Back in April, 2011, I posted an article entitled The New Demographic: Christians Who Don’t Like Christian Fiction. It received a good amount of feedback, and currently has over 130 comments. I described this “new demographic” this way:
There seems to be a lot more readers who like stories with “faith” elements than CBA (Christian Booksellers Association) publishers are currently reaching.
Many Christian readers just don’t seem to like most Christian fiction — at least, what is currently being published as “Christian fiction.” I talk to them all the time. This doesn’t mean they don’t like faith-driven stories and desire a Christian worldview therein, they just don’t like the type of faith that drives most Christian fiction stories. Or the types of stories marketed as “faith-driven.” Or the quality of writing, the limitation of subject matter, the genre tilt, the… whatever. Either way, the CBA seems to target a small demographic of Christian readers.
A recent article in Jezebel magazine reminded me of that post. It’s entitled A Journey Into the Righteous, Risk-Averse World of Faith-Based Films. Though the writer seems a tad adverse to evangelicals (and makes sure to signal her dislike of President Trump), her dissection of the genre seems relatively spot-on.
Historically, to make a faith-based—more specifically, a Christian—movie that will sell, you first need the right kind of story, one that’s probably true but not too bleak. It can’t feature characters who do drugs or participate in illegal activity, or who curse too much; otherwise it’ll push your rating above PG. The story should be dramatic, but not too dramatic, and, above all, inspiring. Your audience doesn’t want to go to the movies to feel crappy—the world is crappy enough! Instead, your main character should face some sort of obstacle, maybe an abusive father, or an addiction to pornography, or have their arm bitten off by a shark.
While the article’s focus is on the Christian film industry, there’s very much an overlap between the CBA audience and the Christian film-going audience. As such, the description of the type of product desired by Christian audiences — whether film or fiction — is basically the same.
Alissa Wilkinson, film critic at Vox.com, former critic at Christianity Today, and associate professor of English and humanities at The King’s College in New York, agreed that what distinguishes a “Christian film” from a movie with Christianity in it is largely about who it gets marketed to. Evangelicals and conservative Catholics, she said, are mostly looking for entertainment that is “squeaky clean—no sexual content, no profanity, no drugs or nudity or alcohol or anything like that.”
Some elements have become fairly standardized within the genre, in addition to that squeaky cleanliness, ostensibly because that’s what Christian audiences and leaders have expressed that they want to see. “The second piece is usually that it has to be inspirational or uplifting in some way,” Peluso continued. (bold, mine)
Those two elements — squeaky cleanness and inspirational fare — have remained relatively standard for the genres.
Which represents a problem for people like me.
Even though I consider myself an evangelical and am invested in “Christian art,” I can’t seem to locate myself in the target market for Christian films and fiction. I’m that Christian who has no interest in seeing “God’s Not Dead” I, II or whatever. Fireproof did not inspire me. And Samson struck me as feeble. Yes, I have seen a few “Christian films” I liked and thought were fairly well-done. However, I generally have no interest in films or fiction that are aimed at evangelical audiences.
Question: Does that put me in the minority or the majority?
Since I wrote the aforementioned post back in 2011, I’ve managed to publish nine books. The first two were published by a Christian publisher and labeled as “Christian fiction.” I soon migrated away from that genre, but have managed to remain connected to my Christian reader base and many Christian authors and publishers. During that time, nothing has happened to change my perspective of that “new demographic.”
There is a sizable market of Christians who don’t like “Christian art.”
Again, this does NOT mean they dislike “Christian” themes in their movies and books. They do! Nor does it mean they prefer watching films with sex and cussing. They don’t! It simply means that they don’t require “squeaky clean,” “inspirational” art.
That’s all.
While the evangelical market described in the Jezebel piece is alive and well, the article hints at subtle change. Even though “some Christian audiences aren’t willing to step outside their comfort zone,” which results in “a narrow range of topics that a faith-based film can tackle—and from very few angles,” Christian artists and authors continue to create and demand less “predictable” fare.
“This, I think, is what’s fundamentally wrong with most faith-based entertainment,” Christian critic Steven Greydanus of DecentFilms.com, wrote to Jezebel in an email. “By and large, it’s made by people who for the most part are only interested in saying things they already know, for people who basically want to hear what they already believe.”
“They’re basically telling the same story over and over again,” said Sister Rose Pacatte, founding Director of the Pauline Center for Media Studies in Los Angeles and film journalist for the National Catholic Reporter, over the phone. “These are films that are aimed at people who are already comfortably religious, that’s what I think. I don’t think they challenge people necessarily to do more for their neighbor. I wanna see people changing things and guiding me in my living room, and with the comfort of my bag of popcorn, and telling me that I need to be involved in the world around me, to change it. Otherwise, what kind of Christian am I? I’m a comfortable Christian. I don’t like films that just make me feel more comfortable.”
But if there is a sizable market of Christians who don’t like “Christian art” and don’t need to be made to feel “more comfortable,” then my follow-up question is: Who is marketing to them?
Oh man, I’m going to be chewing on that one for a while. Christians are comfortably religious and don’t want to be challenged. That exactly describes the demographic who get mad about magic in fantasy books and insist that all dragons are symbols of Satan.
I love Christian fiction (well, as a concept and as a genre. I don’t love every CF book I read). But I think the last Christian movie I saw was Joni, sometime in the 1980’s.
It’s interesting you should post this today, because I’ve just read an interview regarding a new Christian-not-Christian movie, First Reformed, starring Ethan Hawke. One of the comments/criticisms about Christian films is that too many of them are melodrama … never my favourite genre.
Here’s the quote:
“I don’t have much positive feeling for faith-based movies, because I don’t see them as any different than ordinary Hollywood melodramas. You just shoehorn the concept of Christ into a story that could have been told the same without faith, and say it’s a faith-based movie. It’s not.”
https://relevantmagazine.com/culture/film/how-a-legendary-screenwriter-made-the-best-faith-movie-in-years/
Mike, since I last caught up with you, I see that you’ve joined the ranks of hybrid authors. So have I, although for a slightly different reason (long story). Anyway, I agree that it’s possible to weave a relationship with God into our stories without making them saccharin-sweet or explaining the “Roman Road” to salvation.
As for Christian films, I honestly can’t say, as we haven’t seen any film that doesn’t play on our TV in quite a while. The reviews I’ve seen so far for them look good, but that may be a function of the reviewers as much as the films. My honest opinion is that authors (and movie-makers, I suppose) should use our talents so that, by any means, we can reach the widest possible audience.
This was a great think-piece. I myself am a life-long Christian (United Methodist, to be specific) which has its conservative and liberal branches, and I grew up more on the progressive side. Sadly, when it comes to faith-based entertainment, be it books or film, I often feel like I’m on the outside due to the fact that so many of these companies are catering to the right-wing, non-denominational side of Christianity. I did see the first God’s Not Dead film with a few colleagues (I’m also a youth minister) and they were shocked that I didn’t like the film (in particular, it’s ending). Movies like that one paint both Christians and non-Christians in a very “one-dimensional, caricature” light, and if they’re meant to evangelize people to the faith, they do a poor job as right off the bat, you feel that the faith is exclusive to all outsiders. And if you don’t agree 100% with the film’s message, then whether you’re a Christian or not, you’re part of that outside group. So instead of looking to faith-based films, I instead encourage the teens whom I minister to, to look at everything–film, book, music, etc., and find “God moments” within them. I must admit, I have found more of these moments of Christian teaching and the presence of God in “secular entertainment” than in anything put out by companies like Pure Flix
This is spot on! The Christian and ‘Inspirational’ films are watered down and lack authenticity and intensity. But I do not agree that a requirement for a Christian film must not include sex, drugs, swearing and bleakness. Look at the LOTR triliogy. None of that was in those movies which are not considered categorically Christian, yet carry Christian themes. A work of Christian art should not be expected to preach the gospel, nor should it be condidered secular if it does not.
Traditional churches are dying all over the word because of their watered down messages and refusal to admit to the realities and darkness that exist in all of us, Christian or not. It’s just that more and more of us have not ‘drank the kool-aid’ when it comes to becomining a namby pandy Christian who shuns anything they consider too intense or bleak.
I have to agree. I have no real connection to Christian movies. I also seem to find more Christian themes in secular movies. More thoughtful and more inspiring. More realistic to life. Christian movies can be watered down so easy. I didnt read the bible until I was in my late 20s. I was shocked by all the violence, hate and wrong doing. Yet so many redemptive people. Absolutely beautiful. I love movies that show broken people. Real people.