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QUESTION: I'm writing this e-mail to ask a
specific question, so - even though it is extremely difficult for me - I
will avoid going into how much I appreciate your portrayal of Christ and
how much it has ministered to and blessed me, as has your other work,
especially your writing. However, I am disturbed. What is your opinion
on what has been going on with the Visual Bible since the last time you
worked with the company, the use of the Good News Bible as opposed to
the NIV for John, filming in Spain/Canada, the new people involved and
the direction that they're taking, the actor playing Christ in it and
his portrayal, why they did not cast you again, etc. Any light you would
shed would be appreciated. Thank you. You are often in my prayers as I
pray both in intercession for you and in thanks for you.
ANSWER: Well, the reason I'm pulling over
to answer this question is not because I want to--obviously it's a sore
subject--but also obviously, it's a question on the minds of just about
everyone. I've been intentionally silent about these things for a long
time and I know folks are just wanting to know. So, I'll be pretty brief
if you don’t mind, but here goes...
First off, I literally know nothing about VB,
their production of John, the why's and wherefores, the how's and
what's, the personalities involved... I have not been included by them
or even informed or heard anything from them for years now. Why that is,
well, I guess you have to ask them that question, as it's a mystery to
me, that's for sure. I mean, they've sold thousands upon thousands of
Matthew videos because of the free publicity that flows from my speaking
in ministry, and I've never even gotten a thank you note, let alone 5
cents in support from them (not that I've noticed--ahem, ahem...).
But just to give some background, as I know
there's a lot of misunderstanding out there, I've never been a part of
the VB company, nor did I ever have a part in any of their decisions, or
whatever. I was hired as an actor to play Jesus, then hired for
promotional purposes a handful of times way back when. Then the
testimony that God gave me through the making of Matthew blossomed into
the ministry that you see me busy with today, completely aside from VB
or anything they were doing/planning.
So when it comes to remarking on their production
decisions and whatever course they're taking, I just don't know. I have
to guess they are sitting in their board rooms making the decisions that
they feel are best in light of their purposes, and the specific points
you mentioned flow out of those decisions and purposes.
Why the Good News Bible? I don't know. Why Spain
and Canada? Probably a money decision, but I don't know. The new people
involved and they're direction? I don't know anything about them. I
don’t' even know their names.
But now the million dollar question--the guy they
hired to play Jesus... Well, again, I just don't know. Why they didn't
contact me--you have to ask them. I'm easy to get hold of (I mean, you
got hold of me), so that sure wasn't the problem. I certainly was open
to talking with them about it--I just never heard from them. In fact, I
didn't even know they were making John until someone sent me one of
their press releases saying they were in pre-production. Talk about a
surprise!
As for the guy's performance, again, I just don't
know. I haven't seen even a peep of it. I can only hope He honored God
in his choices and submitted to God in his performance.
And that's really the bottom line here--and many
people in the film business have just laughed at me because of this: I
firmly believe--and I'll take it to the grave with me--you can't make a
film about God without God. Amen, and amen!
Call me a purist if you like, but I'm telling you,
without God--without being on your face and seeking and seeking, without
walking in fear and trembling before Him, I tell you, you're wasting
your time. Period.
I mean, God will use a film, or a song, or a book,
or, or, or... made without Him anyway--that's just what He does--He uses
everything. I even know a pastor who got saved watching The Exorcist,
for crying out loud. I mean, don't minimize God--He's so passionate
about His children being reached He comes at them through literally
everything.
But in terms of a project--any kind of
project--being everything it can be in the fullness of every revelation
God wants it to be, holding every anointing and flow of His heart that
God hopes it to be--it can only come through on-your-face, no other
agenda, crying out and seeking, obeying and following... Just seeking
Him and then doing what He tells you to do. I mean, you're "messing
with" God, and that's a game you just don't want to play without serious
reverence before Him. To approach Him any other way--and again, people
will laugh at me for this--is to set yourself up for serious trouble,
one way or the other. Amen and period.
So I can only hope they did that out there--but
even if they didn't, God will use the film anyhow. I mean, at the very
least it's His spoken Word and therein is power. Why they made the
decisions they made--again, I'm not the one to ask. I wish they had
asked me to participate or even consult, but they chose not to and that
is just the way it is.
As for me, yes, it's a great disappointment and a
great mystery, but you know what? God is faithful. I tell you, He's got
a plan, He's got something up His glorious sleeve, and I can promise
you, "you ain't seen the last of me yet."
He has given me strong leadings and firm promises
which, in the right time, I will share publicly. And as a child of God,
I am one who is supposed to "walk by faith and not by sight." So at this
time of crossroads in terms of either trusting what He's led me to trust
or trusting what I see "by sight," well, forgive me, call me loony, but
I'm just going to trust Him in how He's led me. It's either that or my
whole life in Christ and witness to Him have been a farce.
I'm going to keep walking the path He's put in
front of me today--be faithful to what He's given me today even though
my heart yearns to back on a film set portraying Him. There's huge
things going on with a magnificent South African Crusade planned in
December (and hey, I'll just say it--I could use your help meeting the
budget on that--please consider helping us out--thanks), babies are
being snatched from abortion and death, people are coming to Jesus, I'm
seeing literal healings in front of my eyes, books are being written
about Jesus, and on and on, and besides, the Yankees are winning
(couldn't resist that).
It's interesting, but my life is no different than
anyone's out there--there are things you long for, and things that are.
My challenge is always to stay behind God, to seek Him with all my
heart, to wait on Him in all my ways, to dive into what He's given me
today as if tomorrow won't come; to trust that what He's given me today
is exactly what He has for me, and just pray, pray, pray--trust, trust,
trust, and pray, pray, pray. Glory to Jesus!
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QUESTION: Mr. Marchiano, I know you get asked
this question almost everyday, so sorry about that. But my question is
that when you were playing the role of Jesus, what was it like to hang
on a cross?
ANSWER: Well, you're pretty much
right--most every day since I hung on that cross, I get asked that
question. I have to confess that sometimes it wearies me, and that's
only my human desire to "move on in life," so to speak. But those times
are rare. God gave me a tremendous experience and a tremendous testimony
flowing out of it, and what a privilege to have the opportunity to see
so many lives transformed through the telling of it, and man, the
excitement that rises in me every time I do. Glory to the Name of Jesus!
But the answer to your question is already posted
in the "Behind the
Scenes of Matthew" section of this web site along with
photos
and all. And of course, I wrote a whole chapter trying to describe it in
In the Footsteps of Jesus, and in the "Audio
Message" section of the web site I have the testimony there
for you to download and listen to in a couple different messages. So
forgive me for not answering your question in these paragraphs as well.
I'd just be repeating myself all over the place! So feel free to buzz
around the web site and give the audio a listen or take a look behind
the scenes.
But you know, there's another reason--it just
would take too many pages. As it was, when I handed the chapter to my
publisher they just laughed at me because there just was no way they
could include all I'd written--it was a whole book all by itself, it was
so long! And just to tell the story, it was the hardest chapter to
write--there were just no words big enough or deep enough to even come
close to doing the experience justice. I remember I was writing just
that chapter for an entire 6 months, and then guess what happened? The
computer whiz that I am, one day I accidentally leaned on a button and
the entire chapter--all 6 months of work--disappeared--poof!
I remember I was sitting at my kitchen counter and
it was in the middle of the day, and I tell you, I just started to sweat
and sweat, and shake all over--"Stay calm, Bruce... Stay calm..." I
remember doing my best to keep from going bananas--6 months of work down
the drain in the blink of an eye. To this day I don't know what that
button was that I pushed!!
Anyway, I remember just taking a little walk and
saying to myself over and over, "It's just got to be God wanting me to
start over. Maybe there was too much of me in it, or I was missing the
mark, or... But I just have to trust that God is in control and He just
wants me to start over." Glory to His Name!
So anyway, feel free to poke around as the
testimony is all over the place, the operative line from my journal
being, "Every believer should hang on a cross for just 30 seconds--his
life would never be the same." Filming the cross was one of the 3 most
significant days of my life, transforming my life in every way, stepping
into the beginnings of a unique understanding of what Jesus did and what
that means about who He truly is, and of course how He truly
feels--about you, about me--He loves you--Jesus. Glory to His Name!
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QUESTION: Hi... I was watching the
Matthew video AGAIN and I have decided to ask this question that has
puzzled me for a long time. At the very end when you (Jesus) turn and
wave your hand for us to follow you, what are you saying? I have tried
to figure it out for years!
ANSWER: Yeah, this is
a question I get all the time, everywhere I go. I love it! But you know,
the heartbreaking thing is that I can't remember. I remember the sense
of it - and forgive me that it is not so spiritual - but the exact words
I don't remember. Let me tell you the story...
We had just finished filming
a whole bunch of Sea of Galilee scenes, and it was absolutely beautiful
- the South African summer sun was drifting beneath the horizon, and the
colors in the sky were breathtaking. We'd been working since sunrise and
it had been a long day, so the whole crew broke for dinner. But Regardt
saw the light and how beautiful it was, so he held back the
cinematographer and me and said, "Let's shoot that smiling Jesus scene."
We took the camera to the
water's edge, Regardt gave me the action - I would walk along the shore
and turn with a big Jesus-type smile, beckoning the people to follow -
end of scene. I remember he told me he would film in slow motion and how
the camera would start at ground level and pan up to my face.
So we got ready to shoot,
Regardt called action, and I moved out. He cut the scene laughing his
head off - he said, "Bruce, you gave me your Coca-Cola smile that time."
We tried again and maybe again...
Then we did the take that
got printed. Regardt called action and I started out. I turned, smiled
and waved, then turned and kept walking. But here's the thing - actors
are trained to continue their action until the director calls 'cut.' I
was walking and walking, and I could hear Reg talking with the
cameraman, but he wasn't saying, "Cut."
I was going on and on and
getting nearer to the water's edge. I could hear them whispering and
giggling and all, and I just turned and waved and yelled something like,
"Come on! Yell, "Cut," will ya?!" I don't remember the words exactly,
but I was just laughing and I could feel the wind tossing my hair and
robes, and I could just feel the bigness of the world all around me, and
it was all so grand and glorious, and just so much fun and exciting.
But little did I know - that
was exactly what Reg was baiting me to do. He wanted a real spontaneous
and big final moment, so he just let me go on and on, hoping that I
would do something exactly like what I did. (Yes, he's a VERY clever
director, and knows exactly how to get something wonderful out of his
actors).
And I can't tell you - that
moment in 'Matthew' has been used by the Lord in so many lives, I can't
begin to tell you. And it all came from Regardt having some fun with me,
baiting me to do something alive and wonderful. And with the combination
of the wind that was blowing and the colors in the sky, I tell you, God
had a plan with that simple thing - a turn and a wave - a plan so far
beyond what any one of us could imagine.
But I will also tell you,
Regardt knew it. I remember walking away from shooting and toward the
dinner tables, and he just kept telling me, "God is going to do
something incredible with that shot, brother. I'm telling you, just wait
and see. Just that little shot there - just watch what God is going to
do with that."
And so it is. There's the
Scripture that says, 'He uses the foolish things of the world,' and if
that story doesn't stand as testimony to that kingdom truth, I don't
know what does. That simple gesture I was 'tricked' into doing for
camera has drawn so many people to Jesus - and that's what it's all
about - drawing people to Jesus. Glory to His blessed Name!
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QUESTION: Bruce,
what about all the people behind the scenes of 'Matthew' and all? I was
wondering about some of them, and their personal lives. I'm interested
to know more about Regardt (who directed 'Matthew'). Where is his home?
Where is he now? What is he doing? We care about him, and want to pray
for him. Give us details!
ANSWER: Yes, my dear
brother, Reg... I tell you, next week I will be in South Africa and I
just can't wait to see him. He's a precious brother, that is for sure.
On his behalf, thank you for your care and interest.
Reggie is living in Cape
Town, being a native South African. He's got a beautiful 'flat' with a
nice view of the sea, and when we visit we walk along the beach from
there to our favorite lunch spot where we'll drink endless cups of
coffee, and just sit for hours chatting away about the goodness of God.
It's wonderful, and I really miss him when I'm here in the US.
What is Reg doing now? Well,
there's loooooong answers to that, and it's quite a story that is not
100% nice, so I'll spare you all the details. The bottom line is that
Visual Bible was going to be Regardt's life work, as well as my own. We
were going to stand side-by-side as a creative team to put the Bible on
film. And that's not just us dreaming - it was the initial plan after
'Matthew' was completed.
Well to make a long story
short, that never developed, and for reasons I just don't want to go
into. It left us both a little 'high-and-dry' in career terms, as we
both made big life-moves in anticipation of it - Regardt much more than
myself.
That hit Reg pretty hard and
on every level, and I'm certain he wouldn't mind me saying that. I mean,
it hit me hard and still does in many ways, so I can only imagine how it
was for him. After all, on a creative level he's the one who gave birth
to the whole thing, and I'll just say it because it's true - it was
cruelly and wrongly taken from him.
But Reg is a survivor and
has recovered beautifully. He struggled to find work for a long time,
the Lord carrying him through it every step of the way, and now is
making Christian testimony films for South African television. That has
developed into something real nice for him, and the testimonies of lives
being changed through those films just blows his socks off. Glory to
Jesus!
Reg has also developed a new
big screen Jesus film he's titled, 'The Lamb,' and is working with
producers here in Hollywood to get that up and running. In a nutshell,
the film is Jesus through the eyes of a child in first century Israel,
and it has really become a strong focus for Regardt. Glory to Jesus!
So the bottom line to Reg's
story is that through it all - the hardships and disappointments that
plague us all - God is good. His favor rests, His leading and care, His
holiness and faithfulness, His absolute loveliness and wondrous power...
He sits on the throne, He
reigns on high, His eye is on the sparrow, and He says, "I love you, My
child. Just keep going, because I love you." Glory to His Name!!
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QUESTION:
Dear Mr. Marchiano, I have a question for you it's only one. When
playing the role of Jesus how did you feel? Was it like hard or anything
like that?
Thanks,
Praise
ANSWER: First,
forgive me for including your name, but I just LOVE your name. Glory to
Jesus! And I sense that you're pretty young, and that is REALLY cool, so
bless you, Praise.
Praise, it would take me a
whole book to answer your question - in fact, I wrote a whole book about
it! But as you can imagine, it was the adventure of a lifetime, and yes,
it was VERY hard. It was also very excellent, and breathtaking, and
wonderful, and exciting, and amazing, and stunning, and awesome, and all
of those kinds of words.
In fact, I was just on the
phone with a guy who was there working with me on 'Matthew,' and we just
talked and talked about all the wonders that we experienced out there.
To catch a glimpse of the heart of Jesus, and His absolute passion and
desire and love, love, love for you, you, you. It was so wonderful,
Praise, and I just give glory to His Name.
Now go to bed because you
have to be up for school in the morning, ok? And did you do your
homework? I hope so. And one more thing - before you turn out the light,
tell Jesus you love Him - tell Him I love Him, too. Thanks, Praise.
Bless you!
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QUESTION: I was just at the Visual
Bible International's web site and I see that they are in pre-production
of "The Gospel of John." Will you be playing Jesus in this production? I
sure do hope so because after "Matthew" it will be hard to see someone
else follow in our Lord's footsteps the way you did!!!!
ANSWER: Thank you so
much for your kind words - they mean the world to me. But the answer to
your question is no. Visual Bible has not asked me to play Jesus in
their current production of 'John,' and in fact I have had no contact
from Visual Bible for a couple of years now, only recently learning of
their plans to film 'John' through the grapevine.
In fact, the way I heard
about it was most disturbing and I can only pray the information I
received was not accurate, because if it is it's a terrible lie. I
received an email about 2 months ago from an acquaintance saying she
phoned Visual Bible upon hearing of their plans for 'John' and was told
that I was not playing Jesus because "he wanted too much money."
That's just a plain terrible
lie, and again, I can only hope such a statement was never made and the
email I received was misinformation. To set the record straight for
everyone, I've had no contact from Visual Bible and no one has inquired
of me or my agent with regard to 'John' or anything else, nor have they
inquired of anyone who was part of 'Matthew' - period, end of story.
A couple of years ago their
former ownership asked me to do 'John,' and as many of you know, led by
the Lord, I said no. And sure enough, the Lord was on it - He so
protected me. After filming only a few weeks they shut down and tumbled
into millions of dollars of debt. It's an awesome story of God
protecting me.
But in any event, I was so
disturbed when I got that email it has been everything in me not to hire
a lawyer to investigate and pursue its slanderous ramifications, and I
just hope it isn't true.
All that having been said,
it is no mystery to anyone that bringing 'John' to life is my greatest
professional longing and desire. Oddly enough, and I take a great risk
in saying this publicly, in my prayer life I have felt very strongly it
is a work the Lord has for me to do, and I have been privately preparing
for it and staying on my knees for it. I feel the Lord has led me very
specifically in terms of His order, and though waiting is often the
toughest thing, as far as I'm concerned there is no order other than His
order, and so I wait.
And I tell you, it has been
something - a story I will share when all is said and done. But
literally everything the Lord showed me in terms of progress toward
'John' has happened but for a final few steps that just require more
waiting, and much of it has been in the realm of the impossible. When
the dust settles it will be a testimony beyond testimonies, and whatever
you're struggling with, I can promise you, God is faithful, and where He
has appointed, where He has led, you just better buckle your seat belt
and hold on for the ride because it's going to be an awesome one. Glory
to His Name!
Could I be off my rocker
about 'John,' and just hearing from my own desires? Certainly! I could
be missing it from here to the moon. But God is either going to do it or
He's not going to do it, and my only place to be is on my face praying
"Your kingdom come, Father - You will be done!"
My only place is to dig my
hands into what He's given me to do today though it has nothing to do
with making movies, and just trust Him, and enjoy, and press into it
with all thankfulness and excitement, and just let Him do what He's
going to do and how He's going to do it.
I can only pray toward what
I feel He's promised, keep my heart clean before Him as best I can,
press into the amazing life and work He's given me to do - which, by the
way, if it's all I ever get to do and I never make any more movies, what
greater excitement could I ask for - and just let Him do with tomorrow
what He's going to do with tomorrow. Glory to His precious Name!
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QUESTION: Have you ever thought about
directing? Is it something you're interested in doing?
ANSWER: Yeah, I'd
love to direct. Not that it's anything glamorous--it's probably the most
stressful position in a film production. But the few times I've had a
chance to explore it I had a blast. It is such great fun, creating real
life situations and exploring ways to tell the story with a glance here
and a camera angle there. Subtlety and reality, passion and human
dynamic are the things that really excite me as a film-maker, and it'd
be fun to bring all that together to tell a story, which is what the
director does.
At home I only watch a
couple of channels--CNN (or BBC World when I can get it), and Turner
Movie Classics. I mean, if it's filmed in black-and-white, you can bet
I'm going to love it. But just last night I saw two incredible films.
One was 'Wuthering Heights' with Merle Oberon and Laurence Olivier, and
the other I turned on after it started so I don't know the name--some
Burt Lancaster film where he was so in love with this woman he did crazy
things and paid the price for it in the end.
But I tell you, it got my
movie-making juices flowing like crazy. Just watching the way the
director did so much with suggestion and amazing dialogue, and just a
glance here and there, or a shadow across the face. Another thing I love
about those old movies is the rare use of close-ups so that when they
did use a close-up it just would make you stop in your tracks. It is
really such an wonderful art.
But it really got me excited
to direct, and I hope the Lord opens those doors for me in the future.
Like I said, the couple times I've tried it, it turned out great and it
was great fun. Of course, I've got loads to learn about the camera, and
how it works, and how to use different shots to convey different
emotions... But the bottom line is, I'd love to do it and really pray
the Lord gives me that opportunity.
In fact--and I'm letting a
tiny cat out of the bag and teasing you a little, here--I'm currently
developing an idea for a video series which, assuming it comes together,
I'll not only act in, but just because I'm the guy who's
producing/developing it, I'll take a turn or two behind the camera and
'test my directing wings,' too. It'll be great fun, and I can't wait!
"Action!"
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QUESTION:
Hey! Boy are you asking for trouble! Willing to take on questions, huh?
Well here goes! Do you keep in touch with any one other than Regardt
from the 'Matthew' filming? Thanks!
ANSWER: 'Matthew' was
a tremendous adventure, not only in a spiritual sense but in pretty much
every other sense. One of the blessings that flowed out of it was
lifelong and dear, dear, friendships. For me that would mean Regardt who
directed 'Matthew,' and Bruce Rudnick who was the art director. I keep
in close contact with both of them, though it kills me that we all live
on three different continents since Bruce moved to Israel a few years
ago.
But as you can imagine, we
praise God for email, and my phone bill is a little over the top. I see
Regardt every time I'm in South Africa and hope to make a trip to Israel
just to visit Bruce in this coming year - I love him so and really miss
his brotherhood.
Other than Reg and Bruce,
the still photographer, Robbie Botha and I have kept in good contact. In
fact, I just spent a wonderful afternoon with Robbie and his wife this
past week while I was in Johannesburg where they live, and it was just
great.
Of course we all miss the
days of filming 'Matthew' and long to work together again, but that has
to be the Lord's doing, so we pray and wait. Glory to His blessed Name!
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QUESTION: Will Bruce ever play Jesus
again? We cry, "MORE, MORE!"
ANSWER: Again, thanks
so much. That 'more, more' just blesses my socks off and gives me
strength to keep believing what I believe the Lord has promised. So all
I can say is, "I hope so. Only He knows, but I sure do hope so." Do me a
favor and keep it in prayer, will you? Thanks!
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