Baby's first movie premiere

Zoë attended her first movie premiere on Wednesday. Once she stopped crying, it was a ball. The audience reaction to the film was great and it is always fun to see Josh's work on the big screen. Afterward, we hung out on the red carpet and talked to friends while the director and actors were interviewed by the press and signed posters for fans. A few geeky film buffs even wanted Josh to sign their posters too.

The premiere was for The Errand of Angels, the film that Josh shot in Austria last summer with his friend Christian Vuissa. It is an LDS-themed film, but it's actually quite good. It is the first ever sister missionary movie, and really, one of the first LDS-themed films with a strong central female character.

Slower paced and more contemplative than most LDS films, the realizations made throughout the course of the film are small, but realistic. The acting is soulful, with standout performances by Rachel Emmers (States of Grace), Bettina Schwarz (a native Austrian), and Erin Chambers (CSI: NY), who also happens to be my one-time college roommate. And the film is gorgeous. The stunning cinematography captures the beauty of the Austrian landscape and the quality of Josh's work on sets, wardrobe, and props.


It's not Citizen Kane, but we would recommend this film to anyone that enjoys character or relationship-driven films. While you probably have to be LDS to enjoy this movie, you don't necessarily have to be a former missionary or a woman to enjoy it, although that helps. The movie is playing in Salt Lake Valley at Salt Lake City 16, Holladay Center 6, Jordan Commons 16 (also in IMAX), Carike 12, Cinemark 24, HW Connection 15, and the Sandy Megaplex 20 at the District. It is playing Utah Valley at the Scera in Orem and the Wynsonng in Provo. It is also playing Idaho in Boise, Pocatello, Idaho Falls, and Rexburg, and a bunch of other locations throughout Utah, Nevada, and Arizona.

Opening weekends are very important for movies. They determine how much longer the movie will play in theaters. If it doesn't do well on opening weekend, the theater doesn't book it for the weeks to come. If you are not totally down on the prospects of LDS cinema, please go see this movie. If you've ever seen a movie like Saints and Soldiers, States of Grace, The Other Side of Heaven, or The Best Two Years and thought it was decent, this is at least as good as all of those. Zoë, however, may not agree. She didn't seem too impressed by the whole premiere thing.

She wasn't impressed by Heather Beers.

She wasn't even impressed by the star of the film.

But we still had a good time at the premiere and are going out to the movies again tonight. We're not going to watch The Errand of Angels again, but we are buying tickets to the film and just going to something else. We really want this film to do well, not just because Josh worked on it, but because we want to support the few quality films that exist in this genre. Hopefully, this will be the start of something good.
As you can see, Christian is really excited about the whole thing. If you've missed the barrage of commercials for the film during the Olympics, you can watch the trailer at the movie's official website. Oh, and if you go to the film, be sure to watch for Josh's name in the opening credits. He's in there three times! Also, I was given a "Props Assistant" credit in the closing credits for the work I did from home, helping Josh out when some Austrian kids stole all of the missionary tags on the first day of shooting. Many of our family members are also in the Special Thanks portion of the closing credits. Stick around and look for your name.