The Secrets of Jonathan Sperry:
Interview with
Producer Chad Gundersen

Midnight Clear

His TV credits include segments on Business World News, Entertainment World News, Health World News for TVA Productions, and Morgans: A Proud Breed and A Western Ranch Story for Horse TV and RFDTV. He has also produced a number of award-winning short films that have garnered tremendous recognition worldwide.

Chad is currently in development on numerous projects, including an international action/thriller based on the best-selling novel, The Witness, by Josh McDowell. He is also structuring a theatrical distribution model along with 5 & 2 Pictures that will target the niche market within churches across the U.S., allowing for a grassroots marketing effort that benefits both filmmakers and the local church body.

Chad Gundersen: I was familiar with Rich’s work and it was a goal of mine to reach out to as many Christian filmmakers as I could…and Rich was on that list. There are only a handful of us out there doing what we do, so I felt it appropriate for us to meet and work together.

CM: Had you worked with Rich Christiano before Sperry? If not, when did you begin working with Rich, and how did that partnership come about?

CG: I had not worked with him before Sperry. He and I met through a mutual friend and producer, Kevin Downes. Kevin and I were going to produce Sperry together, but Kevin got busy on another show and I ended up taking the reigns on the show.

I think Rich and I have very similar visions in what we want to do when it comes to films, so it was a good fit on the "vision" side of things.

CM: How did you and Rich Christiano separate and define your roles as co-producers?

CG: Rich was used to producing all of his films by himself. It was good for me to be there on Sperry because it allowed him to focus on directing and not have to worry about the thousands of things in the producing side of it. Sperry is Rich’s best work to date, so obviously us working together is a good combination.

CM: Rich, a strong Christian and a good friend of HOSFU, is known for overtly sharing the message of Christianity in his films. Is your filmmaking philosophy similar to Rich’s on this count? If not, what is your philosophy, and what did you do to find common ground with Rich while working on this film?

CG: I love Rich’s heart and his goals in this business, and we agree 100% on our visions in sharing our faith. In addition to making films with strong Christian messages, I also do films that have more of an allegorical message to them.

God gave me a scripture for my film career (Rich has one too) and its Matthew 13:10-13. It basically talks about why Christ taught in parables to the non-believers and spoke directly about the kingdom to the disciples. Non-believers are not going to "get" some of the more overtly Christian films we make, so sometimes you need to tell the story differently. I want to be clear on one thing, though: I am not saying you need to water down the message, it just needs to be told in a different way.

CM: Was the pizza shop cameo your idea?

CG: Not really my idea. I actually got my start in the business in front of the camera and on stage. We just needed someone back there and it was a good fit.

Chad Gundersen's cameo in The Secrets of Jonathan Sperry

CM : What was the biggest hurdle you faced during the production of Sperry, and how did you overcome it?

CG: This was a period piece and we had a limited budget. You want it to look good and that’s not easy. But we had an all pro cast and crew on this thing, and I think it shows. I strongly feel that Christians need to start up'ing their game when it comes to filmmaking, on the production side of things.

Too often, Christians are willing to look past bad acting, bad production quality, bad scripts, etc. when a good message is in the film. It’s sad really. God called us to do "all things in excellence," but you do not see that too often in Christian film. You can argue that you may not like our message or our story, but that is a personal preference. What you can’t argue with is that our film "looks" like anything else coming out of Hollywood, when it comes to solid acting and solid production quality.

CM: What is the most meaningful comment anyone has made to you about The Secrets of Jonathan Sperry?

CG: There was a 7 year old boy that saw the film. After he watched it, his mom asked him what the one thing was that he took away from it. He said, "I learned that no matter what, there is always a way to forgive." That’s outstanding! More people need that sort of revelation!

CM: What’s next for you?

CG: Sperry hits theaters in September. I was a co-producer on the Karen Kingsbury adaptation of Like Dandelion Dust, produced by the Downes Brothers, that 20th Century Fox has. It will be released next year sometime. I am currently in development on a very large action/thriller based on a book by Josh McDowell, and am shooting a small teen thriller in Kentucky as I type this. I have 3 other films that should get shot in the next year or so as well. Too much to do…not enough time! I guess that’s a good thing.

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