Murfreesboro provided locations for the filming of a new feature-length film, titled Word, set to be submitted to film festivals this summer.
Word is based on the theme of “a modern miracle” from the 1925 play Ordet. A Christian-based film, it follows a faithless estranged son returning home to his dysfunctional family in Tennessee after his father, a staunch conspiracy theorist facing serious health issues, summons him.
The project has been in the works for years, and those behind Word were excited to see it finally coming to fruition.
Author, filmmaker and video game producer Han Niu wrote, directed and produced the movie, working alongside fellow filmmakers and local community members.
“I think it’s ultimately about faith. It’s about how people have different opinions of God or divinity,” Niu said. “Everyone has different ideas and they can fight all day about who’s right and who’s wrong.”
Niu got the idea to make the film years ago over a beer with local filmmakers Edwin Allen and Tom Chaudoin. The initially vague concept of wanting to make a modern adaption of the Danish play Ordet led Niu to the Vanderbilt University library to find a copy of the original play in English.
Derwin Hinson as Brian Bogen
The original play, written by Kaj Munk, a Lutheran priest, has been adapted into various films, the best known being the 1955 film Ordet by Carl Theodor Dreyer. Niu decided to write and direct his own interpretation.
He wrote the script in 10 days.
Chaudoin, actor and co-producer, secured his cast by sending out casting calls on social media platforms and then finding a role for everyone who showed up to the first table read of the script. Allen, actor and co-producer, gathered local businesses to provide food for the crew during filming.
With no budget, the film was shot locally within six days in June 2023.
Scenes were shot at the Alvin C. York VA Medical Center and Allen’s personal residence in Murfreesboro. Brentwood Baptist Church also lent its space to the cast and crew.
The director’s open approach to the project meant that anyone who was interested was welcome to participate in filming.
Dylan Callahan as Johnny Bogen, third son
“No-budget doesn’t mean no vision. On the contrary, it means having a vision so compelling that it draws people in, inviting them to contribute their talents, time and energy to something that transcends the individual,” Niu said. “It’s about harnessing the power of community, where every person who steps onto the set becomes an integral part of the filmmaking process. Whether it’s acting in front of the camera, holding a boom mic, or sharing a location, every contribution is a vital thread in the tapestry of our film.”
Those involved agreed on a revenue sharing plan upon the sale of the film.
“Word is a testament to what can be achieved when a group of determined individuals come together, not for financial gain, but for the love of storytelling and the shared experience of creating something meaningful,” Niu said. “Naturally, we became a very close-knit team in the process of making the film.”
Niu, who graduated with a master’s degree in film from the University of Auckland in New Zealand before moving to the U.S., said he believes the existing model of commercial filmmaking needs to be reinvented and thinks that film is a democratic creative medium accessible to many.
“We would like to continue making cinema on a human scale if this proof of concept proves to be successful,” Niu said.
Niu founded his entertainment tech company, Tartary, in 2021 in Mt. Shasta, California, and the company expanded to Tennessee in January 2023. Tartary has several other film, animation and game projects in development.
Premiere 6 in Murfreesboro hosted a premiere showing of the film for the cast and crew in March, and filmmakers aim for it to be shown at festivals later this year. The filmmakers say that Word will make the summer film festival rounds before being released to the public on various streaming platforms.
For more information on Word, visit wordthemovie.com.
