See The Preacher's Kid on January 29, 2010, in these select cities:
New York
Chicago
Philadelphia
Atlanta
Washington, D.C.
Houston
Dallas
Cleveland
Nashville
Birmingham
Jacksonville
Miami
Orlando
Memphis
Los Angeles
Albuquerque
Tulsa
Indianapolis
Canton, OH
Chattanooga
Denver
Corpus Christi, TX
Mobile, AL
Montgomery, AL
Oklahoma City
Phoenix
Portland
Virginia Beach, VA
San Antonio
Kansas City, MO
Seattle
Cincinnati
Check your local listings.
GUEST
Stan Foster: Redemption in Hollywood
CBN.com
– YOU CAN ALWAYS COME BACK HOME
Stan Foster has had a thriving Hollywood career for almost three decades. He’s acted, produced, written, and now is adding directing to his credits with his new movie The Preacher’s Kid. It’s a modern telling of the biblical parable of the prodigal son, which is Stan’s favorite Bible story.
Angie, the main character, is the young, unworldly daughter of a well-respected small town pastor in Georgia. Her world is mainly church activities and her father, and Angie feels like she would like to experience more of life. One day, a traveling gospel play comes to town. After sneaking out of the house to see it, Angie is inspired to join the troupe and leave home. She joins the troupe and finds that life isn’t always what she hopes it would be. She has several hardships along the way that force her to go back home.
The Preacher’s Kid has already been received well in the cities where it was screened in. Stan feels that it’s a story that everyone can relate to and the story is told subtly without being preachy. One of the overall messages Stan hopes people get from the movie is that you can always come back home.
HOLLYWOOD DREAMS
Stan grew up in a tough neighborhood with drugs. From the time he was in elementary school to high school he sold drugs. His parents weren’t together. His mother was raising five kids by herself so she had to work all the time to make ends meet. Since his mother was always working, she didn’t have time to guide Stan and his siblings. Stan ended up watching TV or out on the street.
Later, Stan found that he scored well on IQ tests and guidance counselors helped him with his academics. He made it into college and was in his second year of pre-law when he stopped and realized that was not the path he wanted to take in life. When he asked God about it, he felt like God was asking him, “Well, what do you want to do?” Stan answered, “I want to do that.” He was watching TV, and he knew his heart’s desire was a career in TV.
Though he had no formal training or work experience in TV, Stan moved to Los Angeles and looked for an agent. He called the William Morris agency, but didn’t have any success. The second agency refused him, but Stan kept persisting and they agreed to let him come out for a script reading. Stan did so well that the agency called a casting director for a show right away to see if she had a part available. This started Stan’s career as an actor. Soon, he was cast as one of the leads in CBS’ popular TV drama Tour of Duty.
At the height of his time on Tour of Duty, Stan was feeling unsatisfied in his career. He decided to get into writing and it was "just like home” (apparently, Stan had been writing screenplays since childhood for his own satisfaction). He tried writing and a studio executive told him it wasn’t happening. Then, Stan was visiting a church and there was a man prophesying. Stan never met him, but the man told Stan, “There’s a writer in you.”
Stan decided to believe this word from the Lord and that gave him the confidence to write. He began to have success as a writer in Hollywood as well as producing. He was even approached to write the stage play derived from T.D. Jakes’ book Woman Thou Art Loosed. He wasn’t available for the stage play, but he was able to write the screenplay for the movie. The same executive that didn’t think Stan had a future in writing ended up liking Woman Thou Art Loosed.
In hindsight, Stan saw how God works everything together and had a plan for Stan’s life – movies and TV raised him. Every screenplay he writes has a lot of him in them. Everything that has happened to him God has used; they are Stan’s paints on his canvas. Stan hopes kids can find a way out through creativity, and he wants everything he writes to move, motivate and stimulate people.
As for his career in Hollywood, Stan says God has ordered his steps. He never set out to be a Christian writer. It is most important to Stan to tell wonderful stories. There are life long lessons in these. He has never had to compromise his values in his career. He never wanted to utter or write something that his mother couldn’t watch. Stan wants his stories to end in redemption.
TESTIMONY
Stan never went to church as a child. As Stan got older, he hadn’t gone to church because he felt that they were formulaic and stuffy. When he was in college, a friend begged him to go to church. Stan said the sinner’s prayer and got baptized, but wasn’t feeling it. Stan had been watching The 700 Club. He remembers former host Ben Kinchlow saying if you don’t know how to pray, talk to God like He’s right in front of you. One night, Stan prayed, “God, if You’re real…show me.” He prayed and began to speak in tongues.
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