First time film maker brings LDS popculture to big screen
The Singles Ward, the first feature film of BYU graduate Kurt Hale, opens today at Movies 5.
Friends and family gathered Wednesday to support the cast and crew in the premiere at Jordan Commons in Sandy, Utah. Likewise, the producers were able to express appreciation to those who helped create the film – everyone from crew members to family members.
The film is a romantic comedy about the everyday lives of people involved in a singles ward of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
“It’s one-of-a-kind,” Hale said.
Hale co-wrote the production with John Moyer, another graduate of the BYU film school. The two met during school and have been writing together for years, Hale said.
“There is so much material that can be covered about a singles ward,” Hale said. “We could have made five movies.”
The $450,000 film took five months to produce with filming ending in October. That’s record time, Hale said.
Time proved to be their biggest challenge in making the movie, he said. The best part about it is being done and seeing the results of their efforts.
But even with the challenges, they had “a riot” producing the film, Hale said.
“There was never a dull moment,” he said.
Not only did the film give Hale substantial experience, but it gave him an opportunity to work closely with family members. Will Swenson, Hale’s cousin, is the leading actor in the movie. He was born in nearby Wellsville and also graduated from BYU. He said he has been acting all his life and currently hails from New York.
Swenson said he enjoyed working with his cousin, although it was hard to stay professional at times. He also enjoyed working with co-star Connie Young, who said she has been acting since she was 8 years old. The Singles Ward was her first major film. Both Swenson and Young said they loved doing the film.
Swenson said working with such cameo celebrities as Steve Young and Shawn Bradley was “awesome.”
Hale said at first it wasn’t easy to cast the cameos, but as soon as he got Lavell Edwards, “they all tumbled in.”
According to the film’s press release, producer Dave Hunter said, “This is such a pop-culture piece, we felt that many of our LDS pop-culture celebs of today would really add something to the production.”
Hale said the celebrities would help draw those who aren’t members of The Church of Jesus Christ to the show. The film is available nationwide, he said.
In addition to a talented cast, the film fostered a unique soundtrack of church songs rearranged primarily by local Utah bands. The first two days the disk was available online, it sold more than 600 copies, according to the press release.
The religious-comedy combination is oxymoronic, Hale said. But, hopefully the film will generate curiosity from people who aren’t members of the church, he said, and the church’s missionaries can take it from there.
“I’ll feel like we succeeded if people laugh,” Hale said.