Moviemaking is the tie that binds the dad, son
My son is also my boss.
Not at my day job, as the editorial cartoonist for The Indianapolis Star, but for a Christian film company where I volunteer. My son, Brett, 29, is the executive director. It pays zilch, but I get to work for and with my son. And that is priceless.
Brett’s interest in filmmaking began when he was 4. He watched while my brother, Terry, and I, along with my wife, Carol, made some silly home movies with our camcorder.
Within a few years, Brett and his younger brother, Drew, were using that camcorder to make their own videos.
This hobby became a professional pursuit. Brett wanted to be an actor. His mother and I recognized that our sons had talent. And since I have been able to live my dream job, I wanted the same for my kids, but the idea of Hollywood made us uneasy. You see, we had done our best to live our Christian faith in front of our three children. This included church, and an education at a Christian school. We were pleased that our children had made the Christian faith their own. But we also knew that in order for Brett to find acting work, he may have to compromise his values.
So what should he do? I encouraged Brett to become a filmmaker. “If you’re the director, then you’re the boss,” I said. “And if you still want to act, you can always put yourself in your movie.” He liked the idea.
Both of my sons, who are five years apart in age, are graduates of Ball State’s School of Telecommunications; and both are two-time Dave Letterman Scholarship winners. I’m sure they are the only two brothers who have accomplished that feat. Brett also won a regional Emmy Award for directing while in college.
College also was when my filmmaking collaboration with Brett began. I wrote a couple of scripts for him that he turned into short films. Little did we know at the time, that this was the beginning of a partnership that would transform us from father and son into close friends.
Although I coached him in football, basketball and baseball when he was young, I wasn’t his friend then, I was Dad. Now that he is a man, we have spent hundreds of hours reading the Bible, talking, conceptualizing, writing, praying and dealing with the challenges of filmmaking, and those things have bonded us together.
In Brett’s junior year at college, he decided to use his talents to make Christian films. A year later, we co-wrote a script for a short Christian film called “The Board.” Both of us, along with Drew; my brother, Terry; and my son-in-law, Daron Day, acted in the film which was directed by Brett. He was 22 at the time.
It was hard to believe that the boy I taught how to act in public was now teaching me how to act in front of the camera. The torch had been passed and he led a crew of 100 volunteers from our church on a movie set. It was a proud moment for me as a father. That experience convinced Brett that he was called to be a Christian missionary who makes films.
“The Board” was translated into five languages and distributed worldwide. The success of that short film facilitated the creation of House of Grace Films, a 501c(3) nonprofit Christian film company in Brownsburg. Everyone in my family is uniquely gifted for this ministry. I write scripts, draw storyboards and design movie sets. My wife designs costumes. My daughter, Ashley Day, who works as a graphic designer for The Star’s advertising department, creates graphics, logos and movie posters. Brett directs, acts, edits and creates special effects. Brett’s wife, Christina, is a producer and script supervisor. Drew acts, shoots and edits as well. And his wife, Jamie, is a makeup artist.
In 2012, Brett and I co-wrote our first feature-length film, “The War Within.” It portrays a world that no one but God sees, the world of the inner man. Michael Sinclair (played by Brett) is a young syndicated comic strip cartoonist who struggles with life’s tragic events. The film travels inside of Michael to view his soul depicted as six members: Mind, Emotion, Will, Conscience, Memory and Heart (also played by Brett). I play the part of Will.
I wrote and illustrated a children’s book called, “The Good Shepherd,” which becomes a plot device in the story. My illustrations are animated in the film.
The movie was released in 2014 and won Best Film, Best Gospel Presentation, Audience Choice and Best Trailer at the Christian Worldview Film Festival. This year it is an Official Selection in the Worldfest-Houston International Film Festival. Christian Cinema rated our movie No. 11 in the top 100 films of 2014. ChristianReview.com wrote, “The screenplay by Brett and Gary Varvel is a work of genius. ... One of the best Christian films ever produced!”
Movie showings: On April 2, there will be two showings of “The War Within” at the Goodrich Brownsburg 8 Theater at 6 and 8 p.m. I will be there signing copies of my children’s book, “The Good Shepherd.” Tickets, $5, can be ordered at www.thewarwithinmovie.com/buy-now. The DVD, with 60 minutes of bonus features, will be sold at the theater. It is also available at Lifeway Bookstores, amazon.com and thewarwithinmovie.com.
Varvel is The Star’s editorial cartoonist. Email him at gary.varvel@indystar.com. Follow him on Twitter: @varvel.
‘The War Within’ Movie screenings
• When April 2: 6 and 8 p.m.
• Where: Goodrich Brownsburg 8 Theater, 1555 N Green St., Brownsburg
• Tickets: $5
• Order tickets at website: http://www.thewarwithinmovie.com/buy-now