Natl  Film Title                       Weekend Gross
Rank  LDS/Mormon Filmmaker or Actor    Total Gross   Theaters Days
----  ------------------------------   -------        -----   ----
11    Ocean's Eleven                   $3,176,373      2,010    52
      LDS characters: Malloy twins    175,974,750

27    Behind Enemy Lines                  320,488        503    59
      David Veloz (screenwriter)       57,460,084

36    The Other Side of Heaven             93,809         33    45
      Mitch Davis (writer/director)     1,162,138
      John H. Groberg (author/character)
      Gerald Molen, John Garbett (producers)
      Steven Ramirez (film editor)

37    Mulholland Drive                     88,160         58   112
      Joyce Eliason (producer/writer)   6,421,778

38    Shackleton's Antarctic Adventure     88,107         15   353
      Scott Swofford (producer)         7,045,988
      Reed Smoot (cinematographer)
      Sam Cardon (composer)
      Stephen L. Johnson (film editor)

44    Out Cold                             50,377        140    68
      A. J. Cook (female lead)         13,797,333

61    China: The Panda Adventure           11,391          5   185
      Reed Smoot (cinematographer)      1,885,046

68    Galapagos                             6,842          3   822
      Reed Smoot (cinematographer)     12,243,728

78    Island of the Sharks                  4,228          3  1004
      Alan Williams (composer)         10,619,056

79    Mark Twain's America in 3D            4,184          1  1305
      Alan Williams (composer)          2,145,215

88    Cirque du Soleil: Journey of Man      2,743          2   633
      Reed Smoot (cinematographer)     13,038,601

"Behind Enemy Lines" went from 21st to 27th place after 59 days in release. "The Other Side of Heaven" was 3rd on the "LDS Movies" list, taking in $93,809 in just 33 theaters. It was in 36th place nationwide, down from 34th place last week. "Mulholland Drive" was just behind "Heaven" -- in 37th place this week, down from 33rd last week.

"The Singles Ward", the first "LDS Film" of 2002, premiers at the Jordon Commons (in Sandy, Utah) on Wednesday, January 30th. All proceeds from the "Utah black-tie", all-star affair will benefit the National Kidney Foundation. Two days later, on Friday, February 1st, "The Singles Ward" opens in theaters all over Utah (and Rexburg, ID). As you doubtless know by now, "The Singles Ward" is based on an original semi-autobiographical story by Latter-day Saint stand-up comic John E. Moyer. The screenplay was written by Moyer and the film's director, first-time feature helmer Kurt Hale. With this movie Hale becomes only the 3rd director in the post-Dutcher era to release a commercial feature film made by and about Latter-day Saints (after Dutcher himself and "The Other Side of Heaven" director Mitch Davis). "The Singles Ward" is unique in that it is the first comedy.

In "The Other Side of Heaven", producer Jerry Molen played the mission president and the actual John H. Groberg and his wife Jean Sabine Groberg appear briefly in a wedding scene. Some real-life TV journalists appeared as reporters in Dutcher's "Brigham City." So "The Singles Ward" is not the first LDS niche film to use cameos. But it is the first to make EXTENSIVE use of cameos. It has a ton of them. Bit parts are played in the movie by such famous individuals as Richard Dutcher, Julie Stoffer (MTV's "The Real World"), Steve Young, Thurl Bailey, Sean Bradley, Danny Ainge, Ruth Hale, LaVelle Edwards, Ron McBride, and Wally Joyner. The budget for "The Singles Ward" was $500,000, and we're predicting the movie will be a huge critical and financial success.

Here's an interesting little item: That venerable sage Orson Scott Card has long made clear his interest in movies. The adaptation of his popular novel "Ender's Game" into a movie is a perennial topic of interest. It's true that the screenplays for quite a number of Living Scriptures animated videos were penned by Card. But if you want to see what Card might do as a DIRECTOR or as writer of an ORIGINAL story, there was nothing available... Until now! You can now browse on over to the official OSC site at http://www.hatrack.com and check out Card's new short film "Remind Me Again." The RealPlayer format movie can be downloaded or watched as a streaming video. The 13-minute film was shot and edited by the director's son Geoffrey Card (film student and author of the "God's Army" novelization).

"Remind Me Again" stars Card's daughter Emily, as well as Dustin Evans, Aaron Johnston and Lauren Johnston. The story is about a man who has lost his memory, but he isn't Jim Carrey. FYI: There are no insectoid aliens, magic-wielding prophets, talking trees, sleeping princesses, or time-traveling Mayans. (Or does it?) And be warned: "Remind Me Again" is oddly interesting and well made given the equipment constraints, but it is very low budget (maybe even no-budget). Don't expect a Nike commercial.

Finally, up-and-coming filmmaker John Lyde announced this week the completion of his first major feature-length film: "The Field Is White." The 52-minute movie is being distributed by Thomson Productions and will arrive in LDS bookstores everywhere within a few weeks. "The Field is White" is about a returned missionary who struggles with his faith in post-mission life, but recalls his mission experiences as he re-reads his journals. "The Field is White" stars Tyson Downey, Kirt Fairbank and Lynne Carr. Audiences will remember Lynne Carr as "Sister Beecroft", the mission president's wife in Dutcher's "God's Army" (2000). "The Field is White" will also give you a preview of actor Jaelan Petrie, in a smaller role. Petrie is the star of Kels Goodman's upcoming feature film "Handcart."