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Hollywood veterans will tell you that if a low-budget movie makes it into theaters, it's a miracle. But when Alex and Stephen Kendrick say that, they mean it literally. The Kendrick brothers, ministers at Sherwood Baptist Church in Albany, Ga., are the writers, producers and directors of the surprise hit Fireproof. Shot on a $500,000 budget with an all-volunteer cast and donated sets and locations, their drama about a fire captain trying to rekindle his marriage made $6.8 million in its opening weekend at the box office, coming in fourth overall, between a Samuel L. Jackson...
...that's too subtle an endorsement of the great marriage counselor in the sky, the father-son conversation takes place in a field beside a giant wooden cross. If the scene works for audiences, it's because everyone involved - the director, Cameron, the rest of the cast, even the church ladies who served the tuna casserole at the craft services table - sincerely believes it. "Marriage has been attacked and watered down and called a piece of paper," says Alex Kendrick. "We wanted to say, Hey, marriage is a beautiful thing and it's worth fighting...
...Ever since Mel Gibson proved with The Passion of the Christ in 2004 that church-goers are also movie-goers, Hollywood studios have tried to tap into the faith market. Disney's Chronicles of Narnia films have gained traction with Christian audiences, but no filmmakers have scored with the devout as consistently and economically as the Kendricks have. Fireproof is their third profitable Christian film. The monies they have earned have gone toward building an 82-acre community sports park in Albany...
...third sons of a minister. (Their older brother works at IBM). Both earned communication degrees at Georgia's Kennesaw State University, attended seminary and got ministerial jobs at Sherwood. After reading a study about the influence of movies on culture and the relative lack of influence of the church, the brothers decided to return to what had been an adolescent hobby, playing with a video camera. In 2003, they asked their church for $20,000 to form a production company, Sherwood Pictures, and make a movie, Flywheel, about a dishonest used car salesman who sees the light. Flywheel...
...Kendricks' casts are usually composed of church members. But it was the filmmakers' wear-your-faith-on-your-sleeve quality that attracted the first name actor to a Sherwood production. Cameron, best known as dimpled troublemaker Mike Seaver from the '80s sitcom Growing Pains, has re-invented himself as an active figure in the Christian community with his Evangelical TV and radio series The Way of the Master. After seeing Facing the Giants, Cameron asked to audition for the Kendricks' next film. "So often movies that try to incorporate a message of faith are so cheesy and I've been...