BY WADE COGGESHALL
BROWNSBURG — It’s become the little movie that could.
Titled “The Board,” it was brought to life by more than 60 members of Bethesda Baptist Church. It made its premiere this week. The extent to which it permeates the larger culture is yet to be determined.
Gary Varvel, syndicated editorial cartoonist for the Indianapolis Star, conceptualized the story behind “The Board” from a radio sermon he heard by the Rev. Colin Smith more than a year ago. Smith was talking about a person’s soul. He split it into various parts: the mind, conscience, will, heart, memory, and emotion.
Varvel turned those parts into six board members. It made him think of the movie “12 Angry Men,” in which jurors sit in a room and argue a defendant’s fate. Only in “The Board,” its members are debating the gospel of Jesus Christ.
Varvel mentioned the idea to his son Brett, who graduated in May with a telecommunications degree from Ball State University. The two immediately began drafting the concept. Eventually Varvel introduced it to the members of the adult class he teaches at Bethesda Baptist Church. Soon dozens of church members were involved in making “The Board” reality.
Consequently, a production that would’ve cost about $300,000 was done at a fraction of that price. Tim Boling, an executive engineer for McGraw-Hill broadcasting and a pupil in Varvel’s class, used connections to secure hundreds of thousands of dollars worth of movie equipment for free from Wexler Video in California. Other church members constructed the boardroom set in the Bethesda Christian High School gym. Still others served as everything from caterers and makeup artists to continuity specialists, whose job was to scrutinize every frame to ensure visuals flowed properly.
“That week of shooting was grueling, but it was good,” Brett Varvel said during Tuesday’s premiere at Pavilion Cinema. “It’s been something that’s life-changing for me. Just unbelievable. I hope it’s like that for others.”
About 900 attended four screenings of “The Board” Tuesday. Besides Gary and Brett, the principal cast includes Gary’s son Drew, his brother Terry, and Bruce Crum and Daron Day.
Along with the approximately 20-minute movie, the church produced 10 minutes of extras, including spoofs of the popular Mac computer TV ads.
“I sat there thinking this is something that’s going to change their lives,” said Marcia Lynch, who attended the first screening. “This is the start of something.”
Bethesda Baptist hopes so. Bryan Waggoner, an associate pastor, said the DVD version should be ready in a couple of weeks. That will include closed captioning and foreign-language translation. Once complete, Waggoner says the church plans to give away a copy to each household in Brownsburg. Copies also are available at Bethesda, 7950 N. C.R. 650 E., and can be purchased for $5 online at www.ebethesda.org/store.
“The Board” already is garnering national interest. An interview about the film was conducted last Monday on the nationwide K-Love Christian Radio Network.
“We’re getting e-mails from people who’ve heard about it,” Waggoner said. “There’s a lot of excitement that this has all come together. We’re hoping it will be effective, in using today’s technology, to get the message out.”
Brett Varvel is still recovering from the production process, but is already considering a future for “The Board.”
“I’ve thought about sequel ideas for this one — continuing with this character,” he said. “But nothing’s set in stone. I have other ideas. I definitely think God is moving me in this direction to do something else like this in the near future.”
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Online:
www.boardmovie.com
wade.coggeshall@flyergroup.com
