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For Journey To Bethlehem, filmmaker Adam Anders co-wrote the screenplay and worked on the music (with wife Nikki Anders and Peer Astrom). Anders admitted he may not wear all those hats for his next directing project, but to get the story right, he had to be the person behind the camera. Journey to Bethlehem, which has received a stellar Rotten Tomatoes score, is now playing in theaters. Anders talked to Deepest Dream about his “journey” in making this first rate feature.
There’s so many amazing, beautiful holiday movies with elves and Santa and this and that,” said Adam Anders. “None of them talk about what Christmas is about. As a Christian growing up, I recognize that. There has got to be a musical that talks about Christmas. That is when this all started for me, this journey, no pun intended, to make this happen and make it a reality -and create this movie for everyone.”
Shot in Spain in just 30 days and with an estimated crew of 400 people, Journey To Bethlehem was a highly ambitious production. One of its many strengths lies in the picture’s visual breadth. Anders, who is a fan of such films as Lawrence of Arabia and Raiders of the Lost Ark, brought a cinematic feel to the feature.
“I wanted for kids especially to feel like they were on an adventure,” said Anders. “It’s just something about (Lawrence of Arabia and Raiders of the Lost Ark) that makes you feel like you’re going somewhere and there’s something adventurous happening and something that makes you lean in. “I wanted it to be my storybook Bible come to life. Frankly, when I was a kid, I had this Bible that was all pictures, and it was beautiful and colorful and it was fun and it was engaging. And I kept flipping, reading more of the stories. Does it look so I wanted to be there where it was happening and thought, what if we make a movie like that?
The ensemble includes Fiona Palomo, Milo Manheim, Antonio Banderas, Joel Smallbone and Stephanie Gil. Full interview with Adam Anders is below. Catch Journey To Bethlehem in theaters and share your review in the comments!
Other movies out this weekend include The Disappearance of Shere Hite and The Stones and Brian Jones. Listen to our review on this week’s CinemAddicts podcast:
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