Industrious Family Fun Films Blog

Nov 20, 2024

COMING SOON to the Theater: Star Wars Spin Off Short Film Promises Action And A Sense Of Sacrifice

A Jedi apprentice is sent by his master to destroy the Book of Darkness. All the powers of the Dark Side are contained in this single book. The final destruction of evil eventually will end in sacrifice, as the master offers his own life.

Nov 20, 2024

Learn More About The Story That Sparks Our Passion and Drive

We were honored to be guests once again on A Catholic Take with our friend, Joe McClane. Joe asked a lot of great questions touching on our FABIOLA project. We discussed why we are ready to take on a challenge like FABIOLA, how we plan on spending $1 million on this film, why we feel like we are ready for this scale of production and how we handle "doubt demons".

Watch Our Interview Here...

Visit the FABIOLA campaign to learn how you can help us make this project.

#catholicmovies #rebuildchristianart #industriousfamilyfilms #stsebastian #stagnes #fabiolanovel #romanhistory #industriousfamilyfilms #cardinalwisemanstories #fundraiser #contribute #donatetogoodmovies #fabiolamovie #catholicmovies #supportcatholicmovies #bookstofilm #fabiola #fundraising #goodstories #moviesaboutrome #moviesaboutsaints #martyrs #catholicmoviemakers

Nov 19, 2024

Fabiola Directors and Producer On A Catholic Take Tomorrow Morning!

We'll be joining our favorite radio talk show host Mr. Joe McClane tomorrow during the east coast morning drive. We will be on the show at 7:30 am. Tune in to listen to our conversation live or listen to the replay HERE.

Nov 19, 2024

Fabiola Film Welcomed With Open Arms In The Spanish Speaking Parts Of The World

We were hosting a dinner party and our Mexican seminarian was facing our large bookcase when he exclaimed with delight, "Fabiola!" He was surprised that we had this book as he was under the impression that it was only in Spanish. Years later I met another Mexican friend and I had to double check that I heard her name right. Yes, I did hear her right, it was Fabiola. I asked her if she had ever heard of the novel by that name and she told me that her mother had named her after Cardinal Wiseman's book.

Is is a small wonder that the book is popular in the Spanish speaking world as Cardinal Waseman was born in Spain to Irish parents and therefor the book was originally written in Spainish. I am still discovering its wide reach in Spain and Latin America thanks to an EWTN connection who highlighted our Prison Scene release for their Spanish audience.

We were not thinking of releasing the film internationally but we are forced to reconsider. Currently, the Spanish dubbed scene has more views than the original English! While this is a movie for all Catholics, it is especially for the Spanish who have long treasured the work of the Irish Cardinal. We are honored to bring this story to life.

Thank you for your kinds words and encouragement Venezuela, Argentina, Spain, Mexico and Peru. If I could I'd film it in Spanish and dub it into English but I think that it would be an impossibility on our end. We will certainly beg Cristian Zelada to dub the whole film for you to enjoy!

Read (or translate, lol) our press coverage with EWTN Latin America...

Nov 19, 2024

Stop By Our Gift Factory And Check Off A Few Items On Your Christmas Shopping List

Someone just told me that it was 36 days until Christmas! Stop by our gift factory and shop our #CatholicHero line for mugs, t-shirts, puzzles, books, movies and so much more!

Nov 19, 2024

Morality, Decency And The Hays Code: Dos And Do Nots In Film

Gross, right? Not everyone wants to see Mel Gibson hack someone to death.

We've been referring to the Hays Code so often in the studio this week that I finally printed a copy off so that we had it on hand.

This decency code was written in the 1930s with the help of the Catholic Church along with others who were concerned about what was being portrayed in Hollywood films. This Code governed Hollywood for a number of years but in more recent times it was discarded. Thanks to Jim Morlino, my family was introduced to the code while we were making our first movie.

The Hayes Code and Pope Pius XI's encyclical document "On The Motion Picture" are movie making guidelines in our studio. The Hayes Code is really a no-brainer but it is so little known today that every Catholic filmmaker should read through it at least once. Of course it could be updated and expounded but the basics of what to show and not show in a film is always the same.

When watching a movie, sometimes it is hard to sort though what makes you personally uncomfortable and what is definitely wrong. It has been easy to review films like this and see what the Code says about it.

Violence does not bother me as much as other things but it is still something to be careful with. This is the one that I see a handful of Catholic independent filmmakers using in their films. The most disturbing death that we have filmed was The Six Deaths of Rasputin (it's 9 minutes of trying to kill someone.) The code says that if there is a tasteful way to show murder then the filmmaker must use this route. Murder should never be shown in great detail nor should it make the audience desire to imitate. The Code does not say "no murder shall ever be shown" it just says that it should be thought out so as to protect the audience.

Filmmaking is an art after all. Many things can be portrayed tastefully or not portrayed at all. Thanks to the Decency League and Pope Pius XI we have a firm set of film rules that we can follow in our own productions, reclaiming the art of filmmaking one wholesome movie at a time.

Nov 19, 2024

Stop By Our Gift Factory And Check Off A Few Items On Your Christmas Shopping List

Someone just told me that it was 36 days until Christmas! Stop by our gift factory and pursue our #CatholicHero line for mugs, t-shirts, puzzles, books, movies and so much more!

Nov 18, 2024

Unveiling the Past: Irish Filmmakers Revive Father McHugh's Story

Ireland 1710. After Catholicism is outlawed, Fr. Brian McHugh of Longford finds himself arrested and imprisoned. Escaping with forged release papers, he returns to his parish. But soon the ruse is discovered and the Crown "priesthunters' set out to track him down. Based on true events, the film brings to life the story of Fr. Brian McHugh - "The Longford Fox" - whose audacity and multiple gaol breaks tormented the English authorities across Ireland.

The Longford Fox is releasing on Industrious Family Theater on Thanksgiving, November 28th!

Nov 15, 2024

Stream Wholesome Entertainment On Industrious Family Theater

Taking inspiration from the teaser that ‪@fabuleusesaventuresjeanethenri‬ made for their new book and film, "The Mystery of the Aeroplane”, Industrious Family brings you this dance video with a Western twist. A special thanks to Jordon Sax for letting us use his song.

7 fresh movies are coming to the theater on Thanksgiving! Learn more about our family streaming service. Enjoy entertaining shorts like the video above or browse our full-length films all for only $0.99 a month!

#familystreamingservice #familymovies #catholicmovies #Catholicfamilymovies #Familystreaming #Familyfun #homemademovies #Catholicmovies #Catholicmoviemakers

Nov 15, 2024

New Collaborator Aids Us In Widening Our Reach! Plus, New Movies To Be Added To The Theater

As a collaborator this week I'd like to introduce to you Francis Thomas.

Francis runs his own media production company, Immaculata Entertainment, LLC and is involved in making documentaries, narratives, and short films.

He has generously offered his skills to promote our company.

In addition, Francis will have a few of his films released on the Industrious Family Theater during the Thanksgiving release. Learn more about our family streaming service.

#familystreamingservice #familymovies #catholicmovies #Catholicfamilymovies #Familystreaming #Familyfun #homemademovies #Catholicmovies #Catholicmoviemakers

Nov 14, 2024

Check Your Inbox!

Did you just get this week's issue of The Journal? Lots of fun stuff in there if you are subscribed! Perhaps you noticed that our last few issues have a different look and layout. We are trying to freshen things up a bit and give you the most pleasant reading experience.

Our new look now includes an exclusive personal note from Director Mary, FABIOLA updates plus highlights from the #RebuildChristianArt blog.

Not subscribed to The Journal? Sign up to our weekly newsletter here!

Nov 14, 2024

Unleashing the Next Generation of Stars: Building Celebrity Actors

I like seeing familiar faces on old Disney films. It almost seemed like there was this small group of actors that worked for the company and they were casted in films over and over again.

I like seeing familiar faces on movies over on Pure Flix as well. Kathleen here and yesterday, Mary showed me a reel from Dallas Jenkins showing some familiar faces from The Chosen that will appear in his Christmas movie, The Best Christmas Pageant Ever. I think this is working for Pure Flix and Dallas. I dream of this working for Industrious Family.

In this way, Christian faith-based film companies are creating their own celebrities. We may have some familiar faces in Fabiola. If you would like to join our growing file of actors, fill out our acting application today. We respect your privacy and won't share your application without your permission, but there is a good chance other directors of independent Catholic films will be looking for actors and after getting your permission we can share your file. In this way we will grow our own celebrity actors.

#catholicmovies #rebuildchristianart #industriousfamilyfilms #catholicmovies #supportcatholicmovies #bookstofilm #goodstories #moviesaboutrome #catholicmoviemakers #becomeanactor

Nov 13, 2024

Stream Wholesome Entertainment On Industrious Family Theater. New Releases Coming Soon!

Are you looking for authentically Catholic entertainment? Right now we have over 15 films ready to stream on Industrious Family Theater. On this Catholic streaming service, you can enjoy several Catholic films in one place, with more being added seasonally. Plus, the service is just $0.99 a month! So what are you waiting for?

Nov 13, 2024

Your Contribution Means So Much To Our Filmmaking Success. Please Consider Giving Today

When we were learning about the Private Placement Memorandum and how investments work, we hit a big wall: we will not be able to film until we have raised $1M. That led us to asking ourselves, How are we going to be able to keep the movie moving forward without coming to a screeching halt and wait for funding?

Crowdfunding. That is what is going to end up being very important for FABIOLA. Although investments is where we are going to be getting a big chunk of the money needed to make the film, crowdfunding is going to be how we get there.

These small but steady flows of cash allow us to continue making scenes which help us get more investors. So if you would like to help us continue on the path of making the FABIOLA film, please consider contributing as little as $5 now!

#catholicmovies #rebuildchristianart #industriousfamilyfilms #stsebastian #stagnes #fabiolanovel #romanhistory #industriousfamilyfilms #cardinalwisemanstories #fundraiser #contribute #donatetogoodmovies #fabiolamovie #catholicmovies #supportcatholicmovies #bookstofilm #fabiola #fundraising #goodstories #moviesaboutrome #moviesaboutsaints #martyrs #catholicmoviemakers

Nov 12, 2024

FABIOLA on Film: Why We Keep Rolling Despite Challenges

We learned so much about how investments work simply by reading the Private Placement Memorandum aloud. While reading the PPM we realized that we are not going to be able to film until we receive the minimum investment for FABIOLA. This minimum investment amount is the smallest amount that we need to make the film.

If we want to make the movie with the same quality that we produced the prison scene, we will need at lease $1M to make the film. The deadline that we need to raise this amount is December 2025. We had thought that we would be able to film scenes as we went along until we raised the minimum but that is not the case.

The reason is: If we do not raise the minimum investment by the deadline, all the investments are returned to the investors. There are ways that we can film a few scenes this spring and that is why crowdfunding plays such an important part in producing independent Catholic movies. We couldn't make movies without the generous support of our fans.

#catholicmovies #rebuildchristianart #industriousfamilyfilms #stsebastian #stagnes #fabiolanovel #romanhistory #industriousfamilyfilms #cardinalwisemanstories #fundraiser #contribute #donatetogoodmovies #fabiolamovie #catholicmovies #supportcatholicmovies #bookstofilm #fabiola #fundraising #goodstories #moviesaboutrome #moviesaboutsaints #martyrs #catholicmoviemakers

Nov 11, 2024

Happy Feast Of St. Martin Of Tours!

Pull out the crayons, print this free St. Martin of Tours coloring page, and learn something that not many people know about this saint!

Get Your Free Coloring Page Here!

Nov 11, 2024

Mentorship and Friendship: The Heartbeats of Our Filmmaking Journey

God bless our veterans!

Kathleen here today to give you a studio update and to express some gratitude for our mentors and team members.

We have been very blessed with talented mentors as we learn how to make movies. An invaluable mentor at a distance is Tyler M. Reid. We purchased his Filmmaker Package, subscribe to his Movie Revolution Newsletter, and follow him on LinkedIn. I've even reached out to him once or twice and he has generously responded. What a great guy.

Currently at the studio Mary, Faustina and I have been working on creating a presentation pitch slide so that we can better engage with our investors. Thus far, we have thousands pledged in investments, have a lawyer that has the heart of a teacher, and are honing in our "sales pitch" so-to-speak with our PR team: Laura Ruth and Francis Thomas.

This is a very exciting time for Industrious Family Films as we step up our production quality and build a filmmaking enterprise. Thank you for your prayers and support.

#catholicmovies #rebuildchristianart #industriousfamilyfilms #stsebastian #stagnes #fabiolanovel #romanhistory #industriousfamilyfilms #cardinalwisemanstories #fundraiser #contribute #donatetogoodmovies #fabiolamovie #catholicmovies #supportcatholicmovies #bookstofilm #fabiola #fundraising #goodstories #moviesaboutrome #moviesaboutsaints #martyrs #catholicmoviemakers

Nov 08, 2024

Now In French! FABIOLA Extends It's International Reach Again!

Thanks to Daniel Rabourdin and his team, the FABIOLA Prison Scene is now available to watch in French. Merci Daniel! It has already been praised by our French fans as "poignant and magnificent."

#catholicmovies #rebuildchristianart #industriousfamilyfilms #stsebastian #stagnes #fabiolanovel #romanhistory #industriousfamilyfilms #cardinalwisemanstories #fundraiser #contribute #donatetogoodmovies #fabiolamovie #catholicmovies #supportcatholicmovies #bookstofilm #fabiola #fundraising #goodstories #moviesaboutrome #moviesaboutsaints #martyrs #catholicmoviemakers

Nov 07, 2024

Finding Balance: Navigating the Complex World of Movie Business Demands

It is part of the American dream to set out, try our hand, make our own schedules and pride ourselves with what we can accomplish. But in the midst of all this there is something that is very important to our success: prioritizing.

In the movie making field there are so many things that are screaming for attention. Schedules, budgets, marketing, scripting etc. Which is the most important?

On the business side there are others - website, maintenance, sponsorships, ads, networking, etc.

We, like everyone else, struggle with prioritizing. While we need to run the business in order to make movies, we sometimes find ourselves having all we can handle. This is where prioritizing comes to play.

We once made a wheel of how we were going to spend our time. At the time when we made Grisly Grisell this looked like:

40% Moviemaking (13 hours a week)
30% Website and marketing (10 hours a week)
15% Exposition (20 hours a month)
8% Odd jobs (11 hours a month)
5% Tea Time Radio (2 days a month)
2% Meetings (30 minutes a week)

Things have changed a lot since then and now would be a good time for us to reassess our priorities. Especially regarding the challenges faced with making full budget films versus zero budget films.

Nov 06, 2024

Stream Wholesome Entertainment on Industrious Family Theater

Industrious Family Theater is the place to see many independent Catholic studios and their work to produce positive entertainment. At just $0.99 a month, this streaming service is affordable and provides several Catholic films to enjoy in one place. New releases coming soon!

Nov 06, 2024

Script Revise Nearing Final Scenes! Still Loving This Great Story!

Making our budget more accurate has brought us back to combing through the script to see how we can save on production costs but still tell a great story. We "shed a few pounds" you could say by combining some sets and a character or two. Our new objective is to hone down the sets that are only used once but could be filmed on a different set. We are also incorporating a few suggestions that we got back from our mentors and script advisors. We loved the script before and we are loving it all over again.

Contribute to Fabiola

Nov 05, 2024

Prioritizing Modesty When Designing Costumes For All Our Films

"You don't need great costumes, you only need modest costumes." These words of advice from a fan and mentor have stuck with me. They console me when making these decisions. Of course, authenticity plays a large role in the inspiration process. Sometimes though, what is truly authentic does not look good on screen or is cumbersome for the actor. In the end, we go with natural fabrics, a few nods to the fashion of the day, but modesty trumps all.

For example, the cotton gauze is not see through and her shoulders are covered. Sometimes I think maybe we should be more unbecoming for the pagan women in our story. Well we do that. The heavy jewelry and the eyeliner are the art department's innocent nods to worldliness.

Contribute to wholesome entertainment!

Nov 05, 2024

Budgeting Movies with a Composer's Precision: The Fifths Strategy

We've been working on budgets and getting deep into the business of movies which is not nearly as fun as making movies but necessary. As we finalized our FABIOLA Film budget we saw some imbalances and thanks to a mentor we learned that a film's budget should roughly be divided into 5ths.

This reminds me of something called the "circle of fifths" which is a music theory expression. It could also be used for movie budgets. Of course, it will vary depending on the scope and type of story but generally this works for proportional budgets. We looked over our budget and organized roughly 5 categories. The one category that was disproportionate, we redistributed or lowered depending on what was necessary.

We are so happy that our friend shared this rule of thumb as it really helped us dive in deep and make the categories more proportional.

Nov 04, 2024

Reading Our PPM Out Loud So We Completely Understand The Ins And Outs

We have the first draft of our Private Placement Memorandum (PPM) in hand. As soon as we read through this lengthy and somewhat boring document, we can start receiving investments in the film FABIOLA! Our entertainment lawyer has been very generous as he walks us through this process. In the meantime, script review, set designing and budget have taken a back seat until we get this PPM squared away.

Nov 01, 2024

Interview: Daniel Rabourdin Touches On Evangelizing Through Film

We are so honored to have had EWTN producer and film director Daniel Rabourdin interviewed during our LIVEstream release of the FABIOLA Prison Scene. Recently, Mr. Rabourdin has been our acting coach and we are certainly getting better at polishing our acting skills. He will also be helping many members of the FABIOLA cast improve their performances.

If you would like to help us make this full movie, contribute To FABIOLA today!

#catholicmovies #rebuildchristianart #industriousfamilyfilms #stsebastian #stagnes #fabiolanovel #romanhistory #industriousfamilyfilms #cardinalwisemanstories #fundraiser #contribute #donatetogoodmovies #fabiolamovie #catholicmovies #supportcatholicmovies #bookstofilm #fabiola #fundraising #goodstories #moviesaboutrome #moviesaboutsaints #martyrs #catholicmoviemakers

Nov 01, 2024

We Are Made For Higher Things: Remembering The Example And The Intercession Of The Saints

"And that sweetest, most gracious of ladies. How winningly doth she beckon me forward to join her train. I come!"

It is with such eagerness and joy that the saints went to their deaths for their hearts and souls were moulded for higher things. Their deaths were their liberations from this pilgrimage of life to join the Heavenly count where they now serve God and Our Lady and intercede for us. On this day we remember those who were not well known but who are equally worthy of their place in the Communion of Saints. Let us run to be saints and imitate them not because we want our name to be remembered for all time but because we were made to serve and give glory to the Heavenly court.

"Precious in the sight of the Lord is the death of his saints." - Psalms 115:15

Photo: Queen of all Saints – Regina Sanctorum Omnium – Loreto Embroideries – Vintage Catholic Art Print

#catholicmovies #catholicmoviemaker s#rebuildchristianart #industriousfamilyfilms #stsebastian #stagnes #fabiolanovel #romanhistory #industriousfamilyfilms #cardinalwisemanstories #fundraiser #contribute #donatetogoodmovies #allsaintsday #feastofallsaints #fabiolamovie #catholicmovies #supportcatholicmovies #bookstofilm #fabiola #fundraising #goodstories #moviesaboutrome #moviesaboutsaints #martyrs

Oct 31, 2024

They May Not Have Been Visually Beautiful But They Were Better. Can We Bring Back The Golden Age Of Hollywood?

Hello, it's Mary. I was visiting with a friend the other day and we were talking about a new Catholic movie that will be released later this year. We were comparing the quality and budget with FABIOLA. This film may have better quality but as far as viewability, I'm not sure if the entire family will be able to sit down and enjoy the film. I feel like it will be one of those great movies that "the kids can watch when they are older".

That is what makes FABIOLA different - it appeals to a completely different audience. While still touching on the important gruesome parts of the early Church martyrs' lives, the story is an uplifting tale of heroic deeds, conversion and hope that the entire family will enjoy. We are making films for those who can't enjoy what is currently being produced for them.

The FABIOLA story is a clean combination of all the old epic films you loved. Our style and method is like how films used to be in the Golden era of Hollywood. And we can't help it that that is what we consume. Movies were different back then. Walt Disney once said, "We don't make movies to make money, we make money to make movies." That was the 1950s mindset. Movies like Ben-Hur, Quo Vadis, The Robe and The Ten Commandments are still watched by Christians today. They are timeless stories.

Do you notice their film quality? Not really. You are so pulled into the narrative that you don't mind.

Contribute To FABIOLA

#fabiolamovie #catholicmovies #supportcatholicmovies #bookstofilm #fabiola #fundraising #goodstories #moviesaboutrome #moviesaboutsaints #martyrs #catholicmoviemakers

Oct 31, 2024

Thanks To You, We Can Do What We Love Doing

Thank you for your generous support over the many years of our filmmaking adventure. We couldn't do it without you!

Contribute To FABIOLA

#fabiolamovie #catholicmovies #supportcatholicmovies #bookstofilm #fabiola #fundraising #goodstories #moviesaboutrome #moviesaboutsaints #martyrs #catholicmoviemakers

Oct 30, 2024

Halloween In A Catholic Home

Celebrate with gusto when you learn about how celebrating Halloween in a Catholic home reinforces the concept of the Communion of Saints with customs and traditions.

Continue reading "Halloween In A Catholic Home"

Oct 30, 2024

$11,500 Pledged In Investments And Crowdfunding! Join The Movement That Is Making Wholesome Entertainment!

We already have over $11,500 raised through investments and crowdfunding! We are so excited about this great opportunity and the success that we are meeting. If you would like to help us make this film, please consider investing in FABIOLA. You can express interest here and we will reach out to you with more information in the next few days.

#fabiolamovie #catholicmovies #supportcatholicmovies #bookstofilm #fabiola #fundraising #goodstories #moviesaboutrome #moviesaboutsaints #martyrs #catholicmoviemakers