From: owner-aml-list-digest@lists.xmission.com (aml-list-digest) To: aml-list-digest@lists.xmission.com Subject: aml-list-digest V2 #178 Reply-To: aml-list Sender: owner-aml-list-digest@lists.xmission.com Errors-To: owner-aml-list-digest@lists.xmission.com Precedence: bulk aml-list-digest Friday, October 3 2003 Volume 02 : Number 178 ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Date: Thu, 02 Oct 2003 09:42:08 -0500 From: Linda Adams Subject: Re: [AML] Disapproval of Fiction At 04:18 PM 9/30/03, you wrote: >I get to the church bookstore maybe once every 3 years, if that. I can't >afford to >spend a whole lot when I do go. So while I'm there, I may glance at the >fiction >shelves, but I always feel like I should be buying something that will >help me with >scripture study or gospel study. You know, this sounds like me, too. And I'm an LDS fiction writer! But our house has 8 mouths to feed and one income. I'm coming around to the idea that LDS authors of fiction, or the publishers/distributors, really ought to market through national chains, and hit up national, non-LDS non-Utah libraries harder. Mormons are known for being "frugal" with their resources (this seems to include 'time' for fiction reading), and when one (outside Utah, like me) makes the rare visit to a Church Bookstore, and is already buying scripture sets for the kids and the latest by President Hinckley or an Apostle, somehow choosing between hm, "do I get the Prophet's book, which I *should* have, or this novel..." (when resources don't allow one to choose both!) -then the novel really can seem like a frivolous, non-frugal purchase. We're hard to convince. But put the same buyer in Barnes & Noble and make the choice between Latest Mormon Novel or Danielle Steel, Michael Crighton, & etc.-- then the LDS books start looking like the more righteous choice and one could feel guilty *not* buying the LDS thing. Hmmmmmm........ Put our LDS novels in every library across the country and Mormon readers will flock to them because there is no financial risk if the book is crummy. There are many I want to read and haven't, because I just can't make that financial investment at this point. There will always be those who ONLY shop at Deseret Book and never read anything but doctrinal works; but our books won't attract those readers no matter which store you put them in or how attractive the display. Members of my own ward & stake have told me, "I usually don't read fiction" or "I normally read only doctrinal books" or "I haven't read a novel in 10 years," and continue with "...but I really enjoyed your book." I hope that experience keeps them reading more fiction! But this sad trend has to be a common phenomena if we're hearing the same thing everywhere: "I don't read," or "Fiction is a waste of time." Do they all think it's kid stuff? Not for grown-ups? No, there's a REASON elementary schools require so much reading! And most of it is FICTION! Now, I write the stuff. Of course I'm of the opinion that "all work and no play makes Jack a dull boy." And I can back it up with the historical fact that Joseph Smith knew how to unstring his bow, and did plenty of stick-pulling and wrestling in his day to unwind. If he was teaching by example, and reading a good book helps me unwind and recharge my batteries - -- especially my creative batteries! -- then I think I'm perfectly justified in that practice, and in creating more of it for others to read. I was taught at BYU in an English class that studies show, of those who continue to read past college, fiction readers across the board demostrate a higher IQ than non-fiction only readers. And readers of anything (fiction or non) were higher in IQ than non-readers. I like using that. I read fiction because *I'm smarter than you.* Therefore, I know better. Ha. Linda - -- AML-List, a mailing list for the discussion of Mormon literature ------------------------------ Date: Fri, 03 Oct 2003 21:50:20 -0500 From: Jonathan Langford Subject: [AML] Assistant Moderator for October Folks, I'm putting in place a rotating screening/assistant moderator system. Jacob Proffitt has graciously consented to take on this duty for the month of October. The way this will work is that all posts for AML-List will automatically be forwarded to Jacob. In the vast majority of cases, he will simply forward those posts to AML-List. Anytime he sees something that *might* be an issue with the AML-List guidelines, however, he will forward those items on to me. I will continue to be "the moderator" during this time, but Jacob will be taking on part of the job that I just am not getting done as efficiently as I would like. Please feel free to continue to communicate to me at this email address any concerns you may have about moderation of the list. Thanks again to Jacob for volunteering. If any of the rest of you would be interesting in helping out in this way, please send an email my way. Jonathan Langford AML-List Moderator - -- AML-List, a mailing list for the discussion of Mormon literature ------------------------------ Date: Thu, 2 Oct 2003 09:31:57 -0600 From: "Brown" Subject: Re: [AML] Movie Moratorium > Well I beg to differ. Brigham City's horrible box cover proves that movies > CAN teach that lesson! > To Lauramaery grinning, ducking and running. We'll try to do better on the book cover, Lauramaery! (Brigham City is coming AFTER the movie again with full kudos to Richard Dutcher who wrote an amazing script which translated well into a novel!) Marilyn Brown - -- AML-List, a mailing list for the discussion of Mormon literature ------------------------------ Date: Thu, 2 Oct 2003 09:40:29 -0600 From: Christopher Bigelow Subject: [AML] (Des News) _Work & Glory_ Movie Here's news about an inevitable, no-brainer Mormon film project: 'Glory' coming to big screen Filmmaker hopes to take LDS genre to another level By Dennis Lythgoe Deseret Morning News Up to now, LDS filmmaking has been taking baby steps, according to screenwriter Russ Holt. But he hopes his big-screen adaptation of Gerald Lund's "The Work and the Glory" will step it up a notch. "We feel it is time to go beyond that to another level, because the genre has come of age," Holt said during a news conference Wednesday, where the upcoming film was announced. With Holt were the film's chief financial backer, Larry Miller; Sheri Dew, president of Deseret Book; and Scott Swofford, who will direct the film. When pressed for the budget, Miller, who will serve as the film's executive producer, reluctantly announced that it will cost $7.4 million. "The Work and the Glory: Pillar of Light" will be the first in what is intended to be a film series, with as many as "five or six movies," Miller said. The book series has nine volumes. The first was published in 1990, and more than 2 million copies in the series have been sold by Deseret Book. The books tell the story of the fictional Steed family in the early 19th century and their involvement with The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, as they mingle with real-life characters in the midst of dramatic historical events. Swofford, an experienced documentary filmmaker, and Holt, whose credits are primarily for LDS Church-sponsored movies, have formed Manchester Pictures to produce "The Work and the Glory." Dew pledged marketing and distribution support, including production of the film's soundtrack and the eventual DVD. Casting calls will begin immediately in New York, Los Angeles and London, where the producers will seek "top-notch talent" for the roles of the Steed family and other characters. Swofford said shooting will begin "immediately," but that "the bulk of the filming will take place in the spring and summer of 2004, with the goal of finishing it in late 2004 or early 2005." Elder Lund, the books' author and a member of the LDS Church's Quorums of the Seventy, is currently serving the church full time in England. Dew read a message from him that his books have "all the elements of great drama - - conflict, courage, betrayal, treachery, love, sacrifice, violence." He will act as a consultant, and he retains the right to approve the script. Elder Lund also said he is "especially pleased" that Miller is involved. Miller, the well-known owner of the Utah Jazz and numerous automobile dealerships, said he began reading the first volume of "The Work and the Glory" in 1993 and "became hooked 50 pages into it." - -- AML-List, a mailing list for the discussion of Mormon literature ------------------------------ Date: Thu, 2 Oct 2003 09:44:12 -0600 From: Christopher Bigelow Subject: [AML] (Des News) Miller downplays 'Prophet' role Miller downplays 'Prophet' role "The Work and the Glory" will not be Larry Miller's first foray into the world of filmmaking. The auto dealer and Utah Jazz mogul helped finance "Brigham City," the second movie by Richard Dutcher, who had hit it big with "God's Army." And "Brigham City" led to Miller's reported involvement with the third film Dutcher wanted to make, a biography of LDS prophet Joseph Smith. However, during a press conference Wednesday to announce "The Work and the Glory," Miller said those reports were greatly exaggerated. "When we had a gathering similar to this one to talk about 'Brigham City,' " Miller said, choosing his words carefully, "I got more than a small surprise when Richard began to talk about the rollout of 'The Prophet' soon - - at least a year earlier than I expected." Miller said his support of that project hinged on how well "Brigham City" performed. "The time line accelerated dramatically without me knowing about it. Then 'Brigham City' did not go on a couple of fronts the way I had anticipated." Miller said Dutcher's approach made him uncomfortable. "Although the knowledge became widespread that I would be involved in the Joseph Smith film, Richard never came to me," Miller said. "He never actually gave me a proposal. After that, he kind of faded off into the sunset." Dutcher is currently making a sequel to "God's Army," but he has said that he still hopes to find funding for "The Prophet." - -- AML-List, a mailing list for the discussion of Mormon literature ------------------------------ Date: Thu, 2 Oct 2003 10:59:54 -0500 From: "Lisa Tait" Subject: Re: [AML] Literary Property Rights Protection This might sound silly and a little self-important, but whenever I give a talk in church (or create a road show script) or write anything that I think might get distributed, I always include an identifying footer at the bottom of the page--my name, date, title, etc. People always ask me for copies of my talks and even though I don't necessarily see it as a publication issue, I don't want anything I've written distributed without my name on it. So I include the footer on the theory that it at least has a chance of surviving whatever forwarding, copying, etc. people might do. Which I know is precious little--but just in case. Lisa Tait [MOD: Saving a post--I do the same thing, even for little personal columns I write and send out to people just for fun. I've had some people complain that the copyright notice is a bit offputting, and honestly I don't have any problem with people sharing it. But including the notice simply seems like the professional thing to do. Besides, who knows? Someday I might get enough to publish a collection...--Jonathan Langford] - -- AML-List, a mailing list for the discussion of Mormon literature ------------------------------ Date: Thu, 2 Oct 2003 10:25:37 -0600 From: "Brown" Subject: Re: [AML] Supporting Mormon Movies Michael Martindale writes: What do you think a negative review is? It's acknowledging the effort of > a creator enough to take the time to point out where he needs to > improve. To truly devalue the effort of a creator would be to ignore the > effort and let him keep on making a fool of himself with future efforts. Let me just say I am SO GRATEFUL for the many who are willing to take that time to review in a GENEROUS way where IN THEIR OPINION the art fails for them. That is why these last few years we are getting better. Because we have reviewers who take that time. It promotes growth. Thank you, Michael! We should ALL WELCOME the opinions of others. It just boggles my mind that Gary Rogers, for example, didn't get help on his screen play from Eric Samuelsen, or Richard Dutcher, or Michael, or Jeff Needle, or Andrew Hall, or Margaret Young, or Bruce Jorgensen, or SOMEONE (including all that I missed mentioning here). We have SO many good critics now---and in my opinion, it was the fundamental screen play itself that was the worst culprit in the failure of the show. If any artist would spend time with an excellent manuscript as I did with Richard Dutcher's, they would have a good understanding of quality! The criticism is available. We should be HUMBLE and work with each other. I adore, praise, slurp, beg for, and digest valuable criticism. And I can usually tell whether or not the criticism is right on. And as Michael says, I am SO GRATEFUL someone rescued me from being a fool (Valerie Holladay does this all the time). The opinion of ANYONE is SO valuable. If someone is willing to spend that kind of time to read (or watch) and say ANYTHING, they are performing a priceless service! So thank you, for all of you who are gutsy enough to tell it like it is FOR YOU. If you can say it in a way that is compassionate and kind, all the better! By the way, P.S., dear Alan. You made us all sit up and take more interest in this list, all right! But the very fact that the basis of good movies is good writing gives them more in common than we might admit. Cheers! Marilyn Brown - -- AML-List, a mailing list for the discussion of Mormon literature ------------------------------ Date: Thu, 2 Oct 2003 10:21:58 -0600 From: Christopher Bigelow Subject: RE: [AML] Fiction in the Ensign Jacob Proffitt wrote: <<< This just in: "In conclusion may I leave you a story. It is fiction, but in principle it is true." - Gordon B. Hinckley First Presidency Message July 2003 Ensign Ah, the joys of actually doing your Home Teaching... >>> I picked up on this for a Sugar Beet article. Here's the relevant part, from near the end of the article: <<< While both cases are viewed as positive steps forward in spiritual power, the July 2003 Ensign contained one quote that troubled another expert observer. "The upsetting thing is, this quote was in President Hinckley's First Presidency Message," said Diane Thomas, a retired Church Education System manual editor. "On page seven, President Hinckley actually says the following words: 'In conclusion, may I leave you a story. It is fiction, but in principle it is true.'" Thomas expressed concern that President Hinckley's rhetorical choice contradicted clearly stated church policy and would confuse many members. "The Ensign stopped publishing fiction long ago, and recently the New Era and Friend stopped too. Obviously fiction is not worthwhile for the Lord's people. I don't know what happened here, but the brethren in the Correlation Department evidently fell asleep at the wheel. Sometimes I wonder if it's appropriate for the Lord's anointed prophet to be someone who majored in English. I'm sure President Monson and the other general authorities would never fictionalize any stories in the slightest." >>> The full article is titled "Church Magazines Ratchet Up Spiritual Intensity" and is available at http://www.thesugarbeet.com/issue24/topstories/church_magazines.html. Chris Bigelow - -- AML-List, a mailing list for the discussion of Mormon literature ------------------------------ Date: Thu, 2 Oct 2003 08:52:13 -0700 From: "Dorothy Peterson" Subject: RE: [AML] Disapproval of Fiction Angela Hallstrom wrote: ------------------------------ Date: Thu, 2 Oct 2003 11:43:50 -0400 From: "Richard Johnson" Subject: RE: [AML] Literary Property Rights Protection [MOD: Yikes! Thanks, Richard, for this story. This is one of the values of this list--advice and experience can be shared. --Jonathan Langford] You do, however, need to talk to her. I had one of my plays become functionally public domain because I ignored a non licenced performance and when I didn't ignore another, it went to court and the judge determined that I had allowed it to be produced without permission and I couldn't pick and choose. Richard B. Johnson, Husband, Father, Grandfather, Actor, Director, Puppeteer, Playwright, Writer, Thingmaker, Mormon, Person, Fool. I sometimes think that the last persona is the most important- and most valuable. Http://www.PuppenRich.com - -- AML-List, a mailing list for the discussion of Mormon literature ------------------------------ Date: Thu, 2 Oct 2003 11:28:12 -0600 From: "Clark Goble" Subject: RE: [AML] Movie Moratorium ___ Clark ___ | We get but one perspective: the perspective of the author. | __ Alan ___ | I think books are excellent at showing ambiguity simply because | they can do what ever the author wants. Hamlet certainly was | ambiguous. ___ Hamlet is ambiguous precisely because he doesn't do what I mentioned: show what is happening. In Hamlet we have absolutely no showing at all: merely speech divorced from the context of anything but speech. To paraphrase Stoppard's excellent deconstruction of Hamlet, "[words] They're all we've got to go on." And that is what enables Shakespeare to be read in so many ways. Hamlet is so powerful because it *requires* more authors than Shakespeare to work. It is *always* a multi-authored text with authorship being kept very unstable. What I'm suggesting about film is that by including so many "authors" it has some of that power as well -- perhaps not quite in the deconstructive way I mentioned above. But it is there. Look at the authors: every actor is, in part, creating their performance. You have art directors, cinematographers, the second unit directors, the set designers, the makeup artists, and so forth. All are contributing to the work. But it is more than that. Unlike theatre, there is a huge context. You have real trees, real cars, real backdrops. The "players" in most films are far more excessive than just the actors that are in say theatre. I don't mean that as a negative towards theatre. One could well argue that in some cases having *less* authorship is good. Further I'm not opposed to minimalization of things. (In a sense that is often what non-fiction narratives are) My point is simply that the claim of "movies are a very poor medium for stories of character development" seems incorrect. Because of the way "embodied actions" can be portrayed in film rather than theatre or novels, it is in many ways a superior vehicle. Yes it is much harder to portray the thoughts of the character. But that isn't necessarily a bad thing. ___ Alan ___ | Short stories are only about one thing. ___ You need to read more. Many short stories are much deeper than you suggest. ___ Alan ___ | Only a collection really does justice to understanding | the author and his environ. ___ Why is the purpose of reading to learn about an author and their environment? Most authors I couldn't care less about nor their environment. That's certainly not why I read. ___ Alan ___ | Short poetry can define a mood wonderfully but most of the time | readers are glad they are short. ___ !!!! Umm, you think poetry exists only to define a mood? Whoa. Methinks that perhaps your comments are due to a rather limited exposure to literature of all kinds, including film. ___ Alan ___ | we find a screen persona that we are used to. Hence, shallow. ___ Familiarity always entails shallowness? Whoa. I'm sure that bodes ill for my familiarity with my wife. Some might say that shallow relationships and understanding are those that focus only on the new and the exciting. Deep and meaningful relationships and understanding arise out of a constant remeeting and re-encountering. ___ Alan ___ | Didn't Plato write a book? ___ No. He rather explicitly did not. He wrote dialogs whose focus was that there was more to reality than the word. He explicitly wrote that writing was parasitic on speech and thus not to be trusted. (Which was why his writing, unlike many philosophers, took the form it did) He felt that in speaking with others (encountering them) they act as a mirror to our own soul so that we can see/experience truth. That was something he felt writing never could do. [Clark Goble] - -- AML-List, a mailing list for the discussion of Mormon literature ------------------------------ Date: Thu, 2 Oct 2003 12:21:57 -0600 From: "Nan P. McCulloch" Subject: [AML] New Deseret Book Price Policy When I moved here from Texas 8 years ago I was bitterly disappointed = that I couldn't go to DB and get a good deal on a book. Since joining = AML-List I have bought lots of LDS books. The other day I was on my way = to a book store to pick up Margaret's and Darius' 3rd book from the = _Standing on the Promises_ series. I asked a stranger I met in a = parking lot for directions to the book store. She happened to be an = employee from DB and asked why I didn't go there. I told her that I had = lived here 8 years and never gotten a good deal on a book at DB yet. = She told me that DB has a new policy that they will match any price on a = book from any store. I rushed right over to the store and DB confirmed = their new policy and sold me the book at the price I was wanting. This = is great news for me, because we have 8 children and 33 grandchildren = and I buy tons of books. I hope this post makes it on the list and that = this news is good for some of you list member. [Nan P. McCulloch] - -- AML-List, a mailing list for the discussion of Mormon literature ------------------------------ Date: Thu, 2 Oct 2003 14:28:44 -0400 From: "Tony Markham" Subject: RE: [AML] Movie Moratorium Back when I was young and idealistic, among my justifications for majoring in cinema was that it was the epitome of all art forms. I thought that film combined the power of music through its availability of a score--a soundtrack. It enfolded the visual power of painting and sculpting obvious ways--the director sculpts images in three dimensionality to be rendered in framed, two-dimensional shots. The writer's craft, be it poetry or narrative, or theatre, was represented in the script, which ideally is as carefully rendered as any other written artifact. Dance may or may not be overt in any movie, but certainly the beauty of movement is present in both the camera's ever-changing perspective as well as the actors' blocking. Acting and photography and sound engineering and make-up and costuming and set design and many, many other art forms are all so central to film that they almost go without saying. Now that I'm older, nothing has changed. I still think film is the culmination of all the other arts. Just because only a few filmmakers can actually rise to the potential of their medium, doesn't mean we should dismiss it. On the contrary, I think the more we discuss film, the better we are able to appreciate all other art forms. One film that rises to its potential is "The Graduate" which I just showed last night in my film class. Mike Nichols directed and Buck Henry wrote and Simon and Garfunkle scored and Dustin Hoffman and Anne Bancroft acted (and so on) in this amazing artifact. Every shot is well-composed and balanced. I would guess that 95% of the frames are worthy of being rendered in oil and hung in museums. The music is timeless. The montage of Ben's and Mrs. Robinson's affair winding down into rote encounters juxtaposed against "April, Come She Will" never fails to move me. The nuance of Anne Bancroft's face on the pillow as she remembers and tells of how she and Mr. Robinson got married reveals as much inner dialog as reams of words. And so on... See the movie again and try to hear the music before calling for moratoriums. [Tony Markham] - -- AML-List, a mailing list for the discussion of Mormon literature ------------------------------ Date: Thu, 2 Oct 2003 13:44:49 -0600 From: "Bill Willson" Subject: Re: [AML] Movie Moratorium - ----- Original Message ----- From: "Clark Goble" > ___ Nan ___ > | ...but due to the nature of the beast, I think it is difficult > | for an actor to consistently use their full potential in film. > ___ > > I think this gets to the core issue. Those more "actor oriented" look > at film in terms of how the actor is stretching. But look at what is > downplayed in this. The final product. > > Combining responses to a few other peoples comments, the fact that > theatre is harder than film for an actor doesn't mean that the final > product is better. Playing etudes on the piano might be harder than > playing a simple beautiful melody. It doesn't mean that they are > somehow superior art. > > The danger with any artist is that they confuse their growth, potential > and effort as the goal of art rather than what the end result is. The > artist becomes the center and the standard of art. This is very sad By artist, do you mean the actor? If so I think we are tearing the credit for the art away from our own kind. The writer of the original story is the primary artist. We get little enough recognition as it is. We don't need to surrender all the credit to those who apply their art to interpret ours. Although Isaac Stern is an accomplished artist and a virtuoso violinist, I hardly think he would be very prominent without the works of Beethoven or Brahms to perform. > when it happens as it misses out on what I see as the essence of art: *[the writing, and the story!]* > its public meaning. It divorces art from the audience. It becomes a > purely subjective and personal effort. Presumably the ultimate > implication is that artists ought to become like Salinger and hole > ourselves up and do art purely for themselves. > > What a sad day that would be. > > Now perhaps those I'm (hopefully gently) critiquing don't want to go > that far. But I think they are definitely adopting elements of that > perspective. Who cares how William Hurt or George Clooney conduct their > trade? What counts is their place in the overall film. *of the various artists manipulating their chosen media to interpret the message and vision of the primary source of the art, the writer.* > The meaning > their acting holds arises out of the context in which they act. Perhaps > these more talented actors can be put in more roles. But isn't that> less significant than what they do in the roles they find themselves? > > Clark Goble > Clark, I hope I didn't misinterpret your post, but I felt compelled to clarify the differences between the different forms of artistry, and put the writers into their proper perspective overall in the final product. [Bill Willson] - -- AML-List, a mailing list for the discussion of Mormon literature ------------------------------ Date: Thu, 2 Oct 2003 14:44:41 -0600 From: "Bill Willson" Subject: [AML] Computer Technology and the Writer (was: Book Burning Justified?) [MOD: At first I thought this was off-topic for the list. As I read on, however, I decided that it is on-topic, in that Bill ties it to the question of the tools of the writing trade. I would strongly recommend that any replies address this as a central part of the content of the message--AML-List *really* isn't the place for a discussion of the general progress of computer technology... --Jonathan Langford] - ----- Original Message ----- [snip] Computer advances have been slow of late, > I know. We've practically been in stasis for the last 3-4 years. > Minor advances have been heralded as quantum leaps, etc. The pressure > has been building as hundreds of advances are being held back by price > and the universal timidity of corporations. It wouldn't surprise me if > the sort of reader I'm talking about will be available within a couple > of years. This is the crux of it: The disparity between the buying power and longevity expectations of the home user and the corporations. I personally do not want to buy a PC for $1000 or more and have it outdated a year latter. Especially when it will do all the things I want it to do and will even do things that I have no knowledge of or need for. But with the quantum leaps Jim is espousing, the size and memory requirements of new programs drowns the usability of my PC and I am forced to buy a new CPU. I only need gigabytes to accommodate my usage but corporations may require terabytes. Why cant the designers incorporate incremental upgrades that can be added to a home system in small steps and not require replacement of everything? They can upgrade speed and capacity all they want as long as they do it in such a way as to leave my system still able to function and use the files and data produced by the new systems. I just want to be able to write my stuff and still be able to read it ten years from now. When I first started writing at home I had an IBM PC Jr. I could bring work from work home and edit it and add to it. At that time we were on DOS 1 or 2 After we left DOS and went to windows I discovered that all the writing files I had saved in DOS were no longer readable. Luckily I had filed hard copies of it all, and when TextBridging software and scanners became available I was able to scan all the files and save them electronically. Before I was able to do that, I spent many months agonizing over how I was ever going to find the time to retype all of my former work, and how stable it would be after I did. I say go ahead and develop computers to the n'th degree but don't leave those of us who may not need all that speed and capacity in the dust. And please don't render all of our writing files unreadable by the new systems and programs. Keep the translation systems working with all of the prior formats and programs. Bill Willson, writer http://www.iwillwriteit.com http://www.latterdaybard.com Here's a great place for LDS artists to show and sell their work. http://www.minutemall.com CHECK IT OUT! - -- AML-List, a mailing list for the discussion of Mormon literature ------------------------------ Date: Thu, 2 Oct 2003 15:06:17 -0600 From: "Bill Willson" Subject: Re: [AML] Movie Moratorium - ----- Original Message ----- From: "Tom Matkin" To: Sent: Tuesday, September 30, 2003 10:55 AM Subject: RE: [AML] Movie Moratorium > I know it has already been said, but I want to echo the notion, whether > it is for good or ill, that videos and movies are the genre of choice at > the present time. I taught seminary the last couple of years and the > kids come alive when the screen flickers on. They pick up the details > and focus on the broader themes. They are in tune with that medium, more > so than those of us who came to it later in life. They have a comfort > level with it that is astounding. Some of them read books as well, but > moving pictures is where it's at for the rising generation. If you've > had your fill of talk about movies, I'm sorry, but I'm here to say that > it's only going to get worse. > > Tom > So just because some of the younger generation choose not to read and prefer video and TV over hard copy and written words does that mean we should forget about the needs and desires of those of us who grew up without TV and videos? Just because some folks prefer e-books over hard copy and libraries with real books, does that mean we should quit printing books and only have electronic editions of literature? What if when they invented papyrus the scholars of the day destroyed all the clay tablets and leather scrolls? What if when paper came along we got rid of all the other mediums of writing? What if when we microfilmed a document, the original hard copy was automatically destroyed? When someone pulls the plug someday we might find ourselves unable to tie our own shoes or worse yet identify ourselves for what we are, living, breathing human beings. Electronic media can be corrupted or vanish from our screen in a heartbeat or a few keystrokes, but it takes a really large catastrophe to erase the archives and literature repositories of the world. I say don't destroy the old, just add to it to your hearts content, and leave plenty of copies of the original in safe places. Bill Willson, writer http://www.iwillwriteit.com http://www.latterdaybard.com Here's a great place for LDS artists to show and sell their work. http://www.minutemall.com CHECK IT OUT! - -- AML-List, a mailing list for the discussion of Mormon literature ------------------------------ Date: Thu, 2 Oct 2003 16:27:35 -0600 From: Christopher Bigelow Subject: [AML] (SL Trib) _Work & Glory_ Movie A Mormon best seller to become a movie By Vince Horiuchi The Salt Lake Tribune The Work and the Glory, the best-selling series of books about the early history of the LDS Church and the pioneer migration to Utah, is hitting the big screen. At $7.4 million, the film will have the biggest budget of any movie in the recent spate of Mormon-themed films, including "God's Army," "Brigham City" and "The Book of Mormon Movie." "The Work and the Glory" film will be entirely financed by auto dealer magnate and Utah Jazz owner Larry H. Miller. "It's a project whose time has finally come," Miller said at a news conference Wednesday announcing the movie. The first book of the nine-volume The Work and the Glory series, Pillar of Light, focuses on the Benjamin Steed family in the 1820s as they move to upstate New York -- where they meet Joseph Smith, founder of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. The books, written by Church General Authority Gerald N. Lund, have sold more than 2 million copies in the series. They were ranked "the most important [fictional] books of Mormonism" in a 2001 survey of LDS scholars conducted by Brigham Young University's Department of Church History and Doctrine. "This is not an ordinary series of books. It's a landmark series of books," said Sheri Dew, chief executive of Deseret Book, which publishes the books and will distribute the film on home video after a theatrical release sometime in late 2004 or early 2005. The film is being produced by Scott Swofford, a one-time producer for Oscar-winning director Kieth Merrill, who made an LDS-sanctioned film, "Legacy" and has produced IMAX films for National Geographic Society and Disney. The writer and director of The Work and the Glory is Russ Holt, who has directed more than 30 films for the LDS Church. Though the script is only two-thirds done, initial second-unit photography begins in about two weeks in Vermont, Holt said. The bulk of the shooting will be done next year. Casting will begin soon in London, New York City and Los Angeles. Holt describes the story as "multifaceted and multilayered" and an epic look at the beginnings of the church, but he emphasized that the movie will first be a love story. "It's a 'Gone With the Wind' type of approach," he said. "You'll see the broad scope, but you'll also see the intimate lives of these people." Miller, who is friends with Lund and called himself a "background confidante" to the author during the writing of the books, has always wanted to turn them into movies and said he expects to make at least the first three films unless the first one bombs. They hope to tell the entire book series with five or six films. "It's an exciting concept, [but] it's always risky . . . on how it will be received," Miller said. It's an especially hairy gamble since movies in the recent Mormon cinema trend have failed to reach audiences outside Utah or beyond church members. The latest, "The Book of Mormon Movie," took in only $282,000 in its first two weeks. Another film based on a popular LDS-themed book, "Charly," amassed only $813,000 its entire run. The exception is "God's Army," director Richard Dutcher's look at life on an LDS mission, which took in $2.6 million at the box office -- modest by Hollywood standards, but nearly nine times the movie's budget, according to The Numbers.com, which tracks theatrical box office figures. Despite tepid theatrical revenue, though, these movies tend to make much or most of their money back in video sales. A publicist for Salt Lake City-based HaleStorm Entertainment, which produced "The R.M." and "The Singles Ward," said those films, although they each made more than $1 million in theaters, were especially made to make money on the home-video market. So far, more than 15 LDS-themed movies have been produced for theaters since the success of "God's Army" in 2000, and a half-dozen or so others are planned for the next year. Two will hit theaters in the next two weeks: the mock-documentary "The Work and the Story" and the courtroom drama "Day of Defense." Also coming are Dutcher's "God's Army 2" and "The Prophet," about the life of Joseph Smith; the World War II drama "Saints and Soldiers"; and the comedies "The Home Teachers," "The Best Two Years," "Church Ball" and "Eat, Drink and Get Married." - -- AML-List, a mailing list for the discussion of Mormon literature ------------------------------ Date: Thu, 02 Oct 2003 18:54:12 -0600 From: "R.W. Rasband" Subject: [AML] "The Work and the Glory" Movie I just read the Deseret News' story about the proposed film series based on "The Work and the Glory" books. My first reaction is sympathy for Richard Dutcher, who appears to be royally rogered by this development. No doubt these movies, based as they are on fiction written by a general authority, will become the quasi-official movies about church history. Dutcher's "The Prophet" will be eliminated as another version, because popular LDS culture is made vastly uncomfortable by real competition. Which is a shame because Dutcher made a fine film in "Brigham City." And as fiction, "The Work and the Glory" is junk. I suppose it is possible to make a silk purse out of a sow's ear. Some people say Clint Eastwood did it with "The Bridges of Madison County." But if Larry Miller and the others involved plan to be slavishly faithful to these books, there will be a whole lot more material in 20 or 30 years for "Mystery Science Theater 3000." No doubt I am just "giving into the world's standards", as one letter-writer to the Deseret News dismissed criticism of "The Book of Mormon Movie." But it was Hugh Nibley who pointed out long ago that when Brigham Young University is occasionally faulted for academic flaws, their characteristic reaction is a renewed emphasis on the dress code. A lousy movie will be a lousy movie, no matter how hard you try to dress it up to appear to be "righteous." R.W. Rasband Heber City, UT rrasband@hotmail.com _________________________________________________________________ Get McAfee virus scanning and cleaning of incoming attachments. Get Hotmail Extra Storage! http://join.msn.com/?PAGE=features/es - -- AML-List, a mailing list for the discussion of Mormon literature ------------------------------ End of aml-list-digest V2 #178 ******************************