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It used to be that faith-based films were low-budget productions, cheaply made with cheesy storytelling and wooden acting \u2014 more about propagandizing than good storytelling. Though contemporary faith-based films labelled as such may still be pushing their agenda to proselytize, they do it in a far more entertaining way so that viewers can still enjoy the film whether they take to the messaging or not.<\/p>\n
Such is the case with \u201cBreakthrough,\u201d the recently released Christian drama directed by experienced television director Roxann Dawson (a former Star Trek Klingon as well — photo to right). based on \u201cImpossible,\u201d Joyce Smith\u2019s account of true ![\"\"](\"http:\/\/irishexaminerusa.com\/wp\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/05\/roxanneDSC01527-copy-255x300.jpg\")
events written with Ginger Kolbaba. Starring Emmy and Golden Globe nominee Chrissy Metz with a cast that includes veteran actors Josh Lucas, Topher Grace, Sam Trammel, and Dennis Haysbert. Helmed by established producer Devon Franklin, basketball player Stephen Curry also was an executive producer.<\/p>\n
The true event underlying this film is the story of St. Louis teenager John Smith (Marcel Ruiz) who cracked through thin ice into a nearly-frozen lake in January 2015; he was underwater for 15 minutes before resuscitation efforts started. Although still alive, he lands in a coma, and his family relies on their faith and prayers in the hope that he awakens \u2014 which he does, seemingly untrammeled. All believe that God had something to do with it.<\/p>\n
The first film from 20th Century Fox to be distributed by Walt Disney Studios following its acquisition of the company, the movie received mixed reviews for its predictable plot but the performances were solid and Metz made an impressive cinematic debut. Born September 29, 1980, Christine Michelle Metz has played Kate Pearson in \u201cThis Is Us,\u201d the NBC drama for which she\u00a0 earned Best Supporting Actress nominations at 2017\u2019s Primetime Emmy Awards and the Golden Globe Awards (in 2017 and 2018). Metz came to NYC to promote the film and hosted a special screening for The Moms blogger event where she spoke afterwards to the audience and this writer as well.<\/p>\n
Q: Based on this true story, how did you got involved this project?<\/p>\n
CM: I was personally inspired for this to happen. I had a general meeting with our producer DeVon Franklin, and started talking about my mother\u2019s stroke, how difficult it was because we didn\u2019t know w![\"\"](\"http:\/\/irishexaminerusa.com\/wp\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/05\/220px-Breakthrough_film_poster-190x300.jpg\")
hat the outcome was to be. I said to the doctor, \u201cYou\u2019re a doctor in a new practice. You don\u2019t know my mother and how powerful she is and what she has to do here.\u201d Almost verbatim, Joyce [the character she plays in “Breakthrough”] said those things to John\u2019s doctors and I thought, \u201cThis is not a coincidence. There\u2019s obviously a reason that I\u2019m here in this meeting with DeVon and the executives.” They sent me the script and the rest is history.<\/p>\n
Q: The film is based on an ongoing feeling of hope. There\u2019s such a lack of it in the world right now.<\/p>\n
CM: Anybody can take a job presented to you, but what can be imparted to an audience who sees this movie? To be a part of a project like this was a no-brainer. It\u2019s how I want to live my life and why would I not want to have that in my career. That\u2019s the legacy I want to leave. I want to do something that I wholeheartedly believe in.<\/p>\n
Q: You\u2019re such a natural; where do you go to find that spirit and make it authentic?<\/p>\n
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CM: Get out of my own way and make sure that I\u2019m present and authentic in telling the story. We all understand what potentially it\u2019s like to lose a loved one or have someone who\u2019s sick and goes through such trials and tribulations. I just get out of my own way and not care about what I look like, what I sound like, if my clothes are rumpled or whatever. That\u2019s not what it\u2019s about. I\u2019m here to tell a story that\u2019s a piece of the puzzle. I\u2019ve gone through a lot in my life — as we all have — but I truly believe that your tragedies become your triumphs and if I\u2019m able to impart what I\u2019ve gone through, and through that empathy, share that we\u2019re not alone in what we go through.<\/p>\n
Q: What do you tell kids about feeling good about themselves and not to dwell on their problems because everyone has one or two or 10.<\/p>\n
CM: We all have something. if we can be a little more gentle and kind to ourselves, then of course we can be that way for others. It starts with yourself. We always want to compare and despair, \u201cOh, my friend has this.\u201d Or, \u201cShe has that and I\u2019ll never measure up.\u201d You\u2019re not supposed to compare because you\u2019re two different people and that\u2019s what\u2019s incredible. We all have our own beautiful strokes of color \u2014 and that wouldn\u2019t be as beautiful if they weren\u2019t so different. That\u2019s what you focus on. That we\u2019re all very special in our own way and there\u2019s no need to compare and despair.<\/p>\n
Q: Who did you learn from or who pumps you up to feel that way?<\/p>\n
CM: My grandmother was that way for me. She was my biggest cheerleader before I did anything. I could say like, \u201cAh,\u201d and she\u2019s like, \u201cThat\u2019s amazing!\u201d She believed in me before I believed in myself. But there is also my connection with God. If we\u2019re here, there\u2019s a reason why we\u2019re here. So that\u2019s just good enough as is. If I happen to do something great, that\u2019s great. And if I don\u2019t, that\u2019s great too.<\/p>\n
Q: Has your Grandma seen what you\u2019ve done?<\/p>\n
CM: She did not \u2013- she passed away seven years ago. But when things were kicking off, she saw that for sure.<\/p>\n
Q: Have you always been religious? a lot of people are spiritual. Some people are more religious. When did that become important to you in your life?<\/p>\n
CM: Really early on. it was always sort of there. My grandmother instilled it in me. When I was a kid and my mom remarried, I became the middle child. I was really lost and it was like, \u201cI don\u2019t know where else to go.\u201d I remember I would go to church on my own. All my friends were having fun and I\u2019m like, \u201cI need help. I can\u2019t figure this out.\u201d I found a lot of solace in music as well which is super important to me. A lot of healing is in the music. From an early age, for sure, I always had it as a baseline. As you get older, your life becomes bigger and fuller and more exciting, but then that\u2019s the point where you really lean in even more because you need it. At least I do personally.<\/p>\n
Q: When did you want to become an actress?<\/p>\n
CM: Around maybe nine or 10. I would be really silly whether I wanted attention or I was funny and would do silly voices and record myself on an old-school boombox. I would pretend that I was a newscaster and would make fun of the voice and the news. I realized that, \u201cOh, I really love making people happy and I love telling stories.\u201d It\u2019s kind of weird, right?<\/p>\n
Q: How did you have the perseverance to knock on so many doors and never give up?<\/p>\n
CM: I come from a really small town in Florida. Gainesville, which is a college town but it\u2019s a small town. I was the youngest and then became a middle child, and was just searching. I went to an open call with my sister who wanted to be a print model. I met this woman who says she knows me. She\u2019s like, \u201cI should be there for a reason.\u201d I\u2019m like, \u201cOkay, what? She\u2019s crazy.\u201d After she says that, I think I\u2019ll never see her again. I turn around, I\u2019m like, \u201cWhere\u2019s the lady in the hat?\u201d Everyone\u2019s like, \u201cWhat are you talking about?\u201d My then manager comes out and she\u2019s like, \u201cWhat are you doing here? Who are you?\u201d And I\u2019m like, \u201cI\u2019m my sister\u2019s guardian.\u201d And she\u2019s like, \u201cDo you sing, act or anything?\u201d I\u2019m like, \u201cNope.\u201d I was afraid of my own shadow. But in my heart I was like, \u201cPlease pick me. Get me out of here.\u201d if I\u2019m an actress, what does that mean in this small town? It was so scary. You either do the New York or L.A. thing and I can\u2019t do New York. I\u2019m so intimidated still as an adult. But anyhow, she asks me to sing for her. I\u2019m like, \u201cI don\u2019t sing.\u201d My sister says, \u201cYes, you do.\u201d<\/p>\n
Q: What do you mean you\u2019re so intimidated?<\/p>\n
CM: Are you kidding me? Where are we right now?<\/p>\n
Q: In Time\u2019s Square.<\/p>\n
CM: that\u2019s all I know. I know there\u2019s a park. I know it\u2019s a Grand. I can smell pizza. I\u2019m really trying to figure it out. I had denied that I was a singer. And she\u2019s like, \u201cWhat are you doing in Gainesville?\u201d \u201cI don\u2019t know.\u201d She\u2019s like, \u201cOkay, let me help you.\u201d We went out and did a showcase. I got an agent right away and a lot of other actors didn\u2019t. I was like, \u201cOh, great. This is like my moment,\u201d I\u2019m 20 years old at this point and I\u2019m like, \u201cI\u2019m moving to L.A.\u201d<\/p>\n
Q: You\u2019re not scared of L.A.?<\/p>\n
CM: Oh, I\u2019m scared. I was afraid to drive on the interstate. Yes, I\u2019m scared. I\u2019m petrified. I just keep pushing through the fear. I was like, \u201cNo, I really want this and want an adventure and I feel like it\u2019s meant to be, like this opportunity\u2019s presented itself,\u201d and I went off to L.A. There were six of us girls living in a two-bedroom apartment on air mattresses. We literally had a printer for a headshots and resumes on a picnic table and some plastic chairs. It was like camp. It was really fun. We played Uno a lot and then we helped each other with our scenes.<\/p>\n
Q: Where are they today?<\/p>\n
CM: They\u2019re back in Florida. One of them though is Jessica Garcia and she\u2019s on a Netflix show called \u201cOn My Block\u201d which is really exciting. We have the same manager. So, anyways there\u2019s so much to tell; I\u2019m giving the Cliff Notes version.<\/p>\n
Q: You\u2019re 20 years old in Los Angeles; how did you not give up?<\/p>\n
CM: Twenty years old, I\u2019m poor, so my manager says to me, \u201cYour agent needs an assistant.\u201d I\u2019m like, \u201cOh, okay.\u201d She\u2019s like, \u201cNo, I think you should be the assistant.\u201d So, the universe is telling me I don\u2019t need to be an actress? Maybe I should be an assistant. I don\u2019t understand but I become an assistant, a junior agent, and then, an agent for nine years. I took a detour. I learned everything that I needed to learn to be in this moment now, for sure, but it\u2019s like watching your boyfriend take another woman out every week \u2014 \u201cHave the greatest time. Good luck.\u201d Yeah, but I learned so much, everything that I needed to learn and was able to be of service because it\u2019s not all about me and my ego and what I want when I want it — but when I should be successful. All of these lessons I got to learn \u2014 that\u2019s what so important.<\/p>\n
Q: When did you switch – do the 180 degree?<\/p>\n
CM: It wasn\u2019t until \u201cAmerican Horror Story,\u201d the fourth season, which I think was 2004. I went on an audition that my co-worker recommended. I said, \u201cIf you get me the audition, I\u2019ll go.\u201d I would get an audition maybe once or twice a year, not often. I went, booked the job and was like, \u201cWhat? Okay\u201d \u2013 which is great. I had a five-episode arc on an incredible series created and directed by Ryan Murphy. But then a year went by, I went back to work. I had a taste of what I really wanted and was like, \u201cHow do I do this?\u201d I just have to take a leap of faith and step out. I said, “There\u2019s a reason why this is happening. I need to trust in myself and believe in myself.\u201d I was going to acting classes at night whenever I could, trying to put the work in and just sort of hold on. That\u2019s the true story, I had 81 cents in my bank account, when I booked \u201cThis is Us.\u201d I had to borrow money to get to the audition.<\/p>\n
Q: How emotional was it for you to film this?<\/p>\n
CM: So emotional. This is a family\u2019s real story and I really wanted to make sure that that was important and we honored their story because it\u2019s so incredible.<\/p>\n