Christians in Cinema

Producer Stephen McEveety has a long and rich career in Hollywood, going all the way back to an appearance as “redheaded boy” in one episode of the original Star Trek television series in 1966. Thirteen years later he had his first film credit as a production assistant. From those early beginnings, he built a career that included a long stint with Icon Entertainment, which produced several Mel Gibson films, including the blockbusters Braveheart and The Passion of the Christ.

I thought the story must be told, but also that nobody in their right mind would venture into something like this.

Steve’s latest film, The Stoning of Soraya M., is the story of a woman in the Middle East who suffers psychological abuse at the hands of her husband and who eventually falls victim to a deadly conspiracy. The powerful tale of her persecution is both a daring act of filmmaking and a compelling parable about mob rule. The Stoning of Soraya M. opens in theaters June 26, 2009.

The Stoning of Soraya M. has been compared to The Passion of the Christ in terms of its impact on audiences. How did you come across the property?

Steve:        It’s a funny thing. I had hired Cyrus Nowrasteh, the director, to write a screenplay for me about Cuba and political prisoners. The writers’ strike happened and he had to stop writing. My partner John Shepherd had read his script for The Stoning of Soraya M. and had been bugging me to read it for three months, but I never got around to it. So I picked it up and read it, and it blew me away.

I picked up the phone and made some calls and sent a couple of emails, not expecting to be able to raise the financing. But within two days the money came in and we were off and running. It was that fast. That never happens – it was quite amazing.

When you first read it, what were the elements that really captured your attention?

Steve:        I guess it was the underdog story there. All the characters were so intriguing and represented human weaknesses that we’re all subject to. It just gripped me. I thought the story must be told, but also that nobody in their right mind would venture into something like this.

That’s the fault of man, that it happens and there’s no one there to stop it.

What made you leave your right mind behind and decide to do it?

Steve:        I guess I love the challenge. It’s so hard to make a movie, and if you’re going to do it, you have to have passion behind it, and this story had to be told. For me it’s not about Islam. It is for the other filmmakers, actors and director, but for me it’s a universal story.

It’s a story about how we treat each other. It’s about victims and abusers. I thought if we did it really well, it would resonate with a lot of people personally, rather than be just a story about another land and another people.

There is probably more psychological than physical abuse in the world, and there’s even child abuse in this film. That’s the fault of man, that it happens and there’s no one there to stop it. That’s what attracted me.

What kind of locations do you use for a film like this so you accomplish your goal of authenticity without fear of retribution during production?

Steve:        You hire really good security. The demand by all of us on ourselves was that this movie be as authentic as it could possibly be, which means that we had to go to locations that represent this world. We had to go to the Middle east to film. Knowing all the risks we were undertaking, the filmmakers, the actors and crew were extremely brave.

It’s a film made by Persians about a Persian country. I just facilitated it. I made sure we had the quality a film like this deserves, and I said it’s their story and their movie. I’m just proud to be part of it.

Was Shohreh Aghdashloo everyone’s first choice for her role?

Steve:        Absolutely. She was mine and Cyrus’ first choice, and when we approached her, she couldn’t jump on it fast enough. It was a story that’s her soul. She was right there. She’s one of the bravest women I’ve ever met, I must say.

How did you cast the rest of the roles?

Steve:        The five or six major leads are from the Middle East, mostly from Iran, but live here in America and are professional actors. It was so much fun because they do a lot of theater in addition to film and television. Theater actors are just a blast.

There’s not enough time in the day for them to do all the rehearsing they like to do. It was so much fun to watch an actor shooting all day long and then they come back and talk about the characters at dinner. Next thing you know they’re standing up, working on the characters and rehearsing until 11 o’clock at night, then up at 5 AM ready to go. It was a great experience in terms of being around them and watching them do what they do.

What was the inspiration to bring in Jim Caviezel and to flesh that role out? Some critics have criticized the inclusion of his character.

Steve:        I think that role is critical. At the end of the movie, it’s all about the world knowing, and that character is essential to be the link to the world. Without that, we wouldn’t have a movie or a story to tell. It would be hidden in the dark corners of Iran. So that character’s essential.

Jim felt right and I think he did an amazing job for someone who doesn’t know Farsi. But he was an accident. We didn’t even go to Jim.

Jim happens to be a really good friend of mine, and we had cast on two separate occasions major stars for the role. Both of them lived in Europe and wanted to do it, but within four days of them accepting the role, they both backed out, I think because of concerns for their wellbeing, and their families convinced them to back out once they read the scripts.

Here we were with three weeks left before we were to shoot the movie, and Caviezel’s my friend. His kids go my kids’ school and I see him all the time and talk to him all the time, and he asked me, “What’s going on with your movie?” and I said, “We just lost another actor.”

He said, “Let me read it,” and I said, “Jim, you don’t want to do this.” He’s my buddy. I didn’t want to put him into any dangerous situations. But he read it and said, “Hey, I’ll do this. It’s a great role and the message is really strong, and the story must be told.” So I said OK, and his family allowed him to do it.

I think they knew the concerns and dangers involved, but felt the story must be told.

At the end of the movie, it’s all about the world knowing

That’s something you don’t hear much from the filmmaking community, the determination to tell a story in spite of danger. That shows a really strong belief in the story.

Steve:        It was a rough shoot, and they were all roughing it. But hey, it was worth every minute of it, and as a result we have a really great film.

I’d like to talk about your career for a little bit. It really took a turn in 2004 after you did The Passion of the Christ. The films you’ve done since then haven’t been the big Hollywood blockbusters, but more issue-focused stories.

Steve:        I achieved everything that I could achieve in working with Icon, and I just felt like creating my own company and going for it. I’ve got enough credits to be satisfied career wise, so why not take some risks and do some other stuff? So I’m taking what some other people would call small movies and making them big. I’m doing what I love to do and not worried about working to survive.

I’ve got the greatest life in the world and I’m blessed beyond anything I deserve, so I just went for it.

What is ahead of you? Other projects you’re working on?

Steve:        We just finished a movie that I’m very excited about because it was fun to make and it was a world I kind of grew up in. It’s a fun family film that has no controversy. It’s commercial and a drama, so there is some meat there. It’s not just entertainment, but has a real heart and some life lessons. I’m really excited about that because it should also be very simple to market and I think people will love it. It’s called Snowmen. That will be our next film.

Right now we’re spending a lot of time getting The Stoning of Soraya M. out there and getting it in front of people. It will certainly have an effect on what we do next. We can’t make this kind of movie if nobody goes. But I think it will catch on and open other doors so many more people can make films like this.

I’m not looking to aggravate anyone, but I’m looking for the truth

Is it releasing internationally?

Steve:        We went to Cannes just feel out the waters a few weeks ago, and oddly enough the first territory we sold was the Middle East. That was interesting. We sold a couple more, but weren’t there to try to sell a lot. We’re better off releasing first here [in the States] and seeing how it does before trying to expand a lot, because its success here will affect its value on the foreign market.

What kind of reaction have you received from people who are Middle Eastern that have seen the film?

Steve:        We’ve screened it here for a couple of groups and gotten a very strong reaction. It’s a very pro-Muslim movie, so they’re liable to love it. It criticizes the political system, but I think it’s a very pro-Muslim film. Soraya is a wonderful example of an ideal Muslim woman, I think.

In the screenings we’ve had here, we’ve received the highest numbers from the Iranian community, then the Muslim community in general. All our numbers were high, which is good news.

We’ll get people who hate us, of course. Terrorists will hate us.

I’m not looking to aggravate anyone, but I’m looking for the truth, and I’m looking for material that does affect people at the soul level, and not at the emotional level. Pontius Pilate said, “What is truth?”

This is one of the greatest films I’ve ever made, and I don’t think people will be disappointed.

Do you have any advice for people who are at the beginning of their filmmaking career?

Steve:        I’d say if you’re not prepared to work every waking moment, don’t bother getting into the business. If you want to be successful, throw out the word “No.” Take it out of your vocabulary.