The Fireman, directed by Alex Kendrick, released in 2008, was a masterpiece and an authority on romance movies of that decade. How did it come about? Brothers Alex Kendrick and Stephen Kendrick co-wrote and directed the low-budget film, which cost a meager $500,000 to make. Actors join voluntarily and do not get paid; the church comes forward to let the crew use the scene for free; marketing promotion does not cost much, and it mainly relies on voluntary publicity on websites and public blogs. Based on this, they also can't hire big-name actors. The only famous actor is Kirk Cameron, who starred in the family sitcom "Growing Pains" that was popular in the United States in the 1980s. The rest of the actors can't even Be a star. Anyone who knows something about Hollywood will not be optimistic about this little-known low-budget film beforehand. Can it be shown? Anyone watching? Only a ghost would watch this movie! However, the facts surprised these old rivers and lakes. The first weekend of "Fireman" in North America reached as high as 6 million US dollars. Not only did it enter the mainstream theaters in the United States, but its box office performance surpassed that of Brad Pitt and George Clooney. Starring in "Burn After Reading" and Spike Lee's new "Miracle of Santa Ana." The Kendrick brothers were a huge success. As for the reason for the movie's popularity, Alex's answer is: "It's the power of God." Their starting point for creating this film is very simple. They want to use a simple story to describe the family that any American will face. As well as marriage issues, and then give "authoritative answers." I mean, through the film, they point to a certain moral code and family belief that Americans want to get back. "Unlike other films in Hollywood - they reflect the latest lifestyles and values of people living in California and New York, we strive to represent real life," says Alex. "There's still a large percentage of people here who have Another moral belief, we found very few movies to reflect the lives of these people." 1. Meme 1 - Devout Christians and Holy Kisses. What "Fireman" values is to win people's hearts, because the power of people's hearts is infinite, and one of the methods it uses is to ignite people's emotions. Kirk Cameron, a devout Christian who entered show business at the age of nine (as a child star in Growing Pains), manages to keep himself clean despite all the bad press. That in itself is a great selling point, and people have a natural affinity for such people. During the filming of the film, the church and pastor subtly joined in. For example, contact and provide filming locations, and conduct a public fundraiser for the charity fund that Cameron and his wife created, all of which will be used to sponsor terminally ill children and their parents - so that they can have a perfect Free vacation. During filming, a team of 20 volunteers prayed for Cameron, which moved him very much. And that's what the audience talks about. There is a kiss scene at the end of the story, and it is this scene and the story behind it that once again add luster to the film. In the original script, the director specifically wanted the male and female protagonists to hug and kiss for a long time to express their feelings. However, the film's production company has a strict rule: Only actors and actresses who are real couples can kiss on camera. At the same time, Cameron said, "I once promised my wife that my lips would be reserved for her alone." This sentence inadvertently became a meme that boosted the movie's popularity, and audiences were moved by it. Cameron has been married to his wife for 17 years and has six children at the time of saying this. No doubt he made a clear message to the public: rejecting the plot could cost me a lot of filmmaking opportunities, but that's okay, I'm not doing anything to damage my marriage. He treats marriage with a very sacred attitude, which fits very well with the theme of the film. Due to the needs of the plot, the film could not delete the kiss scene, so the director invited Cameron's wife to make a cameo appearance, let her put on the heroine's costume, and completed the shooting in a dimly lit environment. For this detail, many viewers were moved to tears and spoke on social platforms one after another, appreciating the director's arrangement. A "Cameron Couples Support Group" was formed for this purpose, and thousands of moviegoers joined, who voluntarily promoted the film. 2. Meme 2 - The way of publicity that invites believers to watch movies. Due to cost constraints, the publicity method of "Firefighter" has also taken a slant. Different from the big-money marketing of Hollywood blockbusters, it relies more on the interactive mode that is close to people's hearts. For example, before the film was completed, the distributor invited church personnel and marriage experts to observe and guide the filming of the film, and they recommended it to believers and fans. After the film was completed, the production team organized a small-scale screening for the public to watch and discuss for free. This approach has worked wonders, and more than 90% of the audience responded enthusiastically, saying that they would definitely recommend this touching film to family and friends. The distributor also offers child-minding services when inviting people to watch, ensuring that couples can enjoy the movie together. All the efforts were not in vain, and the increasingly heated discussion made the film quickly become popular. Both star Cameron and the production company received a flood of emails, and viewers began to reflect on their married life and talk about how to save their troubled marriage. Cameron said: "I heard that in a movie theater, when the film was over, a man stood up and said, 'My name is Kaibo, and I need 10 people to pray for my marriage.' Immediately 20 people stood up. Pray with him. It's incredible!" That's the fad, it's not the power of God, it's the corollary of memetics, the question is do you have the ability to spark a "discussion of scale."
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