Hollywood barks up wrong tree

Over the past few decades, Joe Camp, the creator of the Benji movies, has watched the bar of what is acceptable in general audience entertainment plummet. His dream is to see that bar go back up.

“I pray for the day you can turn on the television and not worry about your home being drenched in programming that promotes a lack of values,” Camp said.

Christians tell Camp that the tidal wave of foul language, sex and violence is too big to stop. He insists that the battle is not in vain if people will act on what they believe.

And, that’s the catch.

People aren’t putting their money where their mouth is. Christians bemoan the lack of wholesome family entertainment yet, when it is offered, they don’t support the effort.

“Benji Off the Leash” opened Aug. 20 to a disappointing $1.5 million dollar weekend gross. Insult was added to injury when “The Exorcist,” a movie oozing mindless violence, landed the No. 1 spot with an $18 million box office.

Camp’s latest Benji movie received a PG rating for thematic elements and some mild language. The motion picture, the fourth for the endearing pet, is far from just another film with an animal as a main character—it propels the audience into an emotional story from the dog’s viewpoint. Exit interviews reveal that adults, in spite of low expectations for the film, are pulled into Benji’s struggle to save his dying mother.

Three Hollywood studios offered Camp a mountain of money for the new Benji film. But the deals all came with a catch: Camp would have to give up total control of the content. And he knew what that meant.

“You have to give kids what they want,” a young studio executive told Camp. “They want (crude) jokes, sex, titillating language, and action.”

The negotiations sent Camp to his knees.

“Surely, God, You can’t be saying I should take this deal,” he recalled praying.

He prayed that if God didn’t want him to be unequally yoked to the Hollywood system, to close the doors.

The doors slammed shut.

Taking a stand
Camp, who grew up going to Sunday School but only established a one-on-one relationship with God in his 20s, flew to Mississippi and, in two weeks, raised all the money needed to make the film on his own terms.

Looking back, Camp said he now recognizes God’s hand in everything that has happened in his life, from the beginning of his career to the latest Benji release. As a young man, Camp attended the University of Mississippi, but longed to transfer to the University of California, Los Angeles so he could learn to make movies. When UCLA turned down his transfer request Camp was devastated.

“I didn’t realize that God was saying, ‘No, fool. Making movies is the easy part. You’re going to stay at the University of Mississippi and learn advertising and marketing so that when Hollywood turns down your movie you’ll have the tools to distribute it yourself.’”

Public reacts
After the public learned that the first Benji, who starred in the 1960s CBS series “Petticoat Junction,” came from an animal shelter, the American Humane Association reported a million canine adoptions. Because of this, when Camp needed a star for the new movie, he issued the casting call to animal shelters nationwide.

A message from Mississippi sent Camp rushing to Gulfport. When he saw the 3-year-old spaniel-terrier mix he tossed out the existing script and wrote a completely new story.

“Benji’s story,” Camp said. “A story that came so much from God that 97 percent of audiences, across all age brackets, love the film. That is an unheard of percentage in the movie industry. And certainly not something that Joe Camp is capable of.”

In spite of everything, though, Camp almost lost heart.

“What’s the point?” he asked God during the monumental fund-raising task. “We’re talking to ourselves. God said, ‘Quit whining and get busy! There’s work to be done.’”

Camp continued arguing.

“God, Benji can’t change the world. Christ changed it once, but that was a long time ago.”

Stunning example
The movie’s release in August sent Camp back to his knees.

“God,” he prayed. “You allowed us to fall right into the middle of a summer with more movies out than ever before in history. How do we compete with the studios? And the word was: ‘Christ will show you the way.’”

“The Passion of the Christ,” produced and distributed completely outside the Hollywood system, became one of the biggest box office movies of all time.

“Christians took a stand,” Camp said. “They told Hollywood, who turned down the movie, that this is what we want.

“Once again, Christ changed the world.”

Camp’s congregation at Ridgeview Church in Valley Center dispelled his growing fear that Christians are just giving lip service to their desire for wholesome family entertainment. Two busloads of parishioners put their wallets behind his effort when they traveled to Escondido to celebrate the movie’s opening night.

“I pray Joe will persevere in his vision to provide wholesome entertainment,” pastor Bill Trok said. “God is using him in a big way. We pray for his influence to increase.”

With his family and Benji, the second animal to be inducted into the Animal Actors Hall of Fame, at his side, Camp continues to work toward his dream. He encourages Christians to use the power of the individual to affect the economic bottom line.

“Use it every day of your life,” Camp said. “If you do, Hollywood will listen. They will have no choice.”

For more information on Joe Camp and Benji visit their Web site: www.benji.com.

Published, October 2004

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