingly no place to turn, he tries
to take his own life. But in the turns of his borderline,
near death experience, he finds that there is more to life
than he once knew. Some would call his experience a wake
up call, others may refer to it as electrical responses
in the recesses of his brain, Eddie would see this whole
experience as a "Great Awakening".
KTF Productions takes a closer look at life
after death through this powerful, feature-length, Christian
movie. "Life and death is one thing that we all, as human-beings,
have in common," says director David M. Evans. "I also believe
that every human-being, sometime within the span of their
life, contemplates what happens after death. Though this
may be the case, 'Great Awakening' isn't necessarily designed
to focus on the afterlife alone, but rather to take a closer
look at our time on this earth as a roadmap to the destination
of our afterlife." "Great Awakening" brings thoughts like
these to the forefront of the minds of its viewers.
Luke chapter 16: 19-31 provided the inspiration
for the creation of such a movie. This portion of scripture
reveals the story of Lazarus and the Rich Man. Lazarus is
a societal outcast, but believes in God, while the Rich
Man is a social success, but does not believe in God. When
they both die, Lazarus goes to heaven and the Rich Man goes
to hell. In amazing detail, the Bible records a glimpse
of heaven and hell as the rich man contemplates why he is
sentenced to eternity in hell.
The idea for this movie encompasses the deepest
concept of every religious belief... life after death; the
idea that what we do here in this life determines what happens
when we die. "Great Awakening" explains that there is only
one way to get to heaven. There is only one way live in
heaven for eternity; salvation through the belief and acceptance
of Jesus Christ, the son of God. The task of this movie
is to awaken its viewer to this concept. If it is true that
within everyones lifetime, we ask the question 'what happens
when we die?', let that question be asked and answered within
the viewing of this movie.
About the Production
KTF Productions has produced several videos with the purpose
of opening the eyes of those who do not know Christ, through
the prompting of the Holy Spirit with these videos as the
catalist. The purpose of "Great Awakening" surpasses
any project that KTF Productions has previously created.
The focus is deeper, the impact is stronger, and it is believed
that the power will be long-lasting. It is created simply
to awaken viewers to the reality of life after death. Life
either in Heaven with the Father or in Hell. It is not done
in a "preachy" way, however. Movies have the ability
to speak volumes without condemning or judging anyone. We
see through the life of Eddie Hughes the pitfalls of the
lie. We understand through Eddie the light of the truth.
And we see through Eddie the direction to be saved. It is
said that television is a reflection of life. Let this mirror
reflect the Word of God.
KTF Productions presents the locally produced, feature-length
Christian movie, GREAT AWAKENING, starring Mickey Sykes,
Valerie Miller, Lysa Ferguson, Mary Kay Allbee and Troy
Kilpatrick. By pulling together such a talented cast of
local actors, KTF proves that not only the big producers
can hunt down good talent. Mickey Sykes, stars as Eddie
Hughes, and does a brilliant job reflecting his talent on
the screen. Valerie Miller compliments Mickey as the supporting
actress by playing Keri Sanders, Eddie's daughter. With
a cast of over 30 actors and a hand full of extras, there
seems to be no weak link in the depth of talent obtained
for this movie. "One of the most difficult obstacles
in creating any movie is obtaining a good cast. In 'Great
Awakening', we have been blessed with an exceptional cast",
explains producer, Jeannene Evans. "Each member of
the cast and crew have helped to create the best movie I've
ever been privileged to produce."
Producer, Jeannene Evans, with director, David Evans, produced
this movie, localizing production within the West Michigan
area. Their previous movies, "Keep The Faith"
and "The Knight of Daye", were nationally recognized
paving the way for this new endeavor. Specialized talents
from music artsts Jeremy Morris and Maurilio Rios, along
with special effects and make up artists, add to the pool
of talent not seen by the camera.
"As I had earlier surmised, this movie is the biggest,
most challanging endeavor that we have ever undertaken.
With these actors, I felt as if I were working with professionals
during the entire production, and in several cases, I was."
explains director David M. Evans.
Because of the complexity of the script, the story went
through several revisions before production began and passed
through the hands of numerous pastors and Christian leaders
for comments and advice. "I really like this story,
I believe that it can speak to everyone," says Evans.
"After the final revision of the script, co-executive
producer, Jeannene and I looked at each other and said 'this
is going to be a great movie.'"
The title of the movie speaks for itself. The purpose is
to bring the viewer of this movie to an awakening in Christ
Jesus. This is the primary purpose of the creation of the
feature-length movie, "Great Awakening".
The Script
The screenplay was written by David M. Evans, who also
wrote the script for the national award winning movies Keep
The Faith, and The Knight of Daye, in association
with his wife Jeannene Evans. "The Lord inspired the
script for this movie," said David. "I had a completely
different script in mind, scripts written a long time ago
that I wanted to produce for years now, but could never
get the chance. I'm happy to produce this script though,
I'd much rather produce what the Lord is leading me to produce
than what I set before myself. I know that the Lord will
use it to change lives. I'm excited about how the script
turned out, and I'm very please with how it turned out on
the screen."
The screenplay took three months to write and has been
reviewed by Christian leaders and friends in the local community.
Several books were used to research the issues presented
in the script. The main section of Biblical scripture used
to formulate the script is found in Luke 16:19-31. The book,
Divine Revelation of Hell was also used to build
the concept for the script, among others.
"We stretched ourselves with this movie because we
venture into an area of 'filmmaking' that we've never entered."
David explains. "Our second movie, The Knight of
Daye, had several special effects, but this movie will
surpass anything seen in that movie, or any project that
KTF Productions has ever undertaken." Some of the special
effects in Great Awakening were used to create the secular
movie Starship Troopers. Other software was used
in the creation of Pleasantville.
The story surrounds the life of a middle-aged vice-president
of an accounting firm, who has a relatively normal life
by today's American standards. That all changes, as his
life spirals down until he hits "rock bottom".
There he has to make a choice, to get his life right, or
to end it all. He makes the wrong choice. We find out later
how wrong.
The story, "Great Awakening", is a salvation
message revealing the simple truth about Jesus Christ, the
son of God and how our relationship with Him can give us
eternal life. A creative mix of the supernatural world and
the tangable world as we know it combine to reveal the truth
that is so profound that the movie has already changed many
of the lives of its viewers.
About the Cast
The amazing talent of the local actors that have performed
in this production is rich with experience and depth. Lead
actor, MICKEY SYKES (Eddie Hughes), came aboard with prior
experience in acting for the stage and for the camera. His
strong talent, camera presence, and striking resemblance
to the director's vision of character, landed him the lead
role for the movie. Mickey has made several appearances
in television roles produced locally as well as a variety
of stage plays for the Civic.
"The challenges I had in this movie was that it had
a lot of emotional ups and downs. I'm a pretty low-key kind
of guy. So meeting those conditions were quite challenging,
but I hope we met the challenge".
| VALERIE MILLER
(Keri Sanders) |
| Valerie
brings a certain flair to the screen. During
auditions, the casting director knew right
away that she was the perfect person to play
the role of Eddie Hughes' daughter. Her fiery
performance compliments the mood of the movie
from start to finish. Valerie, came to the
production, after performing in plays from
different areas throughout the country. Her
list of accolades include, "Dark Side
of the Moon", "Evita", "The
Fantasticks", and "The Pied Piper". |
|
| LYSA FERGUSON
(Trina Woodward) |
| Lysa brings
her acting talent to the screen drawing from
her long list of stage and television experience.
Lysa has appeared in such theater performances
as "Grease", "The Sound of
Music", and "Anything Goes".
She does a wonderful job of pulling off a
difficult performance that is far from her
personal experience. Her presence, enhances
each of her scenes with an authenticity rarely
seen in screen acting.
"My favorite part in making this movie
was the scene in Ludington. I very much enjoyed
the things I had to say and I was very ecstatic
that I got the chance to use my talents as
an actress to bring forth a gospel message." |
|
| MARY KAY ALLBEE
(Susan Hughes) |
| Mary plays
the familiar role of the wife of Eddie Hughes.
Familiar because Mickey Sykes and Mary Kay
Allbee are married in life as they are on
the screen. On the screen, it is apparent
that Mary Kay has much experience in acting.
The passion her character brings to the screen
will bring each viewer to the edge of their
seat. Mickey and Mary Kay do an excellent
job of working off of each other electrifying
each scene with a perfection rarely captured
on tape.
"I think it is good for people to know
that there is hope, you're not expected to
be perfect and I think that is so important
for people to know. God does not expect you
to be perfect. You're not going to be perfect
no matter how hard you try. It all comes down
to if you ask in your heart of hearts you
will be forgiven". |
|
| TROY KILPATRICK
(Clint) |
| Troy does
a wonderful job of bringing the elements of
his stage success to the screen. As supporting
actor, playing best friend to Eddie Hughes,
Troy does a brilliant job of bringing out
pivotal moments in the movie flawlessly. His
ability to do this stems from his long list
of stage experience as he has appeared in
such plays as, "Life With Father",
"Death of a Salesman", "Nightwatch",
and "The Author's Wife."
"Up to this point, most of my work has
been done on the stage, so it was a challenge
to work on camera, and I enjoyed it very much.
There are a lot of different nuances working
on camera as opposed to on stage." |
|
| SLOAN DICKMAN
(Toby Sanders) |
| 4-year-old
child turned actor, Sloan, had his debut on
the set of "Great Awakening" lighting
up the screen with childhood radiance. For
someone who has never been in front of a rolling
camera, Sloan's comfortable presence on the
screen adds to the believability of each scene
he had participated in. The stage actors of
this movie can testify to the difficulty of
acting for the camera. Sloan did a wonderful
job of forgetting that there was a camera
in the room, and performing with seeming ease. |
|
| DAVID M. EVANS
(Eric Sanders) |
| David brings
experience to this project from performing
in previous KTF Productions such as, "Keep
the Faith", "The Knight of Daye",
and "Christian Music Videos." |
|
About the Filmmakers
| DAVID
M. EVANS (Director) |
|
David found himself wearing the hat of actor
and director for this movie. He has directed
several projects throughout his career, including
the award winning dramas, "Keep The Faith"
and "The Knight of Daye". At the
time of this movie, David worked for University
Video Services at Western Michigan University.
"I really appreciate what God has done.
I never thought we'd be able to make Christian
videos like we do. I thank God for the talents
he's given us and the contacts that we have
made. I know that we would not be where we
are without Him." |
|
| Jeannene
Evans (Producer) |
|
JEANNENE EVANS (Producer), has produced several
video productions through KTF, including the
documentary "I'm Adam: A Look at Prolife",
the talk show series, "Campus Generation",
and the weekly music video series, "Christian
Music Videos". "Great Awakening"
is the third Christian movie in which Jeannene
has performed as producer. During the creation
of the movie, she worked at WWMT-TV as business
manager.
"The message and the mission of the movie
are linked together in that the message and
mission is to let people know that the only
way to get to heaven is by accepting Jesus
as your savior. But once you accept Him you
have to continue to accept Him by continuing
to live your life according to the Bible every
day". |
|
| MAURILIO
RIOS (Music Composer) |
|
Maufilio wrote and performed the theme song
for the movie, "Great Awakening".
His first album, "The Bomb", also
contains the song "Great Awakening".
During the production of the movie, "Great
Awakening", his first music video, of
the same name, was produced. Maurilio has
his own company, Holy Ghost Bomb Productions,
in which he creates music that glorifies the
Lord.
"I was inspired to write the song for
'Great Awakening' by reading the script. As
I read the script, everything was just coming
out. As I thought about the movie, I visualized
everything that would be happening." |
|
| JEREMY
MORRIS (Music Composer) |
|
Jeremy generously allowed the use of four
of his songs from his various albums to be
used in the movie. He also custom created
a few special sound effects for the movie
along with his son, Peter. Jeremy is a Christian
music artists that has created several albums
that have spanned an international outreach.
He also teaches music, and has his own company,
JAM Records.
"To be able to collaborate with him (David
Evans) and provide some soundtrack music is
definitely my pleasure. Instrumental music
has universal appeal and it creates a lot
of moods and feelings and it passes language
barriers." |
|
| SKIPPY
SEUFERER (Makeup/Costume Artist) |
|
Skippy used to work in Hollywood as a make-up
artist, applying make-up for such well known
actors as James Earl Jones. She is one of
a few participants who came to the project
from outside of the Kalamazoo/Portage area.
Skippy lives in Ludington, and helped with
all of the difficult make-up jobs on location.
Skippy's light hearted nature, and knowlegable
expertise was a necessary asset in the creation
of the movie. |
|
| DARI
CRAVEN (Audio Operator) |
|
Dari came on board with a variety of behind
the scenes talent. At the time of production,
Dari was due to graduate from Western Michigan
University with a broadcast/cable production
major and was working part-time at University
Video Services.
"At the first meeting I really wondered,
being that this is a non-profit organization,
how people would perform. And everyone performed
very well in every single task. I thought
that would be a challenge, but even though
this was a volunteer experience for all involved,
it wasn't a challenge at all". |
|
| STEVEN
EVANS (Audio Operator) |
|
Steven has helped with a number of KTF Productions'
video projects. With this movie, Steven has
displayed a level of encouragement and dedication
that would be difficult for most to model.
At the time of production, he worked at WWMT-TV
in the accounting department.
"Everybody faces death sooner or later,
and I think that it is very important for
people to think about where they are going
when they die or whats going to happen when
they die and this movie addresses that." |
|
| SHERRI
EVANS (Script Supervisor) |
|
Sherri has also helped on the set of a number
of KTF Productions. In this production, she
took on the role of the much overlooked responsibility
of script supervisor. During the making of
this movie, Sherri was the coordinator of
a youth outreach called the L.O.F.T., an acronym
for "Living Our Faith Together".
"I'm a believer in Jesus Christ so I
am behind this production 100%. My hope is
that it can get out in the community so that
others can see and believe the truth about
Jesus." |
|
About the Local Locations
GREAT AWAKENING was produced in several areas
of West Michigan. The cast and crew traveled to Kepco on
Sprinkle road when shooting the video of the Judgement seat.
Kepco is an acronym for Kalamazoo Electropolishing Company
and operates in a warehouse. Owner, Bill Hochstetler, was
kind enough to let a portion of production take place there.
Employee, Joe Mitchel, helped and supervised the use of
the facilities.
The Sindacuse Health Center on Western Michigan
University's campus provided a location for the hospital
ER scenes. Debra Kimball, R.N., M.S.N. and Marcia Ellis,
PA-C of the health center supervised the use of the facilities
and aided in creating the ER scenes. With the help of these
two individuals, the hospital operations captured on tape
were assured to be authentic practices within a hospital
setting.
Local resident, Julie Sloan of Portage, opened
her doors to KTF Productions, providing a location for the
character, Keri Sanders to live. Two weekends of shooting
and rearranging the house for production purposes were well
received by Julie and her husband, even with short notice
as to our needs of their home.
West Lake Nature Preserve, in Portage, provided
the perfect backdrop for the concluding scene to take place.
William Demming was most gracious in allowing our cameras
to roll on city property, resulting in a beautifully tranquil
setting.
Holiday Inn Express, in Ludington, provided
space for a hotel scene. With kind service and helpful employees,
this location was not only adaquate for production, but
pleasant as the cast and crew stayed at this location for
almost a full week while production at the Ludington State
Park took place. The cast and crew of "Great Awakening"
were refered to as "the movie people", when the
Ludington Daily News, local paper, covered portions of the
production.
The highlight of the production of "Great
Awakening" took place at the Ludington State Park Dunes.
Mike Mullens, of the state park, gave permission for KTF
Productions to shoot on state property. This week long shoot
provided an excellent scenic backdrop for about 1/4th of
the movie. Although cast and crew alike were used to tote
equipment up and down the dunes, weather was cool enough
to make the transport less of an unpleasant experience.
Vice President/General Manager, Dick Appleton,
allowed KTF Productions the use of a portion of Kalamazoo's
local CBS affiliate, WWMT-TV to shoot the accounting scenes.
This authentic accounting area needed no adjustments for
production. WWMT employees as well as Dick Appleton were
very understanding in allowing KTF to shoot during off hours.
Dansey's lake in Jones, Michigan provided
a perfect location for the woods scenes. Beautiful trees
and plant overgrowth revealed nature in its truest form.
This local location along with several others not mentioned,
provided authentic, asthetically pleasing, and well appreciated
location for KTF Productions.
KTF Productions would like to extend their
sincere thanks to each individual involved in providing
the wonderful locations during the production of the movie,
"Great Awakening". We know that any movie is only
as good as its weakest link. With the help of everyone involved,
there is no weak link in area locations used in the creation
of this movie.
|
