Jesus Camp, a Magnolia Pictures release directed by Rachel Grady and Heidi Ewing, who previously made The Boys of Baraka together, is a documentary about a charismatic Christian summer camp for children in Devils Lake, North Dakota. According to the distributor, it "doesn't come with any prepackaged point of view", and it tries to be "an honest and impartial depiction of one faction of the evangelical Christian communityâ€. Jesus Camp debuted at the 2006 Tribeca Film Festival, and was sold by A&E Indie Films to Magnolia Pictures. As of September 2006, the film is playing at a limited number of theatres and film festivals. Controversy surrounding the film was featured in a 7 October 2006 CNN report. The film focuses on three children, Rachael, Levi, and Tory, all of whom were between the ages of 9 and 12 during the filming. There are also extensive segments with Becky Fischer, the children's pastor who runs the camp. Jesus Camp follows the three children through Fischer's summer camp as they listen to and experience the doctrines of Christian evangelicalism, including "ending abortion in America." Additionally, there is a debate between Fischer and Mike Papantonio (an attorney and a radio talk-show host for Air America Radio's Ring of Fire). Jesus Camp was screened at Michael Moore's Traverse City Film Festival against the wishes of the distribution company, Magnolia Pictures. Magnolia had pulled Jesus Camp from the festival earlier in the summer after it purchased rights to the film, with Magnolia president Eamonn Bowles saying, "I don't want the perception out in the public that this is an agenda-laden film." Ted Haggard, head pastor of the New Life Church has disowned the film and dislikes his depiction in it. Many viewers have come away with the impression that he appears vain and insincere when conversing with Levi. He is currently spending advertising dollars to drive people to his response. |