Filmmaker Walks Line Between Faith Based and General Audiences Entertainment

Filmmaker and TogetherLA contributing writer Spencer T Folmar isn’t shy about telling stories that highlight society’s sins and ills — and redemption.BY ALEX MURASHKOAs a Christian man living in Hollywood, navigating the movie industry can sometimes be difficult. Walking the line between Faith Based and General Audiences entertainment can be a vulnerable balancing act.After his film company, Hard Faith, released “Generational Sins” last year, a story that touched on alcoholism, suicide and redemption, Folmar began the early production stages of “The Beast in Me,” but recently shifted schedule to begin the movie, “Shooting Heroin.”He told The Hollywood Reporter that the switch in priorities occurred because “the opioid problem is so apparent and is so sad.”Folmar also told THR that “Shooting Heroin” will be the company’s first movie aimed also at a secular audience, given that the opioid crisis involves every demographic at every socioeconomic level.“We’re taking it into the heartland of America and exploring what this might look like in a fictional story,” he said.Folmar was asked by TLA to talk about his early journey of faith. Below is what he shared with us."I didn't attend church until my 20s.’ So, in my early 20s,’ right after college, I took a gap year and I went to a Bible school overseas in New Zealand called Capernwray. I went to this informal Bible school in New Zealand because I was at this crossroads in my life where I had just graduated college, and I was gonna move to Hollywood, to Los Angeles, from where I was living at that time, which was in Pennsylvania. I wanted to start a career in filmmaking professionally and within the Hollywood industry."I was at this intersection of my life and I wanted to sort of figure things out. I had gone to church a couple of times, liked a couple of people who identified as Christian and was inspired by some of the stories I had heard. But up until this point I had never read the Bible on my own and I wanted to decide once and for all whether or not I'd believed this to be my ultimate truth."During the time I was at Capernwray I was on a solo retreat where you go out into the wilderness, into the bush of New Zealand and you just took your Bible, and a notepad and nothing else. It was a time of contemplation and meditation while reading the Word. And so I went out into the wilderness and was by myself for 40 hours."At first, I would read new sections... for the very first time I was reading the Bible. And I was reading Acts, and I was reading Paul's Epistles, and the Gospels, and then into Old Testament. But the verse that really stuck out to me because of my peace was Galatians 2:20, when the person says that "I've been crucified with Christ. It's no longer I who live, but Christ who lives through me.”"The thing that I really wrestled with, and I couldn't quite understand, is that up until that point in my life most of my universe and my actions and everyone around me kinda revolved around me and my ego and pride and what I could get out of this world and what I could accomplish. Whenever I looked at that verse and within the scope of some of these new letters and books I'd been reading in the Bible, it started to become clear to me that my life wasn't about me, but it was actually about this guy named Jesus. And that my purpose of living and all my actions are actually connected to this grand tapestry of God's work and creation, and his plan of redemption for humanity."I was humbled in a good way to realize that the universe didn't revolve around me, and it revolved around Jesus. It was better to be a thread in that tapestry than on the threshing floor. It was a huge 180-degree turn for me. My life flipped upside down and now these words of scripture became illuminated and they mattered in this unique new way. I had a special revelation. I had now found the Bible. Whenever I’ve read the Bible after my conversion experience, the words would be like a personal counseling, therapy session. It would cut me down to the core of my being in a way that years worth of counseling never could."Editor's Note: The above is part one of a two-part interview with Folmar.Director Spencer T. Folmar’s theatrical debut, “Generational Sins,” has spurred a national debate surrounding the interplay of faith and film. Folmar coined the term “Hard Faith” to describe this new genre of film, written for audiences who are hungry for hope in the midst of gritty real-life stories. Folmar’s films are now released under his Los Angeles production company Hard Faith Films, which is currently developing several projects that will reflect today’s multifaceted culture and audience.

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An Artist's Call For Omnivorous Attentiveness to the World Around Us

When people ask me how many hours I work a week I find it a difficult question to answer as an artist. There is a calling on the artisan soul to always be awake to the story unfolding all around us second by second, detail by detail.

BY SPENCER T. FOLMAR

It is a necessity to have what I once heard CS Lewis had — an “omnivorous attentiveness” to the world around us.Of course, films are necessary to watch to be a filmmaker. In fact, the summer before I attended NYU for my MFA in film, there was a list of more than 50 films that were required viewing before starting my first semester. I didn’t quite make it through the whole list, but it did really open my eyes to the breadth of film history. In fact, most film classes require watching movies at any film school (much to the chagrin of the engineers in college when my homework looked quite different — no calculator needed!It makes sense that homework for filmmakers would be watching movies, but likely this is applicable to all arts. A painter studies paintings, musician knows music history, and so on. But artists can’t only study and be familiar with their own discipline, as an artist, we are called to see all of the world, even the parts we’re uncomfortable with.CS Lewis was said to have an omnivorous attentiveness where he would walk to work and notice even the uniqueness of the granules of dirt along his path. He appreciated the details of the world, and that is an inspiration and a admonition to all artists.But as I continued to think about this unique outlook on the world, I realize that in the same way artists are always “on the clock,” always observing all hours of the day in order to be ingested into influencing their craft, Christians also have a similar calling to notice the world and its intricacies. God’s creation is full of beautiful, intricate details that may take all eternity to appreciate, but the most prized of all of creation was the Imago Dei… Us. We were the final aspect of creation in the Genesis story and God gave us special designation when we were made in His image.Being in God’s image means that we are all on the clock, called, and on mission to see the world as God sees us. Christians are called to have an omnivorous attentiveness to the world and its details and always have our shoes on and tied. As CS Lewis wrote, “I believe in Christianity as I believe that the sun has risen: not only because I see it, but because by it I see everything else.”Director Spencer T. Folmar’s theatrical debut, “Generational Sins,” has spurred a national debate surrounding the interplay of faith and film. Folmar coined the term “Hard Faith” to describe this new genre of film, written for audiences who are hungry for hope in the midst of gritty real-life stories. Folmar’s films are now released under his Los Angeles production company Hard Faith Films, which is currently developing several projects that will reflect today’s multifaceted culture and audience.

God Doesn't Waste Anything, Especially Our Stories

God doesn’t waste anything. Humans waste a lot of things. Just look at our landfills and literal islands of garbage floating in the oceans.

BY SPENCER T. FOLMAR

But God, He doesn’t waste anything, especially our stories.Despite all of the devastating effects of the fall of mankind and the curse of sin on all facets of life and creation, God is still managing, dictating, and perfectly planning our paths. The Puritans had a saying that, “God uses sin sinlessly.” And if God can use sin sinlessly, he must be able to use all things in my life, too.I am a filmmaker and an artist, but most times, I feel like I waste more than I create. I find this reality most especially true when I look back on the many random, sad, and sometimes bizarre twists and turns in my own life’s trajectory.One day, I want to ask God so many “Why?” questions. Why, Lord, did that happen? Why was I in that relationship for years just to see it fall apart? Why did I do that? Lord, why did you let that happen to me? Why did I move to that state… that country?A “Why?” question I ponder a lot is about the path of my education. In fact, my academic career is a complex conversation. I went to an undergraduate school that didn’t have a proper film degree but had a well-rounded liberal arts communication studies program. I attended four film schools in total, including New York University Tisch School of the Arts for my MFA in Film. I worked at a Psychology school filming classes and counseling sessions for a few years, and also attended an informal Bible school overseas. I eventually went on to earn a Masters of Theology at seminary. Why?Some days I look back on my life and think that my life is a giant, pointless mess. But when I have more clarity and take a moment to live in the present, I pray that maybe there is a point to all of this randomness. On my very best days, the Lord gives me great grace in seeing how He may have been organizing my life in an intricate and perfect plan after all. Maybe too, just maybe, my life is only a thread of the great tapestry of life and of God’s plan of redemption.It’s an overwhelming and fearful thing to try and make sense of all the events of a life. There is a lot of failure, brokenness, and utter darkness that is tough to reconcile with the character of God. What do I do with the parts of my life that I’m still waiting to see how God might use for someone else’s good or even my own good? My choice is to face the confusion and doubts with faith.Maybe yet, there is still much more that God is doing through my life than I am even close to understanding. Maybe, all that education is being interwoven into my screenplays, attempting to speak honestly about God and the struggle of faith. Perhaps, all my scars and brokenness will be used to help me be more empathetic to others and have more grace to my brothers and sisters. That is my prayer, Lord.I find the lyrics of Sufjan Steven’s Vito’s Ordination Song comforting for this subject:“There's a designTo what I did and saidRest in my arms,Sleep in my bed,There's a design.”---Director Spencer T. Folmar's theatrical debut, "Generational Sins," has spurred a national debate surrounding the interplay of faith and film. Folmar coined the term "Hard Faith" to describe this new genre of film, written for audiences who are hungry for hope in the midst of gritty real-life stories. Folmar's films are now released under his Los Angeles production company Hard Faith Films, which is currently developing several projects that will reflect today's multifaceted culture and audience.