Published: November 5, 2024
Photo by Jesus Film Project
Why the JESUS Movie is Getting an Animated Remake
By Movieguide® Contributor
After reaching over 11 billion people in 40 years, the team behind the JESUS film reinterprets the story as an animated film to reach a new generation.
“It’s not just a movie,” says Josh Newell, executive director of the Jesus Film Project, told CBN. “That’s really what it comes down to; it is a movement. It is based on the Word of God in the Gospel of Luke. So the script is derived from that.
“We want to reach everyone on earth who currently does not know or have not heard about Jesus,” he added. “It’s amazing to me that there are billions of people on this planet who don’t even know the name of Jesus.”
In a press release from last year the Jesus Film Project explained“Over the years, we have worked with our partners to design tools that break language and literacy barriers so that everyone can experience the story of Jesus – no matter where they are in the world. We will continue to do this together with JESUS (2026).”
READ MORE: JESUS FILM PROJECT TRANSLATES JESUS FILM INTO 2,100TH LANGUAGE
Newell and his team now believe that animation is the next step forward as it appeals to younger viewers and also opens up a whole new avenue to reach them.
“Animation is… a beautiful art form,” Newell saidnoting that fully animated models allow them to more easily represent the story in other modes, such as virtual or augmented reality. “What animation allows us to do is bring the story of Jesus to life in an art form, in an art medium.”
“The Department’s use cases in the future will be varied and exciting,” Newell added. “And this kind of helps us be ready for those moments.”
“We have the original ‘JESUS’ film that has been around for 40 years, and I think it was a great tool, and it is a great tool,” said Daniela Cala Lara, head of localization for the film project, said last year. “But this medium will be different, and times have changed, and we have a new generation that we want to reach, and I believe that will happen through animation. It will be a kind of new heart language for the times we live in now.”
Newell’s team has already relied on cutting-edge technology to reach a broader audience. Thanks to advances in translation technology, the film has been translated into more than 2,100 languages, allowing billions of people to hear the Gospel in their native language.
The animated remake is expected to be completed in December 2025. The people working on the film have great backgrounds in the medium, having previously worked on projects like THE LION KING, LILO AND STITCH and MULAN.
READ MORE: JESUS FILM PROJECT ANNOUNCES ANIMATED JESUS FILM FOR 2025
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