Don’t Kill the Messenger welcomes producer, studio executive, and bestselling author, DeVon Franklin

Don’t Kill the Messenger welcomes producer, studio executive, and bestselling author, DeVon Franklin.

In this episode of Don’t Kill the Messenger, Kevin Goetz sits down with DeVon Franklin, a studio executive, film and TV producer, bestselling author, and motivational speaker. Franklin is known for his work on inspirational films such as Breakthrough, Miracles from Heaven, and Flaming Hot, as well as the BET series Kingdom Business. With a unique blend of faith, business savvy, and creative vision, Franklin has bridged the gap between mainstream entertainment and faith-based content. The conversation explores Franklin’s journey in the entertainment industry, his approach to faith-based filmmaking, and his insights on what makes a successful movie.

Kevin Goetz on DeVon Franklin:

There is a leitmotif that runs through DeVon Franklin. And it’s one of spirituality, it’s one of grace. It’s one of the values that you and I share of making people feel a certain way. Making people feel really good about themselves and acknowledging and living in gratitude.

Early Influences and Career Beginnings

Franklin’s strong spiritual foundation was laid early in life. He credits his mother for instilling important values: “She always had us in church. She always had us learn in our memory verses our scripture verses when we were younger.” This upbringing would later inform his career choices and content creation.

His entry into Hollywood began with an internship while still in college at Hand Print Entertainment which eventually became Overbrook Entertainment, Will Smith’s production company. Franklin recalls, “I got an internship working for the company that managed Will Smith and Jada and Jennifer Lopez and so many great talents.” This experience proved invaluable, teaching him the ins and outs of the industry.

Rising Through the Ranks

Franklin’s career trajectory took him from intern to studio executive. At Sony Pictures, he oversaw marketing for projects like The Pursuit of Happyness, coming full circle with Will Smith.

Franklin on marketing The Pursuit of Happyness to a faith-based demographic:

I was able to successfully execute on that plan and took Will across the country to different events in the faith-based space, and worked on him doing these personalized greetings to the top churches in the top 10 to 12 markets, along with the faith-based trailer that we released to churches all across the country. And anyway, it was a massive success. And so that contribution to Pursuit of Happyness was really instrumental in its success.

Defining Faith-Based Films

When discussing what constitutes a faith-based film, Franklin offered this insight: “The subject matter and the main character’s through line is fundamentally rooted in a spiritual idea.” He emphasized the importance of marketability alongside personal connection: “Can I actually take this message, take this story, and market it to an audience that I believe will want it?”

DeVon Franklin on deciding which films to back:

Does it touch me personally? Is this story as a man of God, a person of faith, is this story affecting my faith? Is it touching my faith? Is it inspiring my faith? Strengthening my faith? That’s first where it starts, just my own personal, like, oh yeah, you know, I’m a person of faith and this really is helping me. And then the second thing is marketability. Can I actually take this message, take this story, and market it to an audience that I believe will want it? And so sometimes I might find a story that I connect to as a person of faith, but then I don’t think I can sell it. So, I don’t do it. And there are some other stories that I don’t connect to that I think, oh man, this is probably very marketable, but it’s not for me.

Understanding the Audience

Franklin’s success in faith-based filmmaking stems from his deep understanding of his audience. He shared a valuable lesson learned from Will Smith: “Let’s not let ego stand in the way of telling the best stories. So if we have a process that all ideas are welcome, the best idea wins, the best director wins, like, if we have that process, the process is going to lead us to success.”

Current Projects and Partnerships

Exciting projects are on the horizon for Franklin. He’s working on Relationship Goals for Amazon and has partnered with Tyler Perry to produce faith-based movies for Netflix. About the partnership, Franklin said:

“It’s kind of like one a year at a minimum, a minimum of three over the four-year term. And then it can be more than that. And so, the first one that we’re doing is called R and B. It’s based upon the Bible story of the love story of Ruth and Boaz. And so we’re doing an update of that love story and we’re calling it R and B. So that is a movie that I love because I’ve never had the opportunity to do a Bible story in kind of a modern way. And I think it’ll appeal to his audience and my audience and we’re really excited about that.”

Learning from Challenges

Franklin also reflected on projects that faced challenges, such as the animated film The Star. He noted, “To my knowledge, there’s never been a mainstream faith-based animated movie… that’s been released by a major studio.” This experience provided valuable lessons about audience expectations and marketing strategies in the faith-based market.

DeVon Franklin’s journey in Hollywood serves as a testament to the power of combining faith, business acumen, and a deep understanding of audiences. Throughout the conversation, Franklin offers insights into the nuances of faith-based filmmaking, the importance of marketing strategies, and the evolving landscape of entertainment. For the full conversation, check out the podcast episode here. And let us know your thoughts on the episode in the comments!

Don’t Kill the Messenger, hosted by movie and entertainment research expert Kevin Goetz, brings his book Audienceology to life. This bi-monthly podcast takes a peek behind the filmmaking curtain as Kevin talks with famous filmmakers, studio executives, stars, and other creatives about movies, filmmaking, audience test screenings, and much more.