Video of "Christmas Leads Us Home" performance

Here is a video from the First Baptist Church in Danville, Georgia of the church's performance of my script "Christmas Leads Us Home" using the unique no-lines-to-learn "Play/Act" soundtrack. (Get the script and soundtrack here.)

Here's the link to it on Youtube.com.

"Jerusalem's Most Wanted" video

Over the years I have seen quite a few videos posted of various churches performing my humorous (yet scripturally accurate) play script "Jerusalem's Most Wanted." Some have done a great job, others... well, they held the scripts in hand and talked their way through it. But when I find an exemplary job of putting this play on (or any of my scripts) I like to feature the video, both for the viewer to enjoy watching and to serve as an inspiration to do it yourself.

The video is only attributed to the "UACC Youth Banquet 2012" so far but as soon as I hear from the person that posted it, I will give more details.

Watch Part One: https://youtu.be/1SWUAJeaWrA

 

 Watch Part Two: https://youtu.be/jXxN5avt3tQ 


 Watch the conclusion, Part Three: https://youtu.be/zpKfdXWjZEA 




Here is where you can get the script and soundtrack that supplies the background score music and sound effects to make it effective and exciting! It was used in the production of the play in this video.

I recently found a video from a church that adapted it to be a musical, with their own songs added in the scenes. You can watch that here: https://youtu.be/XhbfIRKUx8Y

Yet Another Performance of "The Guy With The Cardboard Christ"

Found another video online of a performance of my script "The Guy With the Cardboard Christ," performed by New Life Baptist Church Shepherds Drama Team on 10/14/12.They did a fantastic job of it, and everyone enjoyed it. You will too!

Click to watch: The Guy with the Cardboard Christ from jeremiah_housler on GodTube.

Watch other versions of the script posted here: http://letsskitbusy.blogspot.com/2012/11/another-guy-with-cardboard-christ-video.html

"The Ultimate Gift" video

2012 was the first year that I made available as a stand-alone skit "The Ultimate Gift." Prior to that, it was part of the longer play "Assignment: Comfort And Joy" which was released in 2011. But the past year I began to think that some people might want to do this embedded skit by itself, so I isolated just those tracks and sold the soundtrack separately. Right after Christmas I found this short film online that adapted it for video. They did a good job, making their own soundtrack, since they altered the script a little, to accomodate their available cast. The video notes say "Adapted and Filmed by the members of In-Christ Church and Ministries located in Louisville KY on Bards-town road in the Highlands."

Update: I was able to contact the film-maker, and this is what he wrote about the experience...

"My name is Collin Sage and I belong to a fairly small congregation who, nonetheless, loves the arts. This past Christmas, while trying to figure out what kind of skit to put on for the church, one of the members suggested we try Christianskitscripts.com. The first script I saw was "The Ultimate Gift". As I started to skim over it I could already tell that this was exactly what we wanted.

I had gone to similar sites before and read several other Christmas-themed church plays but was always let down by clunky writing and pieces much too grand to ever film or stage. However, Fred Passmore's script was smooth, fun and versatile. Although our small cast couldn't re-create everything in the script, the story was strong enough to be able to make small alterations without drastically changing his story. This is always wonderful because often times, due to circumstance, re-creating the script word for word can be impossible, especially without compromising the integrity of the story. Even though the script was originally meant to be staged, it was easily converted into a short film by our crew.

As we began filming, everything was laid out before us contextually. The script came with plenty of direction and staging notes and it practically filmed itself. We got the whole thing shot in under 4 hours, which is amazing considering the finished film ended up being about 20 minutes long (film people will understand). We spent very little time prepping and no memorization was needed, just as advertised.

The humor was classic and quirky without going overboard and becoming cheesy or too simple.The message about the birth of Jesus and His salvation was on point and was compiled in such a way to be both powerful and easy for all to understand. Our overall experience with the script, the final product, and with Fred Passmore himself were way beyond what any of us had expected and we will definitely look to his work again in the future."

Here is the film so that you may enjoy their efforts!


View it on Youtube full-size here: http://youtu.be/i4WovX5IOMI

Go here to get all the details on the script and get the soundtrack. Remember, their version was an adaptation, edited, and did not use the soundtrack that I make available. The actual script is different in places and the soundtrack supplies every bit of music and sound effects needed to make your performance hilarious and more effective.

Another "Guy With The Cardboard Christ" video

I found another recent live performance of one of my skit scripts on Godtube, performed by NLBC's Shepherds Drama Team on 10/14/12. I assume that is the New Life Baptist Church, but I'm not sure... however I do know that it is located in Hudson, Michigan since they ordered and used the soundtrack CD that goes with it. They did a great job with it; their acting was top notch, and they delivered every line perfectly. Enjoy!

In case you want to do this yourself, get the script here: http://www.christianskitscripts.com/cardboard.htm


Watch The Guy with the Cardboard Christ from jhousler on GodTube.

Update: Here is another one I found online! They also did a good job of it: http://youtu.be/XeItNo-rk4w

"The Telltale Talent" Film

Well, the fine folks at Rentz Baptist Church in Rentz, GA have been at it again! You may recall the first film they made, "The Soul Hunt," based on my skit script "Assignment: Witness!" The blog entry about it can be read here, and you can view the film as well. This year, for their big wild game dinner event, they have filmed and produced another of my scripts, this time "The Telltale Talent." (Read the script for it here, it is great to perform in your own church, and raise awareness of the need for volunteers.)

Director Steve Knight and the members of the men's hunting fellowship, as well as others at the church, have gone all out and created a 20 minute movie of the script, going so far as to film at night in the town's local cemetery for the climactic scene! You may view the film below; but if you would like to show it or "The Soul Hunt" as your church, contact me for a copy on DVD. http://www.godtube.com/watch/?v=KY6P7WNX

Watch The Telltale Talent on GodTube.

"A Day To Remember" short film

Stephen Ridley made this short film based on my dramatic skit script of the same title. Read the original here. Great work, Stephen!



View it larger here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IbIkLv3wlg8

Here is what Stephen posted on his website about the film... it does contain spoilers, so please watch the film first then read the details.

“A Day to Remember” is a story about a man named Mike who falls into a position where many people would feel anger toward God, but he doesn’t. Mike assures Jeff that he has complete faith in God, and that he trusts Him to use Mike to do His will. Romans 8:28 says, “And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.” Does that mean that if we follow God, only good things will happen to us on earth? Absolutely not. But our time on earth is NOTHING compared to our time in Heaven. We are here to glorify the Lord and do His will, and our reward is eternal life with Him in Heaven. 1 Corinthians 10:31 says, “So whether you eat or drink or whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God.” Fulfilling God’s plan for us is the greatest thing we can do, and whatever sufferings we may endure should have no effect on our faith in Him. 1 Peter 4:16 says, “However, if you suffer as a Christian, do not be ashamed, but praise God that you bear that name.” God has chosen us to serve Him, what higher honor can there be? Doing God’s will is our ultimate goal. Paul wrote to the church of Philippi about remaining in his faith through sufferings. Philippians 1:18-21 says, “(18) But what does it matter? The important thing is that in every way, whether from false motives or true, Christ is preached. And because of this I rejoice. Yes, and I will continue to rejoice, (19) for I know that through your prayers and God’s provision of the Spirit of Jesus Christ what has happened to me will turn out for my deliverance. (20) I eagerly expect and hope that I will in no way be ashamed, but will have sufficient courage so that now as always Christ will be exalted in my body, whether by life or by death. (21) For to me, to live is Christ and to die is gain.”

God chose to save Mike from the tragedy of the twin towers, because he had a different purpose for him. Many lives were lost in the collapse of the buildings, but just like Mike had faith in God’s sovereignty in the face of trial, we too can trust that God has a reason for even tragedies like this. This video shows the importance of having faith in God. Everything He does has a purpose, whether it may seem like it or not. My mother once used the analogy that we are driving in a car and God is in a helicopter. We only see what is right in front of us, but God sees the entire road. So whenever you encounter hard times, maintain your faith in the Lord and know that all things have a purpose.

UPDATE: Stephen has sent me some details on the making of the movie, below:

Behind the Scenes of “A Day to Remember”

I’ve had a love for filmmaking ever since I was seven years old. I have made several videos in the past, but this was my first dramatic video, and I learned a lot while filming it. I asked a couple of my friends to come film the video at my old school. When one of them was unable to show up, we were forced to reschedule. We decided to film at my friend’s church. Unfortunately, I had no idea what I was doing. I asked my other friend to film it all the way through several times, and I planned to just fit everything together with all the different angles. The problem was, we never did anything the same way. In one take, I was saying a line while taking my jacket off, and in the other, I was saying my line was adjusting my tie. Everything was all mixed up and it looked terrible. As much as it pained me to say it, we needed to do it again. We weren’t able to use the church again, because it was being used. So we went back to my old school, and used a room upstairs. Everything was working perfectly, the scenes were looking good and we had just two scenes left. All of the sudden, my camera cut off. It wouldn’t turn on, even with new batteries. So we had to reschedule yet again. Being in college and all of my friends having different schedules, this was no easy task. But I was determined that this would be the last day of filming. I drew out every scene and how I wanted it to be shot, I got a new camera, we had the room ready, everything seemed to be going as planned. However, when it comes to my videos, I am a bit of a perfectionist, especially with this one. I realized I would never be happy with how the video looked unless I could get behind the camera myself. So I decided to cast someone else to play my part, and we rescheduled once again.
It was hard not to be discouraged after so many failed attempts. I had never had so much trouble with a video before, but I trusted that God had a purpose for what was going on, just like the video says! I got in touch with Anthony Dimaria, who is just as passionate about acting as I am with filmmaking. He has been in many videos, including ones that have won contests! So finally, on December 13, we set out to film once more. It took a few hours, but we finally completed it! Anthony’s mom even made barbecue for our lunch break! I immediately made my way home and finished editing that night. Taylor Clyde, who played Mike, wrote the music for the credits and the video was finally finished. I was so eager to upload the video that I was a tad late for work (probably not the best decision). I have learned a lot while making the video, especially that I need to use microphones next time! But I’m pleased with how it turned out and I hope everyone enjoys it! Hopefully it is a good reminder of the sovereignty of God and His love for us all!

Thanks again to Mr. Passmore for providing outstanding scripts for young filmmakers like me!

-Stephen Ridley

Others have sent me video of their performance of this script. Here is one from a past entry.

"The Soul Hunt" film

Steven Knight made this film, adapted from my skit script "Assignment: Witness!" for his church hunting fellowship. Excellent work! I love seeing films people make of my material, and this is the most ambitious so far.

Click the link below to view it on Godtube!

http://www.godtube.com/watch/?v=KY6PWLNX

Steven had this to say about the making of the film:

Our church made a movie for our annual Wild Game Supper, so we took the
"Assignment: Witness" skit and adapted it to a turkey hunt, to fit our
outdoors theme. All of the "actors" are active members of our Brotherhood
ministry, and includes Sunday School teachers, as well as Sunday School
Director, Brotherhood Director, and Chairman of Deacons.

We know for sure of one teenage girl who was saved after the movie
premier, and we have heard several other reports of people who have been
touched by the message. Thanks, Fred, for an awesome skit, and allowing
us to use this to share the Gospel.

Steve Knight
Director, "The Soul Hunt"
Rentz Baptist Church
2011

Read the original skit script here.

Yet Another "Cardboard Christ" Video!

I've found another couple of YouTube videos of people doing my skit script "The Guy With The Cardboard Christ," the script for which you can get here for free. This one is very well done...

View the skit on Youtube here:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XeItNo-rk4w

And here's the first part of another team's performance. Don't know why they didn't post the whole thing, I would like to see it!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zrgIladPlX0&feature=related

Get that skit and more at http://www.christianskitscripts.com/!

Another "Guy With The Cardboard Christ" video

Here is another performance of "The Guy With The Cardboard Christ" that I found online, and they did a terrific job, with bluescreen-inserted background and everything!



Go here to view it in hi-rez on Youtube. Do the skit yourself by getting the script at my site: ChristianSkitScripts.com. It's a proven crowd-pleaser!

The Sheep's Clothing Store video

I'm always searching around the net for video postings of people doing my material. Here's an interesting performance of my skit "The Sheep's Clothing Store," that I found on YouTube.

Here is the link to the video performance!

In the skit by the same title, "The Sheep's Clothing Store" is where items like clothing and accessories are sold to make people look like believers so they can infiltrate churches, date a believer or simply look respectable. Mr. Wolfe (the devil) is the store manager and salesman. A non-committed churchgoer is a customer that discovers that not all is as it seems in the store.

The script and soundtrack for your own performance of this skit (the part of the store's owner is for a male in the actual skit) can be found here:
http://www.christianskitscripts.com/sheepsclothing.htm

Life Imitates Skit

When I write my skits, I sometimes come up with far-out and funny ideas that make a point with hyperbole, and I don't expect that one would ever see a similar situation take place. But I recently found this article online that proved me wrong!

One of the most extreme was a skit about a person who hauls around a cardboard image of Jesus, to depict how people are attached to certain Hollywood images without really knowing the Lord in a personal relationship. You can read that script, written in 2005, here: "The Guy With The Cardboard Christ." Go ahead, read it then come back here.

Okay, now that you have, here is the article where something similar happened in 2006...

A CARDBOARD CHRIST
By Paul Proctor
December 13, 2006

Click here to read original article: NewsWithViews.com

The Des Moines Register reported in its December 10th edition, that teenagers from Lamoni United Methodist Church recently took a life-size cardboard cutout of "Jesus" and rolled it through the Jordan Creek Town Center in West Des Moines on a two-wheeled cart and into the movie theater on their way to see "The Nativity Story."

The Register's Religion Editor, Shirley Ragsdale, reported the triumphal entry this way:

"As they took turns pushing the cardboard Jesus on a two-wheeled handcart through the mall's festive decorations and Christmas music, the faces of the shoppers around them registered surprise and curiosity. Chatter at the food court quieted when the kids pushed Jesus by. Kiosk shopkeepers asked what was going on.

One older man burdened with shopping bags was so fascinated, he nearly blundered into a glittering Christmas tree.

"The cardboard Jesus is an exercise in living their faith and 'taking Jesus Christ with them everywhere,'" said the Rev. Steve McElroy.

Earlier this year, McElroy had talked to about 20 middle school and high school students in his church about the challenge in living as a Christian.

The discussion became more real when the pastor showed up with the cardboard cutout and asked the youth group if they would take Jesus with them any time they were together.

"It's one thing taking Jesus around local places. It's more difficult to be a public Christian when you're hauling him through the mall crowded with shoppers," Pastor McElroy said. "It's a good test."

"It's a chance to show people we are Christians and we're not embarrassed about it," said Agnes Ansong, 16, of Lamoni.

"We want people to know what we believe in and that we take the Christmas season seriously." McElroy said.

They want people to know they believe in what, cardboard? Well, these kids may "take the Christmas season seriously," but obviously their pastor doesn't take the Son of God or His Word too seriously.

"Thou shalt not make unto thee any graven image, or any likeness of any thing that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth. Thou shalt not bow down thyself to them, nor serve them: for I the LORD thy God am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children unto the third and fourth generation of them that hate me;" - Exodus 20:4-5

Have our convictions gone on Christmas vacation? What part of "Thou shalt not" is so hard for today's pastor to grasp? And who says we are we to take Jesus anywhere? Did He not command us to follow Him - which begs the question: Who is in control of the relationship here?

"Then said Jesus unto his disciples, If any man will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me." - Matthew 16:24

It's yet another example of absolute truth being sidelined by a pragmatic pastor teaching his youth that the end justifies the means - that love is a license to do whatever you feel is effective, as long as it's for Jesus - even when the Lord Himself says "Thou shalt not."

Now I don't really blame the kids here because, according to the Register, their pastor is the one who told them to do it - and obviously their parents aren't anymore discerning than the pastor or they would have refused their participation - but consider what they're really being taught by this egregious exercise.

Whether the pastor knows it or not, these kids are learning a cardboard christ-likeness - how to mutely make your way through a materialistic world without uttering a single saving word of truth or bearing witness to a living Christ with a changed heart and a renewed mind. Is there a more perfect illustration of today's "evangelism" than kids pushing a lifeless prop around the mall for spectacle? How Pastor McElroy translates that into "an exercise in living their faith," Ill never know.

-End of article excerpt-

And I thought the idea was too outlandish to be real! Anyway, it's a popular script on the site, and I hope you perform it at your church... but don't act it out in real life!


Below, the drama team of Karmen and Greg act out the script.

To see the skit performed by another drama group, watch this Youtube video as they do "The Guy With the Cardboard Christ." It was performed Feb. 7, 2010 at Garden Grove Church of the Nazarene. Here is Part Two. These fellows did a good job!

More Performance Videos!

Here is another video of a drama team performing one of my skits: in this case, "The Crate Escape." I found it on the website of the Trinity Christian Academy in Jacksonville, FL, and they did a good job it it! The video link is at the bottom of these screen captures of the performance.

Click on the images to view larger size.

The predatory Mr Hunter unveils his Mystery Box.

Our curious young man tries out the promised thrills to be found in the box.

But then he finds that he is trapped in the box!

A New Ager offers advice for escaping the prison.

Another person trapped in a box comes by and can offer no hope.

The Word of God is given to the young man, his only hope of escaping.

Having accepted the Lord, the youmg man bursts free of his prison.

The newly-freed believer now offers hope and help to the returning box person.

The cast comes back out for a bow.

Here is the link to the video page where you can watch "The Crate Escape."

They also did my script "The Telltale Talent."

As well as "The Stupid Dummy's Guide To Higher Self-Esteem."

Go to my skit site to see another team performing it here, also!

"Crazy For Christ!"

I truly enjoy seeing videos of people performing my scripts, and I get sent a lot of them. They also turn up online quite a bit, and that's where I find some occasionally. That's what happened the other day, as I was fishing around for videos of my skits being done, I found a couple posted by a group from Fayetteville, Georgia known as the Harps Crossing Community Theatre. My favorite was their performance of "Crazy For Christ," which is about a young Christian intern applying for a position at a mental institution that has to go on the defensive against the hostile interviewer. The twist at the end is a fun turnaround. The actors delivered their lines perfectly, and I was very pleased with the production.

I asked the person that posted the video, Tim Richardson, for some information, and here's what I learned...

Hello Fred,

I'm so glad you liked Crazy for Jesus. It is one of my favorites as well. We worked hard to perfect our performance and I think the final product is brilliant. I (Tim Richardson) play the doctor/mental patient and the actress was Lauren Kosiba. The rest of the cast is Billy Pagent and Charlie Fells who play the orderlies, Dennis Lowre plays the real doctor, and Amber Hancock plays the nurse. We performed the skit at my home church, Harps Crossing Baptist Church in Fayetteville, GA. Over the last few years I put together a professional theatre company at Harps Crossing, called the Harps Crossing Community Theatre and soon it will be known as Insane Rescue Productions. We have a huge group of up and coming volunteers in our actors guild and our ministry is growing at breakneck speed.

A funny behind-the-scenes story is the hypodermic needle that the nurse uses was supposed to be empty but as a joke they filled it with cold water so when she went to inject me she sent ice cold water down my back. I almost screamed from shock but we laughed about it after the performance!

Your friend,
Tim Richardson

Below I've posted some screen captures of the video showing some of the drama that takes place... click on any of the images to see them larger.

I am looking forward to seeing if they do any more of my material in the future, and I'm pleased to provide the video links below so you can enjoy them for yourself, as well as be inspired to do the skit at your own church! When you go to the video page, there are other videos of their different performances of material by others that you will also enjoy.

Part One

Part Two, the short conclusion.

Get the script they did in the video at my site, http://www.christianskitscripts.com/, as well as many more you will enjoy!