With The Nativity Story, a film about the birth of Christ, premiering Friday, New Line Cinema is hoping to tap into the emerging market of evangelical moviegoers.
Catherine Hardwicke, who directed the film, said it wasn't just another project for her.
"It felt like a great privilege and an honor," she said. "Somehow I felt that I was called to do it."
She said took a class on Christianity to learn the basics of the faith to ensure that the movie was accurate. Tom Newman with Impact Pictures called that a smart move.
"We follow the Bible because it's the basis of our faith," he told Family News in Focus. "Until they get the basic tenets of our faith, it can't be represented well, and, we all know, one wrong phrase, one thing taken out of context, and you've just lost your Christian audience."
Interest in producing Christian films skyrocketed after Mel Gibson's The Passion of the Christ. The low-budget Christian hit Facing the Giants is helping keep that interest alive. Larry Poland, chairman of MasterMedia International, said producers of The Nativity Story told him they would not even have been able to pitch the concept three years ago.
"But because of the success of the faith-based, inspirational and even religious-themed movies," he said, "they're now getting in line to get on the gravy train."
