Bette's copy of an old image

Praying the Hours. Time is not money.

A current work-in-progress, the Praying the Hours project is a feature dramatic film and eight featurettes that embody the ancient  personalities of the divine hours using eight ordinary friends. One of them, the Traveling Man, is hit and killed by a car. In the 24 hours it takes for him to die, he is given a chance to see the others from the perspective of eternity—and to bless them with his new perspective before he leaves.

Each of us is given a portion of life, whether it lasts 27 years or 83, and most of us spend it consumed by the urgent, missing what is essential. But we are surrounded by things that have the power to take us beyond ourselves into the flow of what the ancients called kairos or “grace” time. Contrary to the manmade chronos time by which we portion out our lives into incremental bits, kairos moves like a great river beneath even the most mundane of days. Praying the Hours tells the stories of eight interwoven characters impacted by death—the crossing from chronos time into kairos that awaits everyone.

“Regarding the Holidays” is the working title for a film currently in preproduction at Burning Heart. The film will be shot in Los Angeles, California, and Huntington, Indiana in the winter of 2011-12. Attached are Writer/Director Lauralee Farrer; Writer Jonathan B. Foster; Producers Matt Webb, Lance Clark, Terence Berry, Ronald Allchin, and Tamara Johnston McMahon; Director of Photography Martina Nagel and Cameraman Jordan McMahon; and Actor Tony Hale.

Director Lauralee Farrer says this about the ultra-low budget feature: “We wanted to make a charming film that doesn’t rely on being quirky or self-referential, but still has the sheen of storytelling. We employed a believable misunderstanding and let it play out just this side of absurdity—the way our lives often do. We did not rely on the dark underbelly of anything, as that territory seems over-investigated in independent film. It was hard not to go broad or ironic, but I didn’t want to distance myself or my cast from the characters, but rather try to find something genuine and recognizable within each character.”

On loan from Burning Heart Productions, Director/Writer Lauralee Farrer and Associate Producer Tamara Johnston McMahon join Boulevard Pictures in the production of Not That Funny, a simple story of how far a serious man is willing to go for love. Principal photography was completed in September 2010 and a release is expected in 2011. Jack Hafer and Terence Berry producers; Jonathan B. Foster cowriter; Loren A. Roberts, Ronald A. Allchin also associate producers; Brandon Lippard Director of Photography; David Hlebo composer; Matthew Barber editor; Lori Fox costumes; Glen Hall production designer; Lindsay Chag casting; starring Tony Hale, Brigid Brannagh, K Callan, Tanc Sade, and Nick Thune with John Kapelos.

The Fair Trade teaser

The award-winning feature documentary The Fair Trade (2008) tells the story of Tamara Johnston who, devastated by the tragic death of her fiance, makes a bargain with God in exchange for a meaningful life. She and her twin sister Shelby join forces with brother-in-law Steven to start one of the first fair trade skincare companies—Anti-Body. Even as Tamara becomes a successful activist for human rights and social justice causes, despair over her loss remains unabated. As she nears the deadline of her bargain, a trip to Africa allows her to visit the fair trade co-op from which Anti-Body buys its organic shea butter. There, she finds a surprising answer to what is required of her in exchange for a sustainable life.

The Fair Trade continues to sell at FilmBaby and get rented on Netflix, as well as get shown in grass-roots events across the world. Community Channel in the UK has added it to their broadcast rotation in 2011.

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