“Long Journey Home” Short Film
Synopsis: Disillusioned with the family business, a young man is seduced by life’s pleasures only to find the costs far greater than he realized. Thus begins the “Long Journey Home”, a story about a father’s unconditional love for his son and a son’s quest for forgiveness.
The short film was selected as a semi-finalist at The Doorpost. You can watch it at the Doorpost. Join us on our Long Journey Home Facebook Group!
Click here to go to the movie website.
We have two versions of “Long Journey Home”:
- Short Version (7 minutes)
- Full Version (18 minutes)
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Gateway Church’s “I Can Fly”
This was a short transitional narrative video used at Gateway Church‘s 2008 Christmas special. The young actor is Caleb Pond.
For fun, I took some of this footage and shot some more test footage in my parent’s backyard with my dad, Dick Pond, and his dog, Jerry. I call it “Pond Fun”. It’s set to Marc Broussard’s “Home”.
Gateway Church’s “The Elevator”
This was a narrative production for Gateway Church’s 2006 Christmas special called “The Elevator”. The young actor is Caleb Pond.
“Growing Up” Short Film
This short film played in multiple festivals, winning the Audience Choice Award at the San Antonio Independent Christian Film Festival.
PRODUCTION NOTES
“Growing Up” is the first father/son film project for Pond and his son, Caleb. It’s also Pond’s fifth short film. In May of 2005, as Caleb finished his 4th grade homeschool year, the family duo decided to make a movie during the summer. Pond asked his son a question, “Would you like to be behind the camera with me as the director and producer, or do you want to be in front of the camera as the star of the movie?” Caleb thought long and hard for about two seconds, then responded, “I want to be the star!”
The two sat down and thought about a good story to tell—one that would reflect Caleb’s real-life experience with homeschool, and one that would have a strong, moral message about making right choices. They pondered the story through the imagination of a ten-year-old boy. What would he want to be when he grew up? What would go through his mind as he thought about the future? How did he see himself as an adult?
An outline was created, and the project was started. The short film was shot in 24p on the Panasonic DVX-100A and edited in Final Cut Pro, Motion and After Effects.
The whole production experience was great fun for Pond and his family. At times, it was hard work. Long shoots and the Texas heat made for challenging days, but they pressed through. Caleb summed up the whole experience nicely after one of the beta viewings. Someone asked him, “Did you enjoy acting in this movie?” Caleb’s response was, “It was okay, I guess. Mostly, I just enjoyed spending time with my dad.”