Hair is not the biggest problem. But it’s a problem when you try to encourage Jesus and the 12 disciples plus the Pharisees, Sadducees, Zealots and all the people in the crowd in the gospel story.
“Maybe we could make them all bald!” joked Dominic Carola, director of the upcoming animated version of the iconic 1979 film Cru, Jesus.
“It would be a lot easier if they were clean-shaven people,” he said. “But we can’t do it! “It wasn’t like that and we’re leaning toward historical accuracy.”
In fact, Carola and her team at Premise Entertainment have dedicated so much time to the historical details of the Bible story that their animation studio in Orlando, Florida, has sometimes seemed like the nerdiest Bible study in the world.
They have investigated the difference between the second floors of 1st century houses in Jerusalem and Capernaum. They have observed the exact shade of colors of the midday shadows in the Holy Land, the ethnic diversity in the area at the time, and the way the layers of clothing of the time would fall on a person’s body.
Not to mention beards and mustaches.
And of course, getting the look right is just the beginning of an animated film production.
“We could be talking on the phone for a week if I had to overcome all the challenges that this film presents,” Carola said in an interview with CT. “You are telling the best story ever told. And you have 90 minutes to tell it.”
Plans for the new film were announced Thursday night at the Museum of the Bible in Washington, D.C., and at two simultaneous events in Seoul, South Korea, and Kampala, Uganda. the animated Jesus It is scheduled for release for Christmas 2025. It will initially be shown in 31 countries and will later be translated into thousands of languages. The 1979 film currently holds the Guinness World Record for most translated film and has been seen by millions.
“Even in 2023, we are sharing the gospel in new languages and new ways,” said Josh Newell, executive director of the Jesus Film Project, a Cru ministry. “The telling of the story of Jesus has evolved throughout history, from the ‘Roman Way’ to the Gutenberg press and to the present day through animated film.”
John Eshleman, son of the late evangelical strategist behind the promotion of the original film, said Thursday that the animated version “is based on that desire that so many share for people to know Christ… and that maybe there are some things new and creative. ways we communicate the good news of your life.”
The 1979 film was conceived by Cru founder Bill Bright. He had a vision of a film about the life of Jesus based strictly on biblical texts (with no added dialogue) that could be shown in theaters in the United States and to people around the world who had never seen a screen. The campus ministry partnered with Hollywood studio Warner Bros. and produced Jesusstarring Brian Deacon, a little-known British actor.
After a brief theatrical run in 1980, Cru took over distribution and Paul Eshleman began translating the film into dozens of different languages, then hundreds, then hundreds more. Today, the film has been translated 2,100 times. The most recent is the Waorani language, spoken by about 3,000 indigenous people of the Amazon.
Jesus has been shown at evangelistic events around the world. There is no reliable count of how many people have converted to Christianity after seeing the film. He Jesus The Film Project website says, simply, “millions.”
On Thursday, Southern Baptist pastor and former International Mission Board president David Platt urged Christians to seize every opportunity for global evangelism.
“Do you realize that there are more people in the world today who have little or no knowledge of Jesus than ever before in history? That is happening under our supervision,” he said. “What an opportunity we have to use a means that God has ordained to reach… the next generation with the gospel.”
The animated film aims to further broaden the reach of the message and update the film.
2025 Jesus It will use some audio from existing translations, but it won’t be a shot-for-shot remake. In a scene where Jesus raises a girl from the dead, for example, he will continue to say, “She is not dead, but asleep,” as recorded in Luke 8:52. In the animation, however, viewers will see the girl’s toes move and then see the screen linger on the reactions of those witnessing the resurrection.
“Animation allows you to tell the story in words more effectively,” Newell said.
According to Newell, those involved in the new version are also thinking very carefully about how to represent Jesus. Cru leaders have sought comments from Christians around the world about the color of Jesus’ skin, the shape of his nose and the texture of his hair.
The animation team delved into historical research and hired biblical scholars and archaeological consultants to help. They have also analyzed different Christian artistic traditions.
Newell, who has been with Cru since 2005, said there have been discussions about an animated film for about 20 years. This art form is exciting and adaptable, appealing to younger generations and easily viewed on a big screen or iPad.
But he was convinced by research into the history of the art of Jesus.
Image: Jesus Film Project
A test image for the ‘Jesus’ animation.
“There was a package that they put together that convinced me of the initiative,” he told CT. “It was about all the art that represents Jesus around the world from generations ago: Ethiopian art to Renaissance art, Nestorian art in India, Persian art and modern cinema. It is always contextualized. “Jesus is relevant to every culture, every time, and that can be seen in art.”
Carola, the director, said this is more intense and complicated than the typical process of major studio projects she has worked on, including The Lion King, Mulan, Pocahontas, and Lilo and stitch. But for him, that challenge promises a great reward.
“The goal of our studio was always to embrace projects that may be out of the ordinary but really have an impact on people’s lives,” he said. “The return on investment really appeals to me, because it’s not about the money you make. “It’s about the people it reaches.”
People involved in the film also talk about how the animation Jesus It could be a preparatory step towards possible developments in entertainment. The work the animators are doing now could serve as the basis for a virtual reality gospel narrative. Or perhaps interactive augmented reality encounters with Jesus in the metaverse. The way people consume entertainment and the technology used is changing rapidly.
But for now, they have to think about things like animating clothes and hair.
“We are climbing Mount Hermon,” Carola said.
In the ongoing Bible research and study at her studio, Carola learned that Mount Hermon is the highest peak in Israel and likely the site of Jesus’ transfiguration. Now it is also a metaphor for all the work they have to do to produce Jesus in the next two years.
“For us, Mount Hermon is technology. Mount Hermon is a spectacle of complexity. It’s all about deadlines, no doubt, and staying focused on your schedule; not in personal agendas, their agenda.”
