Interview with “Jesus” Producers/Director

Alex: Hello, Joseph and Michael! I just watched the “Jesus” film on Sunday and I really enjoyed it. The audience enjoyed it too.

[Scene from “Jesus: A Deaf Missions Film” showing Caiaphas saying they must arrest Jesus and punish him by death.]

Alex: It’s a Deaf/ASL film. It’s really cool and you both have succeeded. Can you explain what inspired you to become filmmakers?

Joseph: It’s when I watched films such as E.T., Star Wars, and that era. I loved how they told stories. I have a Deaf eye, you know, so I analyzed the films. When I saw the behind-the-scenes of how they created the film, I was hooked. Spielberg is the one who inspired me the most, of course, because he was there in the 70s, 80s, that era, my age.

Michael: I first got into it as an actor. That time, in the 2000s, there weren’t many opportunities for Latinos. I wanted to do something so I started filmmaking. It’s so I could act more in these films. Back then, when I auditioned for roles, they were usually exotic roles or a villain. That time, there was not much emphasis on diversity. So I didn’t want to do the same thing again and again, that “Mexican/Gangster” role. So I started a production company. I did a little before that, but that’s how I became really into filmmaking.

Alex: This film is obviously a big project. The length, the cast, the locations.

[Clip from the trailer of “Jesus: A Deaf Missions Film.” It shows Jesus, Mary, and other main characters]

Alex: Can you describe how many people were involved, the locations, and the length of production?

Joseph: Over a hundred, sometimes up to two hundred people, and the background extras as well. The numbers are really overwhelming. We started in April 2023. We planned to film for only three or four months. We planned it out that way but faced adversity. It was a humbling experience. We realized we needed more time and we’ve never done anything on this scale before. I want to say that the cast and crew did incredible. Even though we didn’t have much, they worked very hard and believed in this project. So I am very grateful. This film couldn’t happen without them. And I have to mention Eric Calbert as well. He was hired as the Director of Photography and associate producer. He was a huge part of the production.

[Scene from “Jesus: A Deaf Missions Film” of a man telling another man about Jesus]

Alex: How did you find the talent for this production?

Joseph: We decided to hire Deaf people regardless of their beliefs or journey. Everyone has different journeys. We welcomed all if they were willing to support the telling of Jesus as history, who he is. If they wanted to support this, then they were welcome. We want the most talented Deaf people possible. This is your community and your story. It belongs to the Deaf community.

Michael: On the topic of for Deaf by Deaf, the sound team was done by a hard-of-hearing woman. She is deaf/hard of hearing. She led the sound team. So it was not only visual, but the sound was done by a deaf person. So that’s incredible.

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Alex: I did see some discussions that the film was religious in nature or is “Christian.” That this message is being pushed on people. I can understand and I’m sensitive to that. But when I watched it, it felt like art. A good example is the Sistine Chapel in Italy. It has the famous painting on the ceiling of God and Adam almost touching each other. It’s beautiful so religion does inspire beautiful art that lasts. All of those people who flock there, are they all religious people? No. They just want to see the art on the ceiling. So I feel that your film is a bit of a Sistine Chapel for Deaf films. It was incredible. You don’t have to be a believer. Just enjoy it and the story.

Michael: Right.

Joseph: Exactly. I didn’t make this for only a Christian audience. I made it for everyone to understand the story.

Michael: Not just the film itself, but behind the scenes, we did have various discussions. I wanted to make sure that our opinions did not become a barrier. We focused on the story. We did avoid certain areas because we felt it would cause a big controversy. We avoided that. We focused on who Jesus is. The story itself will make people curious. I was approached by someone who said they didn’t really understand why people felt such a connection with Jesus until they saw the film. They had a better understanding after.

Alex: What is coming up next with the “Jesus” film?

Joseph: We are focused on continuing showing it in theaters because we believe that’s the best experience. We encourage people to watch it in theaters first. So we are working on distribution in Canada. We’re working on India — well not yet — but on international distribution. Europe, India. For streaming plans, we are thinking of Netflix or Amazon Prime. Any of the big streamers because it would mean everyone has access.

Alex: Is there anything you’d like to add?

Joseph: This film has been a humbling experience for me. The journey to make this happen was not easy. I do have qualifications, but we are still human. We had to figure out how to work together. The result was incredible. It’s exceeded expectations. Thank you so much, the community, for watching the Jesus film. ILY.

Michael: Yes. It just happened back then when I was working on another contract with Joseph. I told him about my experience and we realized we had the same vision. We wanted the same thing but it was hard. Yet, with two people, it’s nice. Left brain working with right brain. We just clicked and said, “Let’s do it. We can!” Of course, I had moments of worry, but we believed that we could do it. We were pumped! So that’s how the film happened. Most of all, we couldn’t do it without Eric, the crew, the staff, and so many other people. I want to thank everyone who sent me messages but it is just impossible for me to reply to everyone. I just left my phone on the shelf. Daily Moth will take care of this and let everyone know! Thank you, everyone! The community, it’s champ. Let’s keep on making movies, right?

Joseph: Yes, agreed. Thank you for having us here.

Alex: Yes, thank you both so much.

For more info: https://www.jesusdeaffilm.com/