Second Place
CROSS OF THE SAVAGE
Joe Crouch
Los Angeles

What or who was your inspiration for CROSS OF THE SAVAGE?

Being a Christian, ultimately, it was the Holy Spirit who inspired me to write a Christian themed script. I've seen many of the Christian themed movies and felt that they were written by Christians... for Christians. I knew I wanted to write something where the Christian theme was the subplot, and therefore more likely to appeal to a
secular audience, yet still deliver a strong Christian message. I had the general story idea in my head for a couple of years when I saw an old PBS documentary, Joseph Campbell and the Power of Myth. After watching that documentary, I was inspired to actually start the writing process for Cross of the Savage.

How did you come up with the idea for the script?

I had a basic idea of the story I wanted to tell, the story of a man who loses his child in an Indian ambush, only to face him in battle years later. I knew I wanted it to be a story of redemption. Being a period piece, I did a lot of research on the historic battles the US Army fought against the various Native American tribes. Most of the characters and battles are inspired by actual historic events. I tried to weave as much of the history of the Plains Wars and Cheyenne mythology into the script as I could. As I developed the characters, the dialogue became easier and the story fell into place.

How long did it take for you to write the screenplay?

I'm a slow writer. I worked on the script on and off for probably two years. Every time I sit down to write, I re-read the whole script from the top. This helps me to get into the story, and fine-tune some of the things I wrote previously. I suppose you could say that I'm still writing Cross of the Savage, as there are some things that I feel could use some more fine-tuning.

What were some of the challenges you faced during the writing process?

The biggest challenge for me was to balance the Christian subplot with the main story. In the end, the subplot becomes the main story and I'm still not certain if I've found the proper balance. My goal was to be able to deliver a clear gospel message - Salvation is in Christ alone. How do you do that without writing a religious movie? Well, that was the challenge. I struggled to wrap a Christian message in the elements that a secular movie-going audience would want to see. This is a very violent and action packed story with a lot of super- natural elements, all of which may attract a secular audience. I wanted to be bold an unapologetic in declaring the gospel, yet I didn't want to write a religious movie.

Do you have formal training as a screenwriter?

No. Cross of the Savage is my second script. I'm working on my third script now, and have several other scripts I want to write, Lord willing. I do however have the benefit of living in Los Angeles and working in the TV and film industry. I was a set-lighting technician for 10 years, and for the last 5 years, I've work as a video playback technician. I've read a lot of scripts and seen some pretty lousy stories get made into movies. My goal is to become a writer/director, and I'm working toward that goal.

Have you won other contests?

I haven't actually won any contests, however, I've been pleasantly surprised with how Cross of the Savage has done in some of them.

Kairos Prize (Finalist)
PAGE International (Quarterfinalist)
Scriptapalooza (Quarterfinalist)
StoryPros Intl. (Quarterfinalist)
Writers On The Storm (Semifinalist)
Movie Script/Feature (Finalist)

What are your words of advice for other writers who are dealing with Christian themes?

Christian themes can come in many forms. You can write stories about forgiveness, love, redemption, sacrifice, etc. and never mention Jesus Christ. As a Christian, I am well aware that Jesus Christ and his message was not accepted by the world then, nor will it be accepted by the world today. However, I felt convicted in my spirit to include the truth of the gospel in this script. I could have told a redemption story - the Star Wars trilogy is a redemption story - but that doesn't get people saved. So my words of advice, which I myself need to follow, is this - Pray. Write the story that the Holy Spirit inspires you to write. In the Bible, we are told to be wise as serpents and harmless as doves. You may have to be subtile in how you weave the Christian theme into your movie, especially if it is an overt attempt to evangelize. This will likely be a turn-off to many secular people, unless you do it in a way where the audience has invested themselves emotionally into your characters before you spring the trap on them. I think Ben-Hur is one of the greatest Christian themed movies ever written. The Christian theme is a subplot, but when the mother and daughter are healed of leprosy, the trap is sprung and a very strong Christian message is conveyed. I only wish Hollywood still believed in telling stories like that.