Patience, a Gift No One Wants to Earn

Our film just received a great review from a well-known critic. I can’t publish it yet because they’re proofing it and haven’t told us of a release date. But, I want to give just a hint (from a very comprehensive review) here:

THE ENEMY GOD is a low budget but very well made movie. It cares deeply about authenticity and achieves that goal with the set direction, the battle scenes, and the portrayals of the Yanomamö. … The script is powerful… THE ENEMY GOD is much better than most Hollywood movies.

This is one of the great stories. It is a highly recommended movie.

The main reason I’m posting this today is because I have been reminded of the value of patience and persistence. We’ve been working on this film for almost 8 years. That’s crazy! And it will never be a blockbuster commercial success; we know that.

When we got the e-mail with the review today, we passed it on to our Writer/Director, Christopher Bessette. He deserves the accolades. And here’s what he wrote back to me, in part:

You know that you and Matt have made a completely unconventional movie. It is cutting edge because no one has done something like this before. People don’t realize it yet – but the film will have longevity because of it. Like it has been said before they will be looking it up in 200 years in the history books. People don’t realize it now but slowly and eventually it will grow and grow and they will.

Zaven (Katchaturian) from the Arpa Film Festival told me personally that they were considering giving the actors awards but then they began to question as to whether or not they were watching reality or drama.  When they realized it was drama they gave me the award. That was very kind of them… and it is a God thing for sure, but trust me… eventually it will come to pass that greater masses will realize what this means.

Isaiah 55:11 – God’s Word will not return empty but it will accomplish that for which He sent it.

God is with us!

What Christopher’s note reminded me of is that, just because I’m tired of working one more day to make this film a reality, writing more e-mails trying to get attention for the story, Twittering and Facebooking without huge followings, God is working through the film. Matt and I began it with the assumption that it was totally out of our league and was something God needed to do. He did, and continues to make His story known in wider and wider circles, where it is still unknown.

Do we have the patience and perseverance to see things through? Sometimes I think I know when God is saying to just quit something. Other times, I depend on His Spirit to confirm that, even though the breakthrough hasn’t yet come, it doesn’t mean that God has changed His mind.



viaRenovo – a way worth taking

I was intrigued by several articles on this site today. Check out the new post by Ron Reed: A&F 100: Spiritually Significant Films. How many of these are on your list of influential and significant films? What impact do films like these make on the spiritual conversations of our cultures?

There are many more insightful posts and links on viaRenovo. Here’s  the point:

viaRenovo is committed to seeing the world through redemptive eyes, seeking to join with God in his restoration of all things through the power of the gospel and His transformative grace.

Visit the site: viaRenovo

“Avatar is real” say tribal people « The Enemy God – The Movie

An immersive visual feast? Pantheistic drivel? Box-office champ? No matter what you think of the film, some audiences are relating more strongly because of their own history with those searching for wealth in their homelands. Here’s a post from our film blog.

“Avatar is real” say tribal people « The Enemy God – The Movie


Book of the Year nominee: Growing Up Yanomamö

“… a bit of Huck Finn, with an Amazon twist.” says Simon Romero, Andean Bureau Chief, The New York Times

We’re excited to hear that a good friend’s book has been nominated as Book of the Year by the Christian Small Publishers Association. Mike is one of the Executive Producers of our film, The Enemy God. He was born and raised with the Yanomamö in the rainforest of Venezuela. His stories are funny, insightful, and challenging.

“… a bit of Huck Finn, with an Amazon twist.” says Simon Romero, Andean Bureau Chief, The New York Times

Growing Up Yanomamö
Growing Up Yanomamö

Growing Up Yanomamo: Missionary Adventures in the Amazon Rainforest, by Mike Dawson (Grace Acres Press), is nominated in the Non-Fiction Biography category. Mike’s book is a finalist, but needs votes from the public to win; simply click and vote. The Book of the Year Award program from the Christian Small Publishers Association can be found at http://www.christianpublishers.net/10votes/.

You can order also the book on our web site at 10X Productions.

Your help in spreading the word to others would be wonderful. Thank you!!