Wild West Filmmaking

On August 25, we celebrate the feast day of Saint Genesius. Saint Genesius was an actor and comedian. Intending to mock the Sacrament of Baptism, Genesius had himself baptized onstage before the emperor. Suddenly, he had a conversion experience. He accepted the Christian faith and refused to renounce it, even when ordered to do so by Emperor Diocletian. Eventually, Diocletian ordered him to be kil...

Over the past two weeks, I’ve shared how this film actually got made. But making it was only half the problem. The other half is getting it into the world. After a private screening, Jonathan Pageau and Deacon Seraphim Rohlin came on board as executive producers. They helped launch a Kickstarter that became five hundred fifty people, mostly giving between twenty and a hundred dollars each. That’s...

With the film wrapped, we headed into the editing bay to see what we had. Jess had endless amounts of SAG paperwork. I worked with Julian, our oldest son and our main editor, night and day, to put this story together. I had to kill some of my favorite scenes along the way, in service of the story that was actually unfolding. You tell the story three times. The one you write. The one you shoot. The...

Any film, especially an independent one, isn't made without its share of incidents. We had fourteen fast days of principal photography. Then we wrapped. Jess called our consultant producer to tell him. He asked one question. Without incident? Jess was surprised right back. Was there supposed to be? Glory to God, and the prayers of Saint John of Shanghai and San Francisco, for the protection around...

Frederica Mathewes-Green is an author Jess has admired for years. She read our script and asked if there was even the smallest part for her. She flew herself out for one day, for a scene inside the cathedral. Frank Mosley plays Genesius. In preparing for the role, he watched every one of her Welcome to the Orthodox Church videos. All thirty-six of them. That day was a heavy one for him. Vulnerable...

Independent filmmaking is mostly the art of seeing what something else could become. We had fourteen days of principal photography. Every single dollar mattered. Because of generous people and a lot of relational equity, we transformed a historic women's dormitory in Tehuacana, Texas, into the monastery you see in El Tonto Por Cristo. The first floor became our kitchen, our craft services, and one...

There wasn't a plan B at this point. Every day we kept preparing as though production was actually going to happen. Every day we called SAG. Father Theophan Warren told us something I still think about. He said Saint John of Shanghai and San Francisco was good with paperwork. So every day we asked for his intercessions. And every day we called SAG. Then, hours before production was supposed to beg...

After years of work, we finally had a production date. A real one. Locations booked. Equipment reserved. Every dollar we had already committed. Around that same time, through an unlikely connection with Moore Productions, we got an expedited meeting that led somewhere I never expected. His Beatitude Metropolitan Tikhon read our script. He blessed the production. For a moment, everything felt like...

We had enough money to begin making this film. We did not have enough to finish it. So Jess and I spent nights and weekends doing jobs we couldn't afford to pay anyone else to do. Production design. Locations. Costumes. Long conversations with actors that quietly became our rehearsals, because we couldn't afford to schedule separate ones. Nobody tells you this part when they talk about independent...

Bishop Gerasim of Fort Worth told me something I don't think I'll ever forget. He said, "Genesius, make this film before you're too Orthodox to make this film." That one sentence did something the last several weeks of doubt couldn't do. It gave me permission to stop second-guessing myself long enough to actually move. Because here's the thing about certainty. It rarely shows up before you start....

The first investment made everything suddenly real. No more hiding behind an idea. Now I actually had to finish the script. I expected that to feel exciting. Instead, what showed up was doubt. If our investors are primarily outside the faith, do I even have the audience I actually want to make this for? Maybe I shouldn't be the one making this film. Maybe I'm not Orthodox enough yet. I didn't have...

We assumed Orthodox Christians would be the first people to support an American Orthodox film. That felt obvious. So we put together a proof of concept and held our first investor house party. Just us, some footage, and a room full of people we were hoping would say yes. Something surprising happened that night. The first people who actually believed enough to write a check weren't Orthodox. Some...

Ideas are easy. I've got hundreds of them sitting around unused. Making a movie is a completely different animal. At some point, Jess and I got on a plane. Not for a location scout. Not for a meeting. We flew out to venerate the relics of Saint John of Shanghai and San Francisco. Join the watchlist for our upcoming announcement: https://www.eltontoporcristo.com/waitlist Join the Green Room for ear...

In this episode, I tell the story of how El Tonto Por Cristo moved from an idea into a finished feature film. I wasn’t trying to make an Orthodox film. Somehow, the film found me. This is the beginning of the full story, from writing and production to the long road that followed. Join the watchlist for our upcoming announcement: https://www.eltontoporcristo.com/wait ... Join the Green Room for ear...

In this episode of Wild West Filmmaking, Josh David Jordan shares his personal journey in filmmaking, discussing his early influences, the challenges of independent filmmaking, and the importance of community and collaboration. Follow Wild West Filmmaking on IG: https://www.instagram.com/wildwestfilmmaking/?hl=en Join the Substack: https://wildwestfilmmaking.substack.com?utm_source=navbar&utm_...

Logos Cinema is the world’s first Orthodox Christian streaming service , created to bring the beauty, truth, and richness of the Orthodox faith into the modern world through film, series, documentaries, and family programming. Founded by Andrew Stokich (CEO) and Zach Delaney (CCO), Follow Wild West Filmmaking on IG: https://www.instagram.com/wildwestfilmmaking/?hl=en Join the Substack: https://wil...

Behind every indie film is a full-time job that never ends. On today's solo episode, Josh dives into the daily grind, sacrifice, and calling that define independent filmmaking. --- Follow Wild West Filmmaking on IG: https://www.instagram.com/wildwestfilmmaking/?hl=en Join the Substack: https://wildwestfilmmaking.substack.com?utm_source=navbar&utm_medium=web

Michael Paraskevas is a Los Angeles-based composer deeply immersed in storytelling through film and visual media. An enthusiastic collaborator and nostalgic film nerd, he loves exploring a variety of styles in his music and enjoys working with ambitious artists to share engaging and impactful stories. Most recently, he scored the Disney+/Marvel series, Agatha All Along starring Kathryn Hahn, along...

Born in 1987, Christopher Reeves has devoted his life to sacred music and liturgical service. In addition to his long-standing work within the Church, he directed the choir for the score of the feature film EL TONTO POR CRISTO, bringing his deep knowledge of Orthodox tradition into a cinematic context. Tonsured a reader in 2006 at St. Seraphim’s Cathedral, Christopher’s journey into church music b...

Tim DeLaughter is an Emmy nominated singer, songwriter, performer, and producer of the musical group The Polyphonic Spree. Formed in 2000 following a period of heartbreak, confusion, and uncertainty as his original band Tripping Daisy fell apart in 1999, Tim started over again. Accompanied by 23 other collaborators, draped in robes, and drunk on the natural exuberance of a new chapter, he introduc...

Barry Corbin has been acting for more than six decades, a career that has seen him take more than two hundred roles onstage, on TV, and in the movies. They’ve mostly been supporting roles, often authority figures-a natural fit, given Barry’s large frame and confident presence. He’s played fifteen sheriffs, several generals, a few wise uncles, a swaggering astronaut, and a hard-core basketball coac...

Jordan Walker Ross began acting at the age of 6, playing Tiny Tim in a community theater production of 'A Christmas Carol'. After that, Jordan performed in over 40 professional productions throughout Texas, as well as California. In his teens, Jordan shifted gears and began focusing on film/television, going on to appear in ' Walker Texas Ranger ', Comedy Central's ' Reno 911 ', Nickelodeon’s ' Ju...

Michael Paraskevas is a Los Angeles-based composer deeply immersed in storytelling through film and visual media. An enthusiastic collaborator and nostalgic film nerd, he loves exploring a variety of styles in his music and enjoys working with ambitious artists to share engaging and impactful stories. Most recently, he scored the Disney+/Marvel series, Agatha All Along starring Kathryn Hahn, along...