From Survivor to The Bible

From Survivor to The Bible

In a landmark television event, Mark Burnett creator of such reality TV staples as Survivor, The Apprentice and The Voice, has put his creative hand to the 10 hour mini-series The Bible.

After airing recently in America and other parts of the world to an estimated 100 million people, Burnett, with his wife Roma Downey who is best known for her lead role in the long-running TV series Touched By An Angel, decided to finance and produce this epic series.

“When the series aired in the US, it started the discussion around the water cooler about The Bible,” says Downey of the series. “It gave people permission to talk openly about their faith.”

“We felt it was very important to tell the story in a way that brought deep emotional connection with people. The characters in the Bible are us, in many ways. The challenges they face; their love, hopes, dreams—we can all relate to them. It is important to make the connection with the heart. It is through the heart that we embrace God. And we found this was the thread through the whole story, through the entire Bible: the cohesive tissue is the amazing love that God has for us, most evident in the birth and life of Jesus Christ and the power of his resurrection,” Downey said in a recent interview with ChristianityToday.

“We also have access to CGI that no one has had before—the special effects are the work of Lola, the UK company that did CGI for the film Gladiator. We go from Abraham to the story of Moses which is quite spectacular visually. A Bible epic has never been done this way before with these new technologies.”

“In America there are 400,000 churches. That is faith and fact. I’m not saying that the first airing of it will do this. What I am saying is that it will get played over and over. Churches will use this. Missionaries will use this. The DVD will be in many homes. It will be something that will reach so many,” Burnett told ChristianityToday.

Channel 9 has chosen to air the series in a prime time slot, at 9pm on Tuesdays beginning tonight, July 16 and continuing over the next four weeks.

Burnett and Downey believe their five-week miniseries that sweeps through the entire story of the Bible is the most significant work they have done to date.

Go to our Facebook page to listen to a personal message from Roma Downey to churches in Australia about the launch of the series

For resources to support your viewing of the mini-series go to the official home page

Read the full interview with Burnett and Downey at Christianity Today.

Watch exclusive clips and the trailer here.

 

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