How amazing was I Can Only Imagine? I keep reading about how many film magazines were blindsided by the success of the film. But why? Churches have been talking about this film for a year. And for good reason. It’s messages of faith, loss, forgiveness, love – they are all universal. And I think I can speak for most of our readers, saying that we could use a good dose of inspiration right about now.
We were thrilled to get a few moments to chat with Brent McCorkle – he’s been working on the project nearly since the beginning. On the team at Erwin Brothers Entertainment, Brent was tasked as the Co-Writer, Co-Editor, 2nd Unit Director and Composer of the movie, so he has a unique viewpoint on the story and the story of making the movie.
WTN – Hey Brent, thank you so much for taking the time to chat with us! Can you tell us how you become involved with the Erwin Brothers?
The Erwins and I knew of each other as we both had our first features come out in the same year. Andy reached out to me on facebook with some very kind feedback which really meant a lot to me, so we stayed in touch over the years. A few years later, he had just come off working on a movie that he had to edit by himself, and folks, that’s very difficult. Especially when it’s a film you just directed.
When they set out to make Woodlawn, he knew the editorial task would be monumental with all of the Multicam/football sequences, so he asked me to come help him co-edit. Well, we hit it off so well. I think It was a really good collaborative experience for both of us. They offered me a more substantial role on Imagine and I then had the opportunity to forge a similar collaborative relationship with Jon as we wrote Imagine together. I also working on some of the score for Woodlawn, and then they ended up asking me to do the entire score for Imagine, for which I am eternally grateful. I’m a musician at heart, so getting to score is generally the favorite part of my process.
WTN – What has been the best part about being a part of their filmmaking team?
First – Jon’s drive to succeed is unparalleled. He’s the hardest working guy I have ever known. I hate to admit this, but, as a filmmaker, making the film is only about 30% of the entire process (while all the producers reading this stand up and cheer!) The other 70% of this process is hustling, connecting, networking, getting deals done. Jon understands this and is one the most tenacious, driven-by-sheer-will business guys I have ever been around. He does what everybody else just isn’t willing to do. And I believe that they owe most of their success to his relentless drive to tell the world about their movies. I always joke and say that Jon could start a 3rd political party in the US with the amount of networking and connections he has made along the way, working on these movies. Of course, the movies have to be good too! And this leads me to my second element …
Second – Jon and Andy’s dedication to excellence and quality in their storytelling is a very high-value target for them. It’s a big value of mine as well, and one of the main reasons why we have gotten along so well and had such good synergy. High quality is often a missing ingredient in the faith space, and I applaud these guys for their dedication to learning the tradecraft well, which is a massively steep learning curve if you want to do it right. And we admit we aren’t ‘there’ yet. We are on a path towards excellence, always pushing ourselves harder and higher. It’s been good to be on this path together with the boys.
WTN – Can we talk two of your jobs on the film – writing and composing? What was the process of writing the film? There had to be a lot of extra pressure with how beloved Bart, MercyMe and the song is to so many!
When I sat with Bart and heard his story, I knew that it had the potential to touch a lot of people’s lives and have a positive impact in the world today. In this life, one thing is certain … We will all deal with the deep loss of our loved ones. That’s a universal reality of what it means to be human. But unfortunately, many of us will also deal with all sorts of abuse from the most unlikely of places – our family and our loved ones. These two themes merge in a such a beautiful way in Bart’s story. It was an honor to be a part of the screenwriting process. It has personally helped me to walk this road with Bart for a couple years of my life. I Can Only Imagine is a faith-friendly film, but it’s also a very-well-made drama that will resonate with mass audiences on a deep level, irrespective of religious affiliation. I’m excited for the world to see it. It’s a kind-hearted, loving film at its core. And in a time where we are so divided, angry, bitter, and screaming at each other on social media – I feel like the world needs this little movie to bring folks together. To get us reentered on the things that really matter the most – love, acceptance, and forgiveness.
WTN – And what about the score? How do you create music to surround the story of a piece of music?
‘I Can Only Imagine’ is a movie about a song, which is incredible in and of itself. And not just any song, but a triple-platinum piece of music that is sacred and beloved by millions. Everyone I speak with about the song has a story of how it has personally impacted their lives. To them, it’s not just another piece of music, and I did not take that fact lightly when working on the score. I was tasked with creating the rest of the musical score experience to enhance the audience’s amazing journey of Bart Millard’s true life story.
I think the greatest joy for me was getting to work on this movie as a lead creative from script to screen, as writer, editor, 2nd unit director and composer. It’s a monumental task to put the final emotional touches on the scenes that require music. As a musician-at-heart, who happens to work on films for a living, this was a unique experience and an absolute honor.
Thank you Brent for sharing your experience with us. Find out more information and a theater near you at http://icanonlyimagine.com/
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