A Great Many Thanks

For the past twenty years I've always fancied myself a writer before most any other creative endeavor.

Just over five years ago I realized that my commitment to writing had waned and my output had slowed to a trickle... I was losing my edge. So, I decided to open up my creative faucet by starting this blog with a promise to write an entry everyday for a year. And I did.

And that's how this all started... as a way to get my artistic booty into gear.

Now, five years later, it's coming to an end. So many things have changed over that time.

My marriage moved from 12.5 to 17.5 years. I could not be more happy with my relationship with my wife. We are truly blessed.

My children moved from childhood into young adulthood. My daughter was 11 when we started and my son eight. They have grown into such fine, young, driven, faithful people. I am amazed by them, inspired by them and can't believe I have the honor of being their father.

My understanding of my Catholic faith has grown exponentially over the past five years. What was a small spark has grown to consume me more and more, enough that I put my faith and my passions together into one vocational endeavor called Sonlight Pictures.

Within the past five years I lost my father. His passing, though sad, was one of the most beautiful experiences of my life and which I chronicled on this website. I will never fear death again.

Over the past five years I shot a couple of award-winning projects. The micro-budget digital feature The Box, the first Sonlight Pictures project Club God and the web series Nikki & Babs (formerly Purgatory, USA).

I've watched my beautiful wife become involved with our Lifteen Mass band called Messenger. Her visible display of faith during Mass has inspired many... I know, I've heard it over and over again. They've released a CD and now I get to hear her sing whenever I want.

I've been blessed with good health and consistent employment during this last half-decade. Two things of which I NEVER take for granted.

I've coached my son's baseball teams saw a group of young, talented boys turn into young, talented men. I've seen my gifted son be a better person than a baseball player. He is known by coaches, players and umpires alike for both his competitiveness and his compassion on and off the field.

I've helped my daughter with her acting homework and saw her touch the lives of her friends by her faith and her example. I've grown to love many of her friends as if they were my own children and am awed at their passion for Jesus Christ.

I have been very, very blessed.

On this, the last entry of this five year blog experiment, I'd like to say a few thanks. Granted, over the 1800 or so days of its existence we've had many of visitors. However, there have been a few very consistent followers of this humble acre in cyberspace and I'd like to thank them for their kindness and support.

My Mother - My mom has been the most consistent visitor of this site and, by far, the greatest contributor to our comments section. So, thank you, Ma, for your wonderful love and support these past five years. Her weekly Carolina Chronicles that she sends out via email for the past decade has inspired us all.

Paul - having moved away from the family to Texas and taking our mother's lead, took the Bauer family's first foray into the blogosphere with his now defunct blog called the Houston Chronicles. He's also been a great supporter and consistent visitor to the site and a selfless enabler of my creative endeavors.

KT and Rett - Both my niece Katie and my sister Loretta are about tied with their visits to the website and their comments. They always filled their input with humor and heart-felt support.

Steve, Chuckles, Laura and the rest - For the other family members who made this place a part of their lives, I want to thank you as well! Your witty, wise and timely comments comforted me when I feared this blog was merely an unintentionally selfish exercise by which I would only hear my own voice.

THANK YOU... ALL OF YOU!

Over the past five years, I've shared an awful lot about myself here. Funny stuff, family challenges, growing pains and faith struggles. I've tried to be honest and humorous and I even attempted being insightful at times. Don't know how successful I've been, but I will say that it has been a pleasure to be part of your lives these past five years.

I hope the grace of the Almighty will inspire you, guide you and protect you, not only in 2010 or the next five years, but for the rest of your days.

God bless you all!

Acting is the Thing

Christians want to support good Christian films. They yearn for something to latch onto... a group of filmmakers like those at Sherwood Baptist church making films like Fireproof that extols the virtues of saving a marriage. Or movies like Bella, which extols the virtues of saving a child from abortion. Or even The Passion of the Christ, which tells a historically accurate representation of a Roman flogging on Jesus Christ and his subsequent sacrifice on the cross.

Christians want to support films that tell a story they want to see and one that flies in the face of the hedonism that rules the day in Hollywood. They're searching for entertainment that is not filled with sexual innuendo and showcases vices as virtues or lust as love.

If, as a filmmaker, you happen upon such a movement, its important that you have everything in place to ride that large, growing wave all the way to the shore.

Two recent Christian films could be considered case studies of potential Christian game changers, that, instead of the growing into a tidal wave, slowly dissipated into another wave among many due to the same fundamental reason.

Come What May and Pendragon are both independent Christian films that were ambitious and very successful in almost every way. Their approaches were timely and inventive and touched the core of Christian film audiences.

In a growing anti-Christian social and political climate, Come What May had the ingenious approach of attacking the legal case surrounding the Roe v. Wade abortion ruling by having a student in a Christian college tasked with arguing against the ruling in a moot court, which has real judges and/or retired judges in an arena that simulates Supreme Court proceedings. The lead character struggled with taking on the task of trying to overturn Roe v. Wade and was searching for a compromise solution. When forced to face the issue head on, he had to rely on his faith as well as overcome opposing viewpoints on the issue from his own parents.

The script was very well written and, for a Christian film, the production value was quite good. Having access to a relatively new, small Christian college that looked like a historic Ivy League school elevated the look of the film to higher than normal levels. The lead actors were good looking, wholesome young people which was appropriate for the characters.

Pendragon: Sword of His Father is an incredibly ambitious film from home school families that started small, but ended up being massively grand and epic in scale. The film takes place in 411 A.D. when the Romans left Britain and left a void of power that various groups tried to fill by attacking villages and acquiring slaves and wealth. Pendragon follows the son of a village leader that is killed by marauders who destroy his town. At first he is enslaved, then escapes, then leads a group of other fighters to defeat the marauders that killed his father. The film talks about the need to follow Christ's example and that God's plans last more than just one generation.

The film has tremendous production value, with special effects, swords, battles, explosions, etc. It has over 600 extras, full sized sets that look like real villages, chases on horse back and fisticuffs.

Both films were on the verge of being powerhouses. They both garnered tremendous press and support within the Christian film community. Come What May was a selected film of the American Family Association and was offered for sale via the AFA in a number of the AFA's email updates. Pendragon won numerous awards and was written up in a number of Christian film blogs and websites.

The problem that both films struggled with that kept them from being blockbusters was the basic and fundamental issue of acting. Both films had everything going for them, except one of the three fundamentals of film making. When people watch films they need to see it, hear it and believe it. Believing it comes from the writing and the acting. Both films have good scripts, but the acting completely undermines everything else.

It's just an example of how difficult it is to put together a completely successful film. And it also shows that some of the core items, acting, lighting, writing and directing, are at the root of a successful film experience.

In both films, Come What May and Pendragon, once the initial impressiveness of scope and approach wore off, you are still stuck with the core items. Once we grasp the amount of effort and time it took to make the world of Pendragon come alive, once we've accepted it as the reality of the film, the only thing that is left is the character journeys. And the believability and effectiveness of those journeys are fueled by the quality of the acting.

I hope we can, someday, put together a project that has reached some social and spiritual critical mass like these two films, where we can leverage the press and attention, growing one small ripple into a tidal wave of both critical and financial Christian film success.

Tick... Tick... Tick...

Well, here we are... the last month of this blogs existence.

Since I've been turning these blogs into books, I've indulged myself a bit by posting some old, but entertaining articles about microcinema from a few years back... I wanted to have them documented somehow and this seemed like a practical way.

But, I will be adding some blog entries here before we close up shop.

I am very active on our Sonlight Pictures blog, so don't be a stranger over there. Would love to hear your comments about our thoughts and our projects.

So, enjoy the last 31 days of Surviving in Safety Harbor.

It's been a long five year run. Enjoyable, challenging and fun.

Our Second Basking in the Son podcast is now online

Please check out our second Christian Film podcast called Basking in the Son! hosted by Dorothea.


You can listen to it over at the Sonlight Pictures Blog website.

The Job Interview

Here's another skit I've made... will probably air on a future Theater of the Obvious segment during a Basking in the Son podcast.

****

The Job Interview
By Pete Bauer

JANE

Next?

DENNIS approaches the desk.

DENNIS

Hi, my name is Dennis. I'm here for a job interview?

JANE

You've come to the right place. Our company is growing leaps and bounds.

DENNIS

Company? You mean the government.

JANE

It's all the same now-a-days, isn't it? Government, company, unions, politicians... the lines are so blurry now, I've lost track. So, what job did you want to interview for?

DENNIS

Well...

(opens up paper)

...you listed quite a few here. Here's one I think that I could do very well. Treasurer. I have an extensive background in accounting. I actually ran my own successful accounting firm... that is before the economic downturn. I'm well versed in all of the various state tax requirements and-

JANE

(interrupts)

-Have you paid your taxes on time?

DENNIS

Yes!

JANE

Every year?

DENNIS

Of course!

JANE

Oh... well, that's too bad. We're really looking for someone that hasn't paid their taxes to manage the treasury.

DENNIS

I... I don't understand.

JANE

We're the government, sweet heart. We follow slightly different rules than the "little people."

DENNIS

I see...

JANE

Any other openings spark your fancy?

DENNIS

Um... yes! Well, I see here you are looking for someone to help define safe schools. Well, my mother was a principal for 40 years and I spent most of my college years helping her with-

JANE

(excited)

Ooo, that sounds good. Let me ask you a question! Let's say a student, 15 years old, comes to you and says that they're having intimate relations with an older man. What would you do?

DENNIS

Oh, that's simple! Such an act would be statutory rape. Therefore, I would counsel the student, while notifying the authorities, so the older man could be prosecuted for such a horrible crime with a child.

JANE

(disappointed)

Oh!

DENNIS

What?

JANE

You were so close! But, no, the right answer is to do nothing. Or, in certain cases, actually encourage the relationship.

DENNIS

But we're talking about rape.

JANE

"Rape." What is "rape" now-a-days?

DENNIS

Well... I think they've written laws about that.

JANE

"Laws." What are "laws" now-a-days?

DENNIS
Okay...

(scans paper)

... what about health czar?

JANE

Uh-huh...You're too healthy.

DENNIS

How about Chairman of the House Ways and Means Committee?

JANE

You paid your taxes.

DENNIS

Health and Human Services Secretary?

JANE

Taxes!

DENNIS

How about Green Jobs Czar?

JANE

Ooo, are you a capitalist?

DENNIS

Of course!

JANE

Too bad.

DENNIS

Well... is there anything available that you think I'm qualified for in the government?

JANE

Oh! It says right here you are currently a lobbyist.

DENNIS

That's right. I was afraid you'd ask me about that. I know the President stated he wouldn't hire lobbyists. He said it wasn't ethical.

JANE

"Ethics." What are "ethics" now-a-days!

(smiles)

So, when can you start?

Slow Updates Apology

Sorry for the snail's pace of updates here on the blog. Life has been very busy.

Recently our air-conditioner needed complete replacing. As mentioned earlier, our bathroom needed complete replacing. Dea then hurt her back (she's better now). Gabe has started travel ball again (that's 5 nights a week). DC has started college (loves it) and Gabe has started 7th grade home school (likes it).

I have been blogging a bit, over at the Sonlight Pictures Blog, where we've shared our first podcast of Basking in the Son as well as entries about faith struggles, script writing and capturing moments of inspiration.

We're finally near the very end of the negotiating process for distribution of Purgatory, USA. We hope to have the paperwork finalized in the next week or so.

This weekend some of us will be traveling down to Cocoa Beach for a baseball tournament. Being so busy has left little time for screenwriting, which is frustrating, but I hope to get back into the swing of things as soon as I hand off all of the deliverables to the distribution company.

So, I apologize for the slow blog entries.

And, finally, please pray for us for a special intention. There are some really strong, difficult moral challenges occurring in my extended family and it is taking its toll. Any divine assistance would be greatly appreciated.

You Can Listen to Our Podcast - Basking in the Son!

Please check out our Christian Film podcast called Basking in the Son!


You can listen to it over at the Sonlight Pictures Blog website.

Listen to My Interview!

I've known Jon Ashby online for 10 years. He ran a website a long time ago called REwind Video. It was THE hub for the microcinema revolution in the late 90's. Over the years Jon has continued his altruistic support approach to the low budget filmmaker and now runs a website called CommonFilm.org.

He was kind enough to interview me about our recent Club God award, Sonlight Pictures and our future project Forgiven. So, check it out at the links below...

Main Page - http://www.commonfilm.org

Direct link to Interview - http://www.commonfilm.org/media/podcasts/CFInterview-PeteBauer.mp3

Funny thing... having known Jon online for 10 years, this was the first time we actually spoke to each other. Amazing how technology has changed relationships and communication.

In any event, it was very kind of Jon to take the time to allow me to talk up Sonlight Pictures. Please check it out.

Bringing Up Bobby (2009)

Christian filmmakers Glowing Nose is run by twin brothers Nick and Chris Staron. Their first feature film, Between the Walls, dealt with a difficult personal histories of a largely dysfunctional family.

They've followed up that darker subject with the lighthearted comedy called Bringing Up Bobby. The story revolves around a Bobby (Alex Hinsky), who is challenged by his older brother James (Mark Thompson) to figure out who he is and where he stands with God.

And that's where the mayhem begins! The entire family ends up coming back together at their childhood home to haggle over the will of their long-dead parents... it took 12 years to get an official cause-of-death.

In the meantime, Bobby meets Liz, the girl of his dreams, who wants him to demonstrate his affection. His attempts and numerous failures lead to many laughs.

Kudos do to Hinsky as Bobby and Brian Morvant as the milk drinking loner Dennis potentially on the run from Russian anarchists. Morvant, especially, was funny every moment he was up on screen.

Brian Morvant as Dennis

The Staron brothers do a wonderful job of tackling Christian topics within a comedic environment. It makes for a funny Christian family film.

One of the things I appreciated more than anything is that not all of their story lines are wrapped up into some nicely packaged happy endings. Humanity is sloppy and even God leaves situations with challenges so that we can continue to live our faith.

Hinksey as Bobby and Thompson as James

After espousing various ways we can save the Christian film industry over at our Sonlight Pictures blog, I put my money where my faith was and purchased this DVD. Hats off to the Staron brothers for putting it in the mail almost immediatley after my purchase. I was pleasantly surprised to find it in my mailbox two days later.

It's little things like that, simple ways of providing quality customer service, that goes a very long way to developing customer loyalty.

I look forward to the next effort from Glowing Nose.

Club God Wins Bronze Lighthouse Award at the Faith Film Festival

We're very excited to announce that our short film Club God won the Bronze Lighthouse Award at the Faith Film Festival!

It is such a wonderful blessing to have our first project garner such an acknowledgment from the Christian film community. We could not have done it without the support of many, including the prayers from our Sonlight Pictures Angels community!

God is good!

Vote for Club God Today!

You can now vote for Club God at the Faith Film Festival website.

Thank you for your support!

Club God Online at the Faith Film Festival!

You can check out Club God at the Faith Film Festival website.

When they make voting available, please make sure and give us a vote for us.

PUSA - Quick Take 3: Idol Dreams

Here's the last of the Quick Takes for PUSA...

PUSA - Quick Take 1: Reunion

For people who haven't seen the series, we've created some Quick Takes so they can understand the humor, style and production value.

The first one is called Reunion.

Article on Christian Film Market

I've posted a thorough analysis on the challenges of the Christian Film Market on the Sonlight Pictures Blog website.

Read at your leisure.

New PUSA Trailer

I've posted this on Facebook, the Sonlight Pictures website and on the SLP blog... but not here. So, here it is :)



We'll be posting more marketing and behind-the-scenes vids soon.

Anti-Catholicism in Hollywood

Angels & Demons is coming out soon. Of course, its full of misrepresentations of Catholicism (big surprise there). Where Hollywood goes out of its way to equalize Muslim characters (one bad is countered with one good), no such courtesy is given to the big bad Catholic Church.

There's a great article about this at Christianity Today located here:

http://www.christianitytoday.com/movies/news/2009/ishollywoodanticatholic.html?start=1

One of my favorite quotes from the article is as follows:

Rome's foes today "aren't debating transubstantiation, they're debating transgender," said Catholic film critic David DiCerto. "They aren't debating the real presence [of Christ] in the Eucharist, they're debating the real presence of humanity in the womb. It's much more the hot-button moral issues than the hot-button theological issues."

That's why we created Sonlight Pictures, to help bring a positive face to Catholics through positive portrayals of Catholic characters.

Club God - Screening at the Faith Film Festival

We’re very happy to announce that Club God will be airing in New York and online as part of the Faith Film Festival, sponsored by the NET television station in Brooklyn.

Club God will air June 11th at 8:30 PM. The judged will pick the top 10 films and the fans will pick the top film of the festival.

You’ll be able to get more information on the Faith Film Festival website (which is currently under construction) at the following location: http://netny.net/faithfilmfestival

Keep checking back at our Sonlight Pictures Blog for updates.

SLP Padres

Here are some pics of the Padres uniform we sponsored at Sonlight Pictures. We picked Padres because it means Priests.

Go Padres!