ABOUT

The Film program at VCHS is a top tier program graduating students who are capable filmmakers versed in the history of cinema and current media trends and technology. Students are encouraged to integrate their Academic, Artistic, Theological, and Personal lives to create powerful and effective films.

As students enter into the program they will begin to not only learn excellent communication skills but they will be ushered into a great tradition of filmmaking.  Students begin learning about the Film Industry from day one in all classes.  With a wide variety of classes that are not available anywhere else students are prepared for not only a film degree when they enter college but they will be better prepared for any communication based activity.  We believe that community is an essential part of building communications skills and as such take pride in the artistic and academic community that is fostered here in the film classes.  It is a place where we have an open and safe exchange of ideas and opinions.

The VC Film program prides itself on not only its academic excellence and artistic integrity but also its theological training.  As a Christian artist and thinker we should always strive to be at the top of our game and exploring the edges of artistic expression and thought.  Our job as Christian artists is to not just be excellent artists but to also be contributors in a constructive way to the academic conversation surrounding the arts and all that they influence.  Therefore we don’t just teach skills and train artists to be leaders in their field but also to contribute to the conversation about what is going on in the world. Training critics and writers to educate the world in what good art is and why we should care.

One of the most exciting parts of participating in Film classes is the excitement of working on a project that you are passionate about.  Working on a film that tells a story that you are invested in is an experience envied by many and experienced by only a few.  Having the opportunity to do this on even a small level can be a powerful experience.  Because of the intensity of such experience the industry has a reputation of being rather cruel and rough.  It is a place where most people think a Christian would be unwelcome or unhappy.  Rather we teach that Hollywood is a place desperate for Christians.  In a place where people are always being used and evaluated so acutely people are lonely and searching for something real.

We focus on 2 ideas for those interested in pursuing a career in the industry but they apply to everyone.  ”Show Love and Learn More.”  Everywhere we go if we can show love and find the difficult third way through tough situations as Christ has trained us to do we will end up influencing those we come in contact with, and as we learn more we will have the ability to interact with the world we live in more effectively.  Film is where the world desperately seeks not just entertainment but where we were taught about the world we live in and what it means to be human.  If excellent storytellers with the knowledge and and love of the world can create media then we have made a difference in the world one film at a time.  This church of the masses can reveal truth and be a tool for worldview change away form depravity and towards the Good, the True, and the Beautiful. This is our goal – Make Film Change Lives.

Nate Marshall 2009
Film Instructor