RichDrama - Blog #Films and Audio DramasRichDrama - Blog #Films and Audio Dramashttps://www.richdrama.com/blog/tag/films-and-audio-dramasThu, 09 Apr 2026 17:00:29 -0700http://zoho.com/sites/<![CDATA[Famous Last Words]]>https://www.richdrama.com/blog/post/FamousLastWords-IAmStillAliveIt's online!  My first project of the year is already available! I was blessed to perform the roles of Leo Tolstoy and John Milton for  Ethan ]]>

"I Am Still Alive!"

It's online! 


My first project of the year is already available! I was blessed to perform the roles of Leo Tolstoy and John Milton for Ethan Hill's podcast Famous Last Words. 


One of my former students, Colin Peter, plays Civil War General John Sedgwick and Gaius Caesar Augustus Germanicus, otherwise known as Caligula.


Click the arrow to the left to play it on Spotify, but it's also on most other podcast platforms. 

The fun thing about getting to play Milton is that I performed the role of Narrator in Paradise Lost for bassoon and oboe. Terry B. Ewell wrote the piece, inspired by Milton's epic poem of the same name, and performed bassoon. Doris DeLoach played oboe.

We performed the piece at the International Double Reed Society's annual conference and at the MasterWorks Festival, where all three of us were on faculty at the time.

Click here or on the image to watch it in various formats, or watch it below on YouTube...

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I was blessed to win Best Actor in a Short Film at the International Film and Music Festival for my portrayal of the lead role in "A Matter of Perspective," produced by Ethan's family.

]]>Sat, 18 Jan 2025 19:21:56 -0500<![CDATA[John Milton and Leo Tolstoy]]>https://www.richdrama.com/blog/post/john-milton-and-leo-tolstoy ]]>

Famous Last Words

I was blessed to start the year performing the roles of Leo Tolstoy and John Milton for Ethan Hill's podcast Famous Last Words. 

The fun thing about getting to play Milton is that I performed the role of Narrator in Paradise Lost for bassoon and oboe. Terry B. Ewell wrote the piece and performed bassoon. Doris DeLoach played oboe.

We performed the piece at the International Double Reed Society's annual conference and at the MasterWorks Festival, where all three of us were on faculty at the time.

This episode of Famous Last Words is being edited, but once it's online I'll let people know.  In the meantime, you can check out previous episodes (I'm also in Episode 2) on your favorite podcast platforms. 

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I was blessed to win Best Actor in a Short Film at the International Film and Music Festival for my portrayal of the lead role in "A Matter of Perspective," produced by Ethan's family.

]]>Sat, 04 Jan 2025 16:04:08 -0500<![CDATA[Unsung Hero]]>https://www.richdrama.com/blog/post/UnsungHeroWe just got back from seeing Unsung Hero  and absolutely loved it! It was so moving and such a picture of trusting the Lord at every step.  He ]]>

Another Escalator Prayer Answered

We just got back from seeing Unsung Hero and absolutely loved it! It was so moving and such a picture of trusting the Lord at every step. 


Here's my connection to the film: 

Here's some backstory on my escalator prayer: In 2000 I was at the premiere of the AMC Empire 25 on Times Square. My friend Nancy Buchanan was the producer of the gala, which was a benefit for a few Times Square charities including The Lamb's Church of the Nazarene, where I had been an intern and lived for four years. The event left quite an impression on me, so when we moved to Midtown Manhattan it became our theatre of choice, and it was after that first film there that I was reflecting on the gala and prayed that one day I'd be descending that escalator having seen a film I was in. 


You can read more about how special the AMC Empire 25 is by clicking here.


In case you haven't watched the video, I'm not in the film, but thanks to Bev Holloway I was the accent coach for Terry O'Quinn. 


And here's what I wrote down the night I told Joel Smallbone about my work:  "Joel was hoping all the Australian characters could be played by Australians, but he was so pleased with Terry O'Quinn playing his grandfather, and Joel said, 'I never questioned his accent.'"


I also have to thank Ash Sellers, a friend in Sydney, who was willing to record Terry's lines for him, which helped tremendously in the coaching process. 


I'm so blessed with the work Terry did and how the film turned out! 

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We're so very blessed by some recent gifts which have put us closer to our budget for our upcoming trip to bring my one-man play Beyond the Chariots to Europe...

]]>Sat, 27 Apr 2024 20:37:11 -0400<![CDATA[Jonathan Park: Sound the Alarm]]>https://www.richdrama.com/blog/post/SoundTheAlarm

I was so thrilled to be a part of this 20th installment of the Jonathan Park audio drama! Here's the description: 


In just one year, the government outlawed all school-led prayer (1962) and banned school-sponsored Bible reading (1963). 17 years later, the public display of the Ten Commandments in schools was prohibited. The attacks are now accelerating against the values our country was founded upon. As Jonathan Park discovers, we don’t need to wring our hands in despair, we need to join our hands in prayer. 2 Chronicles 7:14 provides an answer. If we will humble ourselves and pray, God can heal our land.

This series takes you on a cross-country tour to discover the importance and power of prayer and repentance.

I play General Howe and a Sergeant. 

Pray this wakes many young people up to the dark forces behind much of the unrest in the world these days!

I was blessed to interview the writer and director of this project and lead Intercessors for America in praying over it:

I released “Pentecost: Beyond the Imagination,” a scene from my one-man play, The Acts, at www.RichDrama.com/blog/post/Pentecost.

]]>Tue, 27 Dec 2022 19:38:00 -0500<![CDATA[What's a Girl to Do?]]>https://www.richdrama.com/blog/post/WhatsAGirlToDo
I'm just thrilled to be a part of the upcoming sitcom, What's a Girl to Do? It's written and produced by Janet Folger Porter, president of Faith2Action and the author of the Heartbeat Bill, which is now saving lives in 14 states and counting! Janet understands that politics are downstream of culture, and it's her heart to turn the nation back to the Lord by making us laugh.

 The sitcom is based on her book, What's a Girl to Do While Waiting for Mister Right?    It tells the story of Janet Folger (played by Janet Folger Porter), who is navigating the single world as a Christian, highlighting the joys, sorrows, disappointments, surprises, and of course the humor. 
I play Wesley, a nerd, who only had a moment of obtuse selfishness in the first draft of the pilot (you can see that scene in the video below), but the team liked the character so much, he was written into a party scene, and now there's a whole episode called "Wesley the Waiter!" Glory to God! When I tell my students there are no small roles, now I've got a story to prove it! 

The show features Robert Davi ( The Goonies, Die Hard, The Expendables 3), Rusty Joiner ( Dodgeball, Melrose Place, Voiceless), Chris Routhe ( Chicago Fire, Empire, Chicago PD), Matthew Moore ( Homeless for the Holidays), George Kokkoris ( Android Cop, Burn Notice), and many other accomplished actors.
Here's an interview I did with Janet in preparation for an upcoming article I'm going to write about her and this sitcom for www.HeadlinePrayer.org:
I play a lead in the silent movie, Providence.
]]>Thu, 01 Jul 2021 12:21:00 -0400<![CDATA[Three Days Later]]>https://www.richdrama.com/blog/post/ThreeDaysLater
Tonight I was at a cast and crew screening of Three Days Later, a film that tells the story of the Passion and Resurrection of the Lord in such a unique and creative way. We’re in the upper room with the disciples after the crucifixion as they battle their doubts. Those who raise hope and faith have them batted down by their friends. We hear stories that only some of the disciples had experienced, which makes them so fresh. I’m so blessed to have had the small role of one of Peter’s accusers in a flashback.

Many of you prayed that the forecasted rain would be stopped, but the Lord answered through creative staging: They used a covered alley! Cast, crew and equipment stayed dry, but the rain fell so consistently in the background that it became another character in the story of Peter’s depression.


Times Square Church played Part 1 on Good Friday and Part 2 on Resurrection Day, but you can watch the whole film below...

March 1, 2021

A prayer of my heart from about 1994 was answered last night. 

When I was a boy Mom read The Cross and the Switchblade to us. If you're not familiar with that title, it tells the story of how David Wilkerson felt called by the Lord to leave his rural surroundings and go to New York City to minister among gang members. It was quite dramatic and captured my imagination. 

When the Lord called me from my rural setting to New York City in 1993, shortly after discovering that David Wilkerson had founded Times Square Church I attended one of their services. I walked into the Mark Hellinger Theatre, the Broadway theatre where they meet, and I prayed that one day I'd get to be a part of one of their productions. 
Last night I performed in their post-apocalyptic Passion project, Three Days Later. I play Xavier, the third person to accuse Peter of knowing the Lord. 


I give the Lord the glory for answering this prayer so many decades later... but right on time.

Keep scrolling for my thoughts that night from the Times Square Church stage...


  I released “Pentecost: Beyond the Imagination,” a scene from my one-man play, The Acts, at www.RichDrama.com/Pentecost.


]]>Sun, 28 Mar 2021 02:59:00 -0400<![CDATA[It's a Life Worth Living]]>https://www.richdrama.com/blog/post/ItsALifeWorthLiving
I had a great experience playing the role of Charles, who--throughout the film--interviews the main character about his life, which is very much worth living.

Joyce and I saw It's a Life Worth Living as a part of the International Christian Film and Music Festival, which was hosted online this year, due to COVID, and concluded with the awards ceremony, for which I was up for People's Choice Actor of the Year. 

I'm just so glad to be a part of a film like this! The message of hope is so clear and strong! Daniel Jeffries, who played the lead, did a fantastic job of showing the arc from hopeless to hope-giver! Antonio Mireles did a great job of playing the fellow who gave Daniel's character hope. 

Though they were only on screen for seconds, I was so blessed by the work of Gary Bosek and Tori Koglin. Gary plays a goofy flower delivery guy, and Tori plays a young woman at an abortion clinic. Their work took their scenes to a whole other emotional plain. 

My character interviewed the character
of Daniel Jeffries (left) about how he
was transformed from drug addict
to a positive influencer. The character
played by Antonio Mireles
introduced Daniel’s to the Lord. 
I was able to attend the premiere in Pontiac, Michegan, and it was a PROFOUND evening! During the Q/A that followed, cast and crew shared their personal connections to loved ones who struggled or continue to struggle with addiction. It was held at Grace Gospel Fellowship, which has a sister ministry, Grace Centers of Hope, across the street and through 52 homes where they help addicts get off drugs and back into lives worth living. 

Several from their programs were in attendance, and some came to the mic after the film for questions and observations. One was the mother of an addict who thanked Nancy Lynette Parker, who played Daniel’s character’s mom. Pastor Kent W. Clark said the woman was two weeks old in the Lord, and she erupted in joy, declaring the work the Lord was already doing in her life! It was SO beautiful. The pastor said, “God has come to save sinners, and if you are one, you qualify!” Here’s more about that: www.RichDrama.com/MyPassion.

The release of the film is on November 10th and will be available at the following places by then: 
-Amazon
 - Shopify 
There will be more to follow. It currently can be pre-ordered on Amazon by clicking here.

FYI: It's about a young man dealing with drug addiction, so there are scenes of substance abuse, including with teens. 

I performed in Keith Perna's first feature film, Christmas Grace, and this has been our fourth collaboration.

This was my fourth project with four others, Adam Terrell,  Joseph Ouellette,  Gary Bosek, and  Jared Withrow, who is one of  Joyce and my 22 screen children. It's my seventh film with both Timothy Jones and  Ryan-Iver Klann, and it's my tenth with  Tim Kaiser. It was my 13th film with Rebekah Cook! I worked with Heather Peterson, who I worked with on " Living Word." Her sister Rebecca has also been helping with pre-production, and she was a student of mine at the Rocky Mountain Christian Filmmakers Camp. William and Morgan Willer, served on crew, and they are also alumni and worked with me on their short films " There" and later " Reflection." Since filming it, Tori Koglin played our daughter in " Reflection."
]]>Fri, 13 Apr 2018 20:49:00 -0400<![CDATA[Beyond the Mask]]>https://www.richdrama.com/blog/post/BeyondTheMask

Beyond the Mask, in which I play Dr. Bonneville, is in theaters across America now! Thank you everyone who came out and supported the April screenings, which made this larger distribution possible. It more than doubled the previous record for the theatrical-on-demand model. Thanks to those that supported the film on opening weekend it's still available for public screenings in your area.

It is now available on DVD and Blu-Ray in Walmarts and online to rent or own.

The Christian Post included me and the NYC April screening in their article "New Faith Based Film 'Beyond the Mask' Uses More Green Screen and CG Effects Than Any Other Christian Movie."

They most certainly pull it off! I got to see Beyond the Mask with about 1000 people in San Antonio at the Christian Worldview Film Festival. They all leapt to their feet as the credits rolled. After the show two-time Emmy Award winner John Fornof, who directed Sean Astin of The Lord of the Rings and Joanne Froggatt of Downton Abbey in The Extraordinary Adventures of G.A. Henty, told me, "Tonight everything changes."

Then he sent me this: "I remember when Star Wars came out--it revolutionized how movies were made. I got that same feeling watching Beyond the Mask. Rich and I were stunned. We both agreed. This is truly a breakthrough movie in Christian filmmaking. It fires on all cylinders--an intriguing and exciting story of God's redemption with plenty of surprising twists and turns, solid acting, captivating cinematography, blow-your-mind special effects and sets, and a powerful music score. Beyond the Mask sets a whole new standard for what a faith-based film can be--and should be.”

All of these fantastic elements come together in a fictional story based around actual historical events. I play a doctor who helps an assassin recover in a village that thinks he's the expected pastor. He must immerse himself in the Word and there comes face to face with Grace. He's ready to leave his past behind him, if only his former boss--played by John Rhys-Davies (who carries a significant amount of screen-time) will let him.

Rich plays the doctor who nurses a
reformed assassin back to health in the
village where he is thought to be the
new pastor.
Faith Flix and Jeannie Ortega, who used to cover Rihanna, also covered my performance and the NYC screening: Action Film 'Beyond the Mask' Set to Hit Theaters April 6 in NYC For Special Screening.


Dr. Diane Howard reviewed the film and included elements from an exclusive interview with producer Aaron Burns for Sonoma Christian Home: "''Beyond the Mask' Producer Aaron Burns Talks Adventure & Family Entertainment."

We had been hearing about the film for over a year before I was cast in it, and I believe the first time we heard about it was when we were on the set of Indescribable. Beyond the Mask is a spectacular story, written by Paul McCusker, who wrote for the children's radio program Adventures in Odyssey.

I was cast as Dr. Bonneville by Bev Holloway and got to work with acting coach John Kirby, both of whom I've worked with a number of times over the years.

It was a delight to reconnect with crew from Christmas Grace, The Screenwriters, Indescribable, Pawn's Move, and Alone Yet Not Alone, and to work with a lot of new friends, many of whom I would work with on later projects like Princess Cut and Polycarp.

John and I both think Beyond the Mask is going to be a hit. He was thrilled with what he was seeing in the monitors.  

To learn more about the film and get involved in spreading the word, go to www.BeyondTheMaskMovie.com.
 
This is the set, where I performed my scenes.
Here's a Behind the Scenes piece they did on the mansion. You can see me briefly at the start.
I thought it was a beautiful parallel that the mansion is a place of healing, and that was the central scene that we shot there. I pointed that out to director Chad Burns, and he invited me to pray before we shot that scene, which he also did before the film screened at the Christian Worldview Film Festival. 
Christians should also know:

*The film is rated PG. 
*There’s some swashbuckling action, mostly aimed at stopping the villains. At one point someone gets conked on the head with a candlestick, but it’s stumbling over the fallen candlestick that puts an end to the fight. You see him tripping from the knees down, and then there’s a cut to him lying on the fireplace hearth. At one point someone gets electrocuted, but it’s seen from a distance.
*There's one smooch to celebrate an engagement.
]]>Thu, 19 Mar 2015 03:07:00 -0400<![CDATA[Indescribable]]>https://www.richdrama.com/blog/post/Indescribable

I played Frederick Lehman in the film Indescribable, which tells how my character and his kids wrote the hymn "The Love of God." I'm the Papa to nine children, and my beloved bride, Joyce, played the Mama beautifully.

I also got to coach the man playing Rabbi Lazer on his Hebrew.

It was chosen as a semi-finalist for the San Antonio Independent Christian Film Festival (SAICFF), where it was screened in February 2013. There it also won runner up for best original score. It also won second place over all and best direction at the Gloryreelz Film Festival in May 2013.

You can watch it on Amazon Prime. 



                  
It was 106 F outside this "packing
plant" in Bryan, TX. When they
closed the doors,  turned off the fans
and cranked up the lights it had to
be over 120!
Copyright Thorn Crown Project,
photo by Rebekah E. Cook
I played Fredrick Lehman, who was
a pastor, hymn writer, and founder
of Nazarene Publishing House.
Copyright Thorn Crown Project,
photo by Rebekah E. Cook

Joyce and I play parents (or in-laws, or future in-laws, or grandparents)
to them all.
Copyright Thorn Crown Project, photo by Rebekah E. Cook



]]>Wed, 20 Jul 2011 03:16:00 -0400