The Center for Media Ministry (CMM) at Walla Walla University has received funding, totalling more than $200,000, for multiple projects to be produced and developed over the next year.

The first project, in collaboration with Hope Studios which is a division of Hope Channel International, is a 10-episode television series currently called “Just as I Am.” The project will offer film, media, and TV majors an opportunity to network with industry professionals spearheading the project, as well as obtain experience in production, filming, and editing. Three to six students will be hired to help with the series production and editing.

Matt Webster, production manager for the CMM, said, “Students will be putting what they are learning into real application. With this opportunity, they’ll be getting hands-on experience, developing their knowledge of on-set procedures, and building their professional portfolios. This series will not only teach but show them what it is like to work in a production company with real deadlines.”

“Just As I Am” is a documentary television program that uses representational storytelling to tell the stories of real people who have gone through impossible situations that tested their faith to the core. The series will be broadcast on Hope TV and other streaming platforms in 2024. Funding for this project was awarded to the CMM by Hope Studios.

A second project, produced in collaboration with the North American Division (NAD) of Seventh-day Adventists, is set to film in June 2023. This project was written by Josie Henderson, a graduate of WWU's cinema, religion, and worldviews master's program, and journalism and public relations bachelor's program. Funding for this project has come from a grant from Sonscreen Films at the NAD.

This project will also allow students to learn from industry professionals including director Richard Ramsey from Kingdom Story Company, which has produced films such as “Jesus Revolution” (2023), “American Underdog” (2021), and “I Can Only Imagine” (2018). According to Webster, “The project is set in the surrounding area, and will be of great impact locally and nationally.”

Lynelle Ellis, director for the CMM, said, “The Center for Media Ministry at Walla Walla University exists to provide meaningful, world changing content through the art of filmmaking. Through collaborations with humanitarian non-profits, the Center produces and creates engaging content that impacts the greater Walla Walla Valley and beyond.”

As part of the Department of Communication and Languages, the CMM offers a place for young professionals in the department to hone their skills in videography, film and music editing, and digital programming. The Center for Media Ministry was founded in 2015 for the purpose of showing students the impact they can have through the creative art of filmmaking.

Learn more about the communication and languages department at wallawalla.edu/commlang. 

Posted Jan. 10, 2023.