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Film
Young Katie Collins, Christian filmmaker
By STEVE PERSALL
Published February 25, 2007
"Faith in her film" Sept. 26, 2006; links.tampabay.com THE STORY: Nine-year-old Katie Collins prayed for God's guidance to make a movie, inspired by the faith-based videos her Baptist parents purchased at a homeschooling convention in Orlando. Katie's father, John Collins, recruited experienced technicians to assist his daughter's vision. Unexpected News was shot in their neighborhood on digital video in three days on a $1,500 budget, guided by Katie's script and 111 hand-drawn storyboards. The final cut was accepted in Christian film festivals in San Antonio, Texas, and San Francisco. FROM THE STORY: "Without cable or satellite television, or much taste for network shows, (the Collinses) spend evenings reading, playing games and watching carefully vetted videos. 'Things I don't find appropriate for my children to watch, I don't watch,' John says. 'That really limits the choices coming out of Hollywood.' That's why Unexpected News is important to him - not as a stage parent, but as a believer that the entertainment world can change. 'We want both Katie and Sam to be culture changers,' John says. 'There's so much garbage out there that's called entertainment these days. Why can't it be a sweet, innocent film that has a feel-good story to it?' Katie puts it in more pragmatic terms: 'The man who, like, owns the (San Antonio) festival says . . . unless we win back Hollywood we can never have a full Christ-like community. We have to win back Hollywood before we can win back America and, hopefully, the world.' " THE REST OF THE STORY: Three weeks after the article was published, Katie and her family traveled to San Francisco for the What You See Is What You Get Film Festival, where Unexpected News earned the best children's film award. The same weekend, another entrant won the best young filmmaker prize in San Antonio. A last-minute application to the Sabaoth International Film Festival in Milan, Italy, was successful. In November, the Collins family went there to see Katie win the Rising Star award and standing ovations for Unexpected News, newly subtitled in Italian. Her Web site (www.unexpectednews.com) includes video footage of her acceptance speeches. WHAT'S NEXT: Katie's Web site brims with projects, including a collector's edition DVD with her commentary, photos and deleted scenes, plus a technical edition featuring an animatic version created from her storyboards, and test shots with her homemade camera stabilizer. The DVDs are $10 each; $20 gets you the technical edition DVD and her forthcoming homeschooling manual, How I Made a Movie at 9 Years Old and So Can You. Katie is now 10. Steve Persall, Times film critic
[Last modified February 24, 2007, 09:51:12]
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