'Secret Handshake' starring Kevin Sorbo, Amy Grant set for red carpet premiere at Lipscomb University May 27
Kim Chaudoin | 615.966.6494 |
Local filmmakers and Lipscomb University are rolling out the red carpet for a unique event, inviting cast, crew and general public to the world premiere of the new movie, “The Secret Handshake.”
The red carpet, world premiere of “The Secret Handshake” is set for Wednesday, May 27, at 6:30 p.m. in Lipscomb University’s Allen Arena.
Kevin Sorbo, who had a starring role in last year’s box office hit “God’s Not Dead,” and award-winning singer/songwriter Amy Grant lead an ensemble cast in this family film produced entirely in Middle Tennessee through a partnership between Nashville’s Town Square Pictures and Lipscomb University’s College of Entertainment & the Arts.
“This partnership has provided our students valuable real-world film experience from production through release,” said Mike Fernandez, dean of the College of Entertainment & the Arts. “As our new graduate film studies program and our school of theater and cinematic arts continue to grow, partnerships such as these help us offer our students opportunities that the elite programs across the country do. We’re excited to host the premiere and to see the handiwork of our students, and invite Nashville community to join us on the red carpet.”
“The Secret Handshake” is a heartwarming comedy of men and boys learning together what it takes to be a man. The Dove Foundation has approved the film for all ages and awarded it five seals, its highest rating.
Sorbo starred in the hit TV series, “Hercules, the Legendary Journeys” and “God’s Not Dead,” one of the country's top independent films of 2014. He plays the father in “The Secret Handshake” and has three children of his own.
“When I read the script, I laughed out loud because I could relate to everything,” says Sorbo. “It's a wonderful story.”
Writer/Producer/Director Howie Klausner began his career as a Hollywood filmmaker nearly two decades ago, co-writing the 2000 Clint Eastwood blockbuster “Space Cowboys.” He has since moved to Nashville and formed Town Square Pictures with Producer Tim Brown.
“The idea for this film came when I was asked by a friend to write a letter to his son who was turning 13, offering advice on what it takes to be a man,” says Klausner. “As fathers to five daughters between us, Tim and I saw the potential for confusion...and comedy.”
The film was shot entirely on location in Tennessee, taking advantage of the state’s beautiful back roads, mountains and rivers.
After the premiere, the film will play in select theaters across the country and then available on home video exclusively at Walmart this summer, in time for Father’s Day.
Tickets for the Red Carpet Premiere are available at the Allen Arena ticket office 615.966.7075 or online at thesecrethandshakemovie.com. General admission tickets are $12.50 and $25 VIP packages include meet-and-greet with cast, premium seating and signed poster.
Building on the university’s strong liberal arts foundation, Lipscomb’s College of Entertainment & the Arts was formed in September 2014 with Fernandez appointed as founding dean. It combined the university’s art, music and theater departments with its fashion merchandising program and its graduate film and creative media program. New programs to prepare students for careers in contemporary music, digital entertainment, film, design, gaming and animation are planned for the near future. The college is an integration of several disciplines formerly housed in the College of Arts & Sciences (now the College of Liberal Arts & Sciences).
The mission of the College of Entertainment & the Arts is to be a Christ-centered, innovative, entrepreneurial arts community committed to rigorous artistic training, creative collaboration and professional growth.
For more information visit www.lipscomb.edu/film, www.lipscomb.edu/theater or www.thesecrethandshakemovie.com. Follow production information on Twitter at @TSHmovieinfo, on Instagram at thesecrethandshakemovie, on YouTube at YouTube.com/secrethandshakemovie and on Vine at thesecrethandshakemovie.