Faith Like Potatoes:
Interview with Regardt van den Bergh

A gifted filmmaker who touches and encourages all those he works with, Regardt van den Bergh was writer and director of Faith Like Potatoes.

Regardt van den Bergh: I believe my experience as an actor allows me to see when actors are uncomfortable with certain lines of dialogue, and also to recognize anything cheesy. I steer away from cheesiness with a passion.

I believe that we, as filmmakers, should show miracles and wonders on film as simply and as real as possible. Often directors or producers want to make too much of a scene and, in their attempt, they become too much. Less is more! The Lord never drew attention to Himself; He avoided it. I feel the less an actor divulges, the more he pulls the audience into his performance. Real performances are also key to coming across as authentic.

CM: In comparing Faith Like Potatoes to Angus Buchan’s narrative in the film’s Special Features, it is clear that this movie is extremely accurate as a biographical film. Why was it so important to you to stay true to life, though many other biographical films take great liberties?

RvdB: This is a very important question. When dealing with a testimony, the veracity of the facts and depiction of the events are crucial. This is where many Christian projects falter. For me it has to do with the anointing on Angus’ ministry. If we embellish and twist facts for dramatic effect, we lose the anointing that should be there. It is as though one thinks that he can do better than the Lord Himself. We shouldn’t lose sight of the simplicity with which the Lord does things because, if we change things, I believe that we forsake the integrity of the testimony.

Obviously one shouldn’t become "religious" in this. Even the harshness of the accident in Faith Like Potatoes had to seem ruthless, in order to have a semblance of the impact it must have had on Angus.

CM: Were you familiar with Angus Buchan and his story before Frans Cronje called and asked you to direct the film?

RvdB: I had already known about Angus when he asked me to write the script, but I got to know him well during the writing.

CM: How did you see your cast and crew impacted by the life story of Angus Buchan?

RvdB: Everyone was blessed by Angus’ story. There were members of the crew who made a decision for the Lord. Not only that, they witnessed some truly amazing miracles. The Lord stopped the rain for us one evening when we needed to shoot at the stadium. This astounded some of the guys because they were there when we prayed and asked the Lord to give us a break in the rain. It was impossible, but He did it.

CM: Which camera was used for the filming of the movie? While working on Faith Like Potatoes, did you use any technical elements for the first time that really made a difference?

RvdB: We used the Sony 700 HD camera. It was the first film that I shot digitally. What an experience! I really enjoyed it. I found it to be much more mobile than shooting 35mm, but - though I enjoyed the process - I didn’t really care much for the technicalities when it came to the film’s release in the theaters. I feel that 35mm is still the best, especially the optical sound. I also feel that there’s still a lot to be developed when it comes to projecting films digitally in theaters.

CM: What is the climate in South Africa like for filmmakers?

There are some incentives from our government to help filmmakers. There is a great rebate on money spent on the production, that amounts to a third of the spend, but no bigger return that R10M ($1.2M U.S.). Also, there is a tax incentive for investors: they get a 100% tax write-off on their investment, if it is from their taxable income. Then there are smaller incentives, like requisite t.v. sales, some development funds, and so on.

A few other things worthy of mentioning are excellent crews, cast, and production facilities. And it's reasonably cheap to make films in South Africa.

All these things are very helpful to any director, especially if he's putting the project together.

CM: What was the most significant lesson that God taught you, from a personal standpoint, during the making of Faith Like Potatoes?

RvdB: If I stay true to the integrity of Angus’ testimony, the same anointing will be a part of the film forever. I found that with the Matthew film I did for The Visual Bible, as well. The project then becomes part of God’s ministry into the nations. If one misses this lesson, their project becomes just another movie.

CM: What was the biggest hurdle that you faced during the filmmaking process, and how did you overcome it?

RvdB: Money is often a problem for directors, because they have such big dreams for their movies. So the biggest hurdle for me was the small budget, but with a really great bunch of people, it worked exceedingly, abundantly well. The crew and cast were phenomenal.

CM: What is the most meaningful comment anyone has made to you about Faith Like Potatoes?

RvdB: I’ll have to give you a couple: an Afrikaans diesel mechanic came to me after seeing the movie and said, "When I walked out of the theater, I made up my mind to sell my business and start preaching." The last time I saw him, he was preaching and had a small congregation near where I live. Another comment was on YouTube: "I thought this was going to be a cheesy movie, but it turned out one of the best I’ve seen."

CM: What is it about directing that energizes you?

RvdB: Creating that moment in which everyone can believe – making it as real as life!

CM: How does your acting background help you to empathize with the actors whom you direct? Do you think it’s helpful for directors to have at least some cursory experience in acting?

RvdB: I think it’s very helpful. Sometimes you don’t really understand the predicament an actor can find himself in. It helps one to recognize disharmonious or false moments and to understand what makes an actor feel comfortable and natural.

CM: What advice do you have for the novice filmmaker?

RvdB: Watch good films! Don’t just watch hamburger movies. By "hamburger movies," I mean easily accessible shows and movies that are dished up on t.v. or advertised wildly. There are films and directors that dish up a more "substantial meal."

I believe it's very important that directors and prospective directors watch good films, for instance, films by Bresson, Sokurov, Majid Majidi, Kurosawa, Goddard, and many others.

CM: What’s next for you?

RvdB: Tornado and the Kalahari Horse Whisperer is doing well here in South Africa and has just won the Africa Audio Visual Awards (TAVA) for Best Film, Best Director, Best Editor and Best Cinematographer! It’s also a testimony, but a very different movie from Faith Like Potatoes.

I’m writing a script ("Tertullus") about a First Century lawyer who tries to disprove the resurrection and discovers the illegalities of Jesus’ trial. Also, The Lamb is a project that I've been working on for many years, that could come off at any moment.

Finally, I’m starting a Visual Bible project, putting the Word of God on film, like we did with the The Visual Bible’s Matthew.

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