AIRAN SCRUBY
News Editor
Theologians, filmmakers, interested community members, and Pepperdine staff and students gathered in Elkins Auditorium on Saturday to discuss the relationship between Hollywood and the church.
The event, Reel Spirituality 101, focused on “unpacking movies and their meaning,” according to fliers distributed about the event. The event, also supported by Fuller Seminary, was part of a film-filled week, which featured the City of Angels Film Festival, an annual event that Pepperdine helps to sponsor.
Additionally, a half-day seminar was held in Hollywood on Thursday on faith and ethics in the film industry, co-sponsored by the university and Act One Inc., a nonprofit that offers Christian training in media.
Dr. Michael Gose, professor of humanities and a longtime supporter of film studies at Pepperdine, said the events were good for the university.
“I advertised this as the greatest three weeks for film viewing and study in the history of Seaver College, and I believe we met that goal,” Gose wrote in an e-mail.
Reel Spirituality 101 has been held for many years, but was hosted at the Malibu campus for the first time last week. Gose said the conference was filmed for the use of churches, schools and colleges.
Sophomore Thomas Carr attended the Reel Spirituality conference, and said he found the lectures interesting and uplifting.
“Reel spirituality did a great job breaking down movies into three components: image, words, and music,” Carr said.
The City of Angels Film Festival, also held annually, was held off campus at Fuller Seminary in Pasadena, but was sponsored by the university, as was the Hollywood seminar.
The study of film and media is making waves at Pepperdine as of late, with festivals and seminars sponsored by the university in past weeks, the addition of a film studies major for undergrads beginning in Fall 2007, and talk of a master’s program in screenwriting, currently under consideration in November.
Todd Bouldin, visiting professor of religion and director of the Pepperdine Voyage, Lilly Vocation Project, said the new attention to film and media industries makes sense for Pepperdine, because of the university’s proximity to Hollywood, and because of its reputation for having a moderate Christian perspective..
Bouldin said that recently there has been a resurgence in interest in the film industry, and Pepperdine is poised to capitalize on the new interest.
“What we’re doing at Pepperdine is just really taking advantage of what’s already happening in the industry,” Bouldin said.
Bouldin said efforts in media already being made in the Communication Division and the addition of the undergraduate film studies major.
“All of this will crescendo into some bigger effort,” Bouldin said.
Bouldin said that could mean a film center on campus, a Pepperdine film school, or just more film degrees and courses available to students.
10-26-2006