WHY THIS MOVIE....

This week begins another step in the creative process of working diligently toward the first draft of our film. The beat outline begins with Billy Stanley and the GRP Film team. Often it has been said that making a movie is like "watching paint dry" and to some degree, that is true.  What we are about to undertake is a massive step by step operation, but before we talk about the screenplay, here is an update "behind the scenes".

PLANNING 

Lynn McAfee, Executive Producer has been working for the past couple months on the business plan, analytics and due-diligence regarding the proprietary nature of releasing the movie, ELVIS MY BROTHER.  The McAfee & Associates Firm is providing due-diligence related to the focus of the film. What makes this movie different is the approach to family and this blog is dedicated to family.

Steven Covey always said, "Start with the end in mind". We believe in the planning modules of this film, our market analysis is focusing on the power of planning, pinpointing the mission and understanding the analytics of the filmmaking process.  Many film companies, like Legendary Pictures have been highly successful due to this process.  We want to thank our Executive Producers for working to understand these important lessons in the "why for this film". 

GIVING TO THOSE IN NEED

Our culture goes through many struggles in life.  Some of these struggles are personal and they are very dear to our heart.  Elvis Presley, in many ways lived a charmed life, but it did not start this way.  He was one of the greatest entertainers that ever lived, one of the most benevolent men who gave lavish gifts to many and one who supported non-profits all of his life.  In fact, at one time at Graceland there was an entire wall of checks that had been written to every non-profit you could imagine.

The greatest gift he gave was to his own family. Elvis always wanted his parents, his step-brothers and eventually Priscilla and Lisa around him.  Tragically, he too went through a divorce. However, he knew the importance of keeping family close and his devotion to his own "brothers" never wavered, even when times go tough. 

ALL MEN & WOMEN ARE EQUAL

What made Elvis unique was his personal belief in all men being equal. Billy shared the other day Elvis was from a sharecropper background.  Sharecroppers in Tupelo and in his day were African American people, so he always had a deep sense of loyalty to equality. This is why he was so distraught when Martin Luther King was assassinated in Memphis. If you worked for Elvis at the guard gate at Graceland, or were right next to him on the stage like the Sweet Inspirations, you were just as talented as he was, in his mind.

He called those who worked with him and those closest to him "family".  However, there were those who worked beside him that did not treat him like family, and this is what made the bond of family members so precious.  Can you imagine as a young boy of seven years of age, being transported from a boarding school when you were left there at Christmas time, to driving through the gates of Graceland?

Elvis prayed with his step-brothers, he put them to bed, would take them to play and the blood brother who was lost at child-birth was a new gift to his life. These Stanley boys he kept near to him until he passed away.  Seventeen years of a Camelot existence was amazing, a place of wonder and yes, magical.

THE ROLE OF FAITH

The underpinning of this great entertain'er life was his true belief in Jesus Christ. Many feel somewhat uncomfortable about this, but his Bible was always by his side. He struggled like every man in life about philosophy and the different aspects of his faith, but he believed the gospel was the most important part of who he was.  Yes, Elvis studied many religions, but make no mistake about his true faith, rooted in the Bible he grew up with and ingrained into his family's ancestry. His mother was a hallmark for his faith and he loved her dearly. 

A GOSPEL ALBUM

Why would a rock and roll singer make a gospel album, win Grammy Awards for this category? He would share with his step-brothers all the time, the power of faith and family.  This IS what will make our motion picture different.  The faith of Elvis Presley changed the life of Billy Stanley forever. This was a truly amazing experience for three little boys who would grow up at Graceland.

When you go to Graceland, make sure and stop at all the film monitors you will see and notice the three little Stanley children who were there as elementary children and grew up as middle schoolers when Elvis married Priscilla. You will see the hearts of three young boys who loved Elvis and he loved them. This is the spirit of everything we are doing with this blended family.

THE GOSPEL OF JESUS CHRIST 

Did you know how Elvis began his relationship with his three step-brothers?  The very first evening they met, he took all three boys and he kneeled down with them for their nightly prayers. This was never a custom for the Stanley boys, but Elvis wanted to instill the importance of prayer with them. Why do you think he did this?

Elvis loved God and he wanted his new family members to know the very God he served. This was a hallmark of how the family would begin every meal and why prayer was always a sacred moment to talk to God they would never leave.

Please pray for our team and especially for Billy Stanley in going through this process.  We believe when you do something that truly matters in life, or make a movie with a purpose, there are many evil forces that would try to stop this kind of film. We do not wish to take away other filmmaker's dreams of making films about Elvis, because honestly, his life is full of motion pictures.

We just need your prayerful help to undergird everything we are doing in prayer. Our film team believes in the story of Jesus, we believe He came to save the world by laying down His life for us. Billy shared recently that Elvis Presley's favorite verse was the gospel presented in John 3:16. The verse simply reads, "For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten son, that whosoever believes in Him will have everlasting life."

Do you believe in Jesus Christ?  We want to recommend you reach one chapter of the book of John every single day for a month. After you do this, please invite God to come into your life. Do you know we believe Elvis is in heaven today, not because he was perfect, but forgiven.  

RICK STANLEY'S FAITH
 
Rick Stanley was one of the dearest friends in my life. After Elvis died, Rick began to follow Jesus and he gave his life over to becoming the very thing Elvis would have been most proud of, a minister of the gospel.  He began to preach, to share his testimony of faith and with this, he shared with over 5000 churches in his lifetime, preached with Billy Graham on the same platform and was a tool in helping young people find God.

Rick Stanley's spirit of faith, along with all of the Stanley brother's faith will be seen in this film of family and faith.  Billy contacted me because he wanted to follow wishes that his family had discussed and because his recollection of Elvis and his life, Billy remembered conversations that Elvis had in so many situations, these will be the very words and concepts used in the screenplay.

This film honors Elvis, but also will honor the spirit of the Stanley's as two world collided and became filled with an unconditional love. This film will honor Jesus Christ and will address real struggles but also have the joy, laughter and fun found in living with one of the most interesting men who ever lived. 

PRAYER TEAM

Would you like to be involved in our movie?  We need your help. Our GRP film team is looking to find a PRAYER TEAM who would stand by us as we make this film over the next couple years. Your prayers could make the difference.  We are praying over every aspect of our film, our partners, our cast and crew.  

If you would be willing to pray, would you send an email to us and we are looking for thirty one prayer partners who will undergird this film.  This means one prayer partner for every day of the week.  Here is what we ask.  You would spend one day a month, on a designated day like the "fourth of each month" and remember this project in prayer.  If you will do this, please email us.

God bless you,

Dr. Kevin McAfee
Filmmaker