Questions for director.

By Karen Raffaelo

ORLANDO, Fla. – David Nixon, director and producer of recent hits "Fireproof" and "Facing the giants", visited West campus on Thursday Dec. 3. He came to promote his upcoming movie,"Letters to God", due to release April 9.

"Letters to God" is based on a true story, of Tyler, an eight year old boy, who suffered from brain cancer and to deal with the pain he saw his family and friends going through he would write letters asking God to help those around him.

“Everyone has been touched by cancer,” Nixon said.

Shooting for the movie took place in Winter Garden and Arnold Palmer Hospital where Tyler’s father was on set to keep the scene “authentic and not too cheesy,” said Nixon.

Nixon also brings pray worries to the set with him to pray before and during every scene. “At first some of the Hollywood people where a little turned off, but before you knew it they where asking the warriors to pray for them and their families, and then in a few weeks they where praying with them,” said Nixon.

Nixon is best known for his Christian based films, even working with well-known Christian actor Kirk Cameron on "Fireproof". Church based movies rely on volunteers to work on the movies and free screenings at churches for promotions. Sherwood Baptist church was very surprised when the movie they produced for $500 thousand grossed about $34 million.

“Hollywood was afraid to offend, until the 'Passion of the Christ',” said Nixon.

Now companies like Sony pictures, the company that backs Nixon’s projects, are more willing to take a chance on Christian based films. This genre is quickly growing into mainstream popularity. It has something to do with how the directors present the movies.

"You don’t want to be too preachy, but you want to make it something that the Christians and the church will want to see," said Nixon. 30% of the proceeds from "Letters to God" are going back to the church and to cancer research, which is something that most Hollywood movies don’t do.

Nixon and fellow directors and producers Alex and Stephen Kendrick, whom he worked with on "Fireproof" and "Facing the Giants", have a shelf full of movies that will be coming out in the next year.

Autopsy of an author

By Karen Raffaelo

KISSIMMEE, Fla. – “Real life doesn’t end happily ever after, there’s always a big battle,” said Alane Ferguson.

More than 100 young readers filed into the lunchroom at PATHS, Professional Technical High School, on Wednesday, Nov. 17 for the new installment of Ferguson’s forensic mysteries series “The Dying Breath”.

Ferguson’s has been writing young teen mysterious since 1987. Her new book is part of her Viking series, based on real life drama and backed with forensic evidence. She has gone to many autopsies and has interviewed many forensic doctors, to give her young audience a CSI feel in book form.

“Her books are amazing, because they are accurate to science and the medical field,” said Nafees Fatima-Hashina, a nursing student.

Ferguson sat down with her fans on a personal level to talk about her early inspirations for writing and people in her life who helped her to develop as a writer.

“She’s very down to earth and funny, extremely easy to talk to,” said Jalissa Oliva, a phlebotomy student.

Ferguson joked about loving her fans some much that she answers almost every email, “I have to grow up now, so I do have to make a dead line,” she said when asked if things have changed from her first published book to now. “Before they paid half when I started and half when I finished, now it’s all in one lump some.”

Ferguson also commented on the works of other writers for teen or young readers like the Harry Potter series and the Twilight sagas; both of which have a huge fan base compared to Ferguson’s.

“If I wrote it, I’d kill off the mother, she’s a flat character,” Ferguson said regarding the last book in the Twilight saga, of which many critics also disliked the happy and unrealistic ending.

The real Cinderella

By Karen Raffaelo

KISSIMMEE, Fla. – Lake Toho has an outside presentation by the arts community, as a yearly event. This year was a retelling of Cinderella, in a one-man show; written, directed, and presented by Thomas Wood.

“My version goes more into the mythological parts of the stories,” Wood explains, “the dark and gory parts that Disney forgot.”

Wood has been professionally acting for eight years; he has performed at Mad Cow many times. But this was his first time performing his own work.

The adult version of Cinderella did gather a crowd of young teens and some children. The topics of sex, drugs, and violence did have effects on the crowd.

“I love this, all the characters are messed up,” Krissy DeJesus, a local high school student.

There is a sexually crazed prince, sisters who mutilate themselves, a stepmother who plans a murder, and Cinderella is smoking something that makes her hallucinate.

“It is not for young children, but it’s really nothing more than a PG-13 movie,” Courtney Young mistakenly brought her younger children to the event. Her teenager daughter attended the event as extra credit in her drama class.

The show seemed to go well, and many guests talked with Wood after the event.

“I have small dreams,” Wood laughs, “I make them come true every time I act in front of a crowd.”

Time with Toddlers

By Karen Raffaelo

KISSIMMEE,Fla.–Hart Memorial Central Library was filled Saturday, with loud music, some giggles, and young developing minds.

The Lillie room on the second floor has Toddler Tales in between naptime and lunchtime to get the younger children some personal time with their mothers and to get them interacting with other children. Lisa Walker is the local storyteller for the library, she's been an assertive volunteer at the library since her retirement from teaching three years ago.

“It helps them to build on their language skills and their personality skills,” Lisa Walker explains.

The children, ranging from 1 up to 3 years, can be seen communicating and using problem solving skills during games and activity time, and then comprehending during story time.

Walker host the event dressed up, sometimes as characters from the books, sometimes in PJ’s for certain events, and sometimes just in seasonal costumes. "Imagination is really important at this age," Walker explains.

The children love the event and became very captivated when Walker started her show. Rachel Lopez, a mother at the event said that, “now when books are competing with TV it’s hard to find things like these, but it’s nice when you do.” Most mothers agreed.

Amanda Kregel, a three-year-old stated simply, “she’s so cool.”