New Documentary to Premier at Education Week

Journey of Faith: The New World, a new Maxwell Institute documentary, is set to premier at BYU Campus Education Week in August.

The Maxwell Institute has again teamed with award-winning Latter-day Saint filmmaker Peter Johnson to produce a documentary that will explore the Book of Mormon in the New World.

Johnson directed the Maxwell Institute's DVD documentary Journey of Faith on the travels of Lehi and Sariah. He previously worked as an executive producer with the Audiovisual Department of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and before that as director of the BYU Motion Picture Studio, which under his direction became one of the top-rated university film studios in the world. He has directed such films as A More Perfect Union (winner of a regional Emmy award and nominated for a national Emmy) and the highly acclaimed Mountain of the Lord.

"The success of the film Journey of Faith has almost required that we create a film that follows the story of Lehi and Sariah into the New World," said S. Kent Brown, director of FARMS and the Willes Center and one of the lead historical consultants on the documentary. The new documentary will follow the same format, with commentary from Latter-day Saint scholars and others, and stunning artwork by Joseph Brickey.

Brown also noted that "scholarship on ancient America has gone far enough to begin to match the Book of Mormon's description of life and societies. Only now can we say enough to create a statement in a film. In a real sense, a film freezes research where it is. On the other hand, such a film will serve as a stimulus for further careful work."

Journey of Faith: The New World can be viewed in the Joseph Smith Building Auditorium, August 21—24, Tuesday through Friday, from 4:30 to 6:45 p.m. Registration at Education Week will be required to attend.