The summer before Cameron Arnett was to start college at the University of Miami, he entered a series of talent shows where he met a woman backstage who encouraged him to sing about Jesus Christ. After winning eight out of ten of the competitions, Mr. Arnett’s path was altered forever.
“I was a pre-law student and I was working at a hospital in EKG respiratory therapy,” he said. “Competing led me to Christ and the entertainment industry.”
Since that fateful summer in 1980, Mr. Arnett has had an enviable career as an actor in mainstream films and TV shows, such as NBC’s “Miami Vice,” ABC’s “China Beach,” “Doogie Howser, M.D.,” and ”Star Trek: The Next Generation.”
Today, he’s one of the most sought-after actors in the faith-based film and television market.
“The tension level is different, and the purpose is different on a faith-based film set,” Mr. Arnett told The Epoch Times. “It’s more of a family getting something done than it is a business or industry standard.”
Mr. Arnett has acted in faith-based productions, including Overcomer, 47 Days with Jesus, and Eleanor’s Bench.
Faith-based films are on the rise, according to Mr. Arnett, because society has come full circle.
“We’ve tried the drugs, sex, politics, and everything else, and the hopelessness in all that is causing people to be open to the love of God, the truth of God, and even though people are not necessarily walking into the four walls of the church, God has made a way to reach them with films,” he said.
Although he’s starred in more than 50 faith-based projects, Mr. Arnett has yet to act in ‘The Chosen,’ which was created by Dallas Jenkins.
The popular TV series is on Mr. Arnett’s bucket list of acting jobs.
“I’ve spoken to Dallas a few times, and we have talked about a possibility of something in the future,” Mr. Arnett said in an interview with The Epoch Times. “The role he and I have talked about is something I would definitely do.”
Originally from Haiti, Mr. Arnett is strong in his faith and attributes his success as a performer to answered prayer.
His favorite is the “Thy Will Be Done” prayer because, he says, nothing is better than what God decides for him.
“I’ve made many friends and have many brothers and sisters in the faith-based film industry,“ he said. ”Even though it is becoming a larger and more competitive community, it’s definitely God who has led me from one project to the next.”
In August, he’ll star in “The Forge” as Joshua, along with B.J. Arnett, who plays his wife in the film and real life.
Ms. Arnett is also a Clark Atlanta University department chair.
“What has been achieved on ‘The Forge’ set is almost like a slice of heaven because the way in which things are done is so seamless,” Mr. Arnett said.
“The Forge” is a production of the Kendrick Brothers, who are based in Georgia and include Alex, Stephen, and Shannon.
The film finds Mr. Arnett pouring himself into an at-risk youth named Isaiah, played by Aspen Kennedy, who has been raised without a positive male role model in his life.
“Cameron does an incredible job of portraying the role of Joshua, who is an accomplished business owner who has suffered a loss in his family,” Affirm Films Executive Vice President Rich Peluso told The Epoch Times.
Affirm Films, which is releasing “The Forge” in theatres nationwide in August, is a division of Sony Pictures Entertainment specializing in the development of faith-based and inspirational productions.
In addition to starring in faith-based films, Mr. Arnett also produces and directs them.
Currently, he’s producing “Stan The Man,” which is about a former professional football coach who has lived on the streets and is now trying to take a small Christian High School to its first-ever state football championship.
“Once we get over the hurdle of the budget and how we will make a film that can compete and even overtake Hollywood with less, it really is about watching the miraculous power of God bring things to pass that money can’t,” Mr. Arnett said about “Stan the Man.” “You always go into a film as if it is impossible and can’t be done, and then you watch God do the impossible.”
The theme is that individuals can stand on their own two feet again if they are willing to believe in God.
“Stan the Man” is currently in post-production.
“The color correction, the music, and everything else that has to be done on the post side is what’s being done now,” Mr. Arnett added.
