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A young Joseph Smith, drunk on divine purpose and showmanship, attempts a resurrection in front of his followers. Risking everything in a single grotesque performance that blurs the line between prophet, conman, and madman.
Characters
Joseph
smith
A magnetic yet polarizing figure in 1830s Missouri, Joseph Smith is a master of charisma. While he commands his flock with the sweat and fervor of a divine prophet, his miracles reveal a desperate performer blurring the line between savior and charlatan.
Hayden
A man of absolute, unyielding faith, Hayden is the Prophet’s most devoted witness. While others doubt, he carries his lifeless son to Smith’s feet, convinced that his own piety will trigger a miracle. His "blind faith" makes him a tragic anchor for the spectacle.
Martha
A woman hollowed by grief, Martha is the raw pulse of the congregation's faith. The skeptical heart of the story, Martha sees the "strange alchemy" of the chapel for what it is: a dangerous performance. To her, Smith isn't a savior, but a charlatan wielding a "terrifying power" over her husband's desperate mind.
Visually, the film will feel constricting and immersive. Through the use of warm lighting, intimate camera angles and period appropriate production design, we will make the audience feel like they have traveled back to 1831 and are witnessing the sermon in person. The chapel (hot and tight) and the congregants (sweaty in the air tense with anticipation).
We are leaning on films like There Will Be Blood and First Reformed for style inspiration and cinematic atmosphere. Rather than preach or indict, the tone is curious and cinematic. We invite the audience to engage with this figure not as a distant myth but as someone who lived, joked, seduced, schemed, and ultimately reshaped the American imagination.
STYLE
Themes
In an age of disinformation, charismatic influencers, and cult-like political figures, revisiting the life of Joseph Smith feels eerily timely. His story is one of myth-making, power, control, performance, and belief.
In grappling with him, we’re also grappling with the current political and cultural climate in the United States of America, where “truth” is subjective and people's beliefs are heavily influenced by performative leaders and provocative media outlets.
Our approach isn’t to deify or demonize Joseph Smith. Instead, we aim to portray him as a full, complicated human being, as a charismatic performer, a charming troublemaker, a flirtatious visionary, and a manipulative cult leader.
I grew up an outsider in Utah, surrounded by the Mormon church. Since childhood, its figures felt more like folklore than fact. It wasn’t until I moved to Los Angeles at 30 that I began to see them differently, uncovering the complex, contradictory, and distinctly American people behind the myths, especially Joseph Smith and his ability to not only win over the affection of so many, but to control the room the way he did.
Like many raised within or around Mormonism, I wrestled with its cultural imprint. Now, as part of a generation of Utah-born filmmakers in Los Angeles, I bring both personal history and cultural insight.
Meet the Team
Conor Long
Director
Walter Mirkss
Writer
Eduardo Ayres
Producer
Sean Bagley
Cinematographer
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