Can We Talk? – A Movie with Racing Roots By Dana Chaffin
This Christian movie explores sharing our burdens with others. As Christians we are instructed to encourage one another. Through the characters in this film you can see how God moves people into our path to help us. The movie’s story is just one part of the message. The story behind the filmmakers and the ministries that stream from that partnership make the message even stronger. The Movie Can We Talk is the story of a young man, Nate, who is trying to not only finish his senior year of high school, but also care for his younger sister. With no known father and an absent mother, Nate is left to provide for the household. The people in Nate’s community see him as nothing more than a trouble-maker, bad influence, & worthless, so he lives up to their expectations. He has made bad choices in trying to survive and ended up in trouble with the law. He only asks for help when pressured by losing custody of his sister. His help comes from a stranger, Aaron who takes responsibility for Nate and tries to help him find his way. He asks that Nate be able to do community service at the Kansas Auto Racing Museum with him. Aaron is troubled by guilt of a tragic racing accident in his past. He asks God to give him someone to help and that is what he got, Nate. Aaron finds that he may be the one who gets help from Nate. Together they overcome their troubles and become close friends. This is a touching story of how God puts people in our lives to help us deal with tough times. But are we listening?
Behind the movie Can We Talk is the full-length film by Covenant Films, LLC and Emmanuel Pictures. Emmanuel Pictures is the movie ministry of Emmanuel Church in Abilene, Kansas. The partnership of Covenant Films and the church was a joint decision between filmmaker Doug Thompson and the congregation. They knew that this project was an adventure too big to handle alone, so approximately 60 church members joined the team. The group was used to help with building the set, serving food, holding the team accountable, and lots of prayer. Their goal was to honor God in the film. The idea was an example from the Kendrick brothers and their partnership with Sherwood Baptist Church to form Sherwood Productions that produced movies Fireproof, Facing the Giants, and Flywheel. They hope to be able to generate funds from this film to make future films. Doug Thompson, Covenant Film president, is no stranger to the racing scene. He has been racing various types of stock cars since 1969. He has raced everything from dirt track ministocks to NASCAR Goody’s Dash Series. He has 356 feature wins and 9 track championships. Today Doug races a dirt track modified at Whiskey Lake Raceway in Kansas, the track featured in the film. Doug and his wife opened the Kansas Auto Racing Museum. The 21-acre museum complex is located in the small town of Chapman, Kansas. The museum holds the first NASCAR and NHRA trophies. There are lots of restored race cars from different eras, photos and more. For more information about the museum go to: www.kansasautoracingmuseum.org.
Can We Talk has a very touching message. The DVD includes lots of extras. It shows the behind the scenes of making the movie and the characters. Also it contains remarkable footage at Emmanuel Church with a special service. It tells about Doug Thompson’s racing past and how God has been involved. The DVD can be purchased exclusively at www.canwetalkthemovie.com.
