This week we speak with Michelle Benzinger, mother of six, speaker, entrepreneur, and Creative Director of Meaningful Market. In this podcast, Marcellino and Michelle talk about how we are called as creatives to champion each other’s dreams. Marcellino and Michelle each share stories from their own lives of times when the body of Christ poured into them and encouraged them to dream. They discuss the importance of being rooted in your identity instead of your gifts, the risk of choosing to play as an adult when our culture places so much emphasis on performance and achievement, and how we were originally created to live in a garden. They tell us that if we want to create great art, we need to find ways to pour into each other.

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As the 2018 Summit gets even closer, we wanted to share with you another talk from last year’s summit. This breakout session was given by Cory Heimann, founder and Creative Director of Likable Art, father of 3, and all around awesome creative. In this talk, Cory discusses how we as Catholic creatives are set apart and are called to present Christ as irresistible to the world. He talks about the responsibility we have as the artists through whom many major projects the Church is working on are funneled through.  He explains how we as Catholics are set apart from other creatives, and describes what unique opportunities our Catholic heritage presents to us as storytellers and artists. Cory also challenges us to think about how we live out our personal values in our work and how we encourage those we work for to move their own missions forward as well.

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This week we speak with TJ Berden, filmmaker and producer of Paul, Apostle of Christ and Full of Grace. In this podcast, Anthony and TJ talk about TJ’s journey living in LA and working on bigger budget productions. TJ talks about how he moved to LA brandishing the Catholic sword with a desire to change culture, but learned upon arriving that change first needed to come from within. He shares about the impact Tree of Life had on him as an artist and speaks about how relationships with certain groups of people sparked within him a passion for life and a love of beauty. TJ speaks about his time working on Paul, Apostle of Christ and how diving into the humanity and emotional drama of Paul’s life were some of the most self transformative parts of the movie-making process for him. Anthony and TJ also talk about the importance of community as creatives, and how great work and great beauty can come from intimate and personal friendships.

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This week we’re doing something a little different. With the 2018 Catholic Creatives Summit only one month away, we decided to bring back the keynote talk from last year’s summit. We really want everyone to hear this talk because the New Renaissance is what we’re about.

The Catholic Creatives’ Why is:

"Setting creatives free so that they can unleash a new renaissance."

This is why Catholic Creatives exists. And this is why this talk is so important for everyone to listen to. What is a renaissance? What are examples of past renaissances? What does a new renaissance look like? What is it going to take for that to happen? Matt Meek’s talk at the summit last year was a prophetic answer to these questions.

Also, feel free to check out Courtney Kiolbassa's blog post where she shares her thoughts from meditating on what the New Renaissance really means.

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This week we speak with gift giving expert, speaker, and author John Ruhlin. In this podcast, Anthony and John discuss the power and the value of radical generosity in professional and personal relationships. They discuss how using gratitude as a competitive advantage is not a tactic but a lifestyle, how we have forgotten the ancient practices of showing one another how much we value our relationships through tangible gifts, and how our call as Christians is to live a life of generosity both in our personal lives and in our professional lives. John shares his journey of learning about the importance of generosity in relationships using stories and experiences from his own life, he talks about his heart behind why he lives a life of radical generosity, and he explains that true gift giving is about giving with no strings attached.

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This week we speak with Chuck Kinnane, film director and co-founder of Grassroots Films and Kinnane Films. In this podcast, Anthony and Chuck discuss creating art that deeply resonates with the soul. Chuck shares about his experiences of permission and tragedy, the deep impact 9/11 had on him as a young creative, and what he’s learned about suffering and humanity through working with the Franciscan Friars of the Renewal. Anthony and Chuck discuss how we as creatives are called to enter into people’s experiences of doubt and suffering and find redemption and meaning in that suffering.

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Chuck Kinnane, film director and co-founder of Grassroots Films and Kinnane Films

This week, we speak with Roberta Ahmanson, lover of beauty and a leading philanthropist in Christian art. In this podcast, Marcellino and Roberta discuss the role beauty and art have played in her life’s journey. They talk about suffering, belonging, and embracing your uniqueness as an artist. Roberta shares many stories from her own life experiences. Her wisdom and motherly nature are captivating, and her storytelling will leave you wanting more. From the outside, she may look different than a lot of people - however, on the inside she is just like all of us. At heart, we are all seeking belonging and experiences of a beautiful God.
 

Roberta Ahmanson is a lover of beauty, an art collector, a thinker, and a philanthropist.

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This week, we speak with Kate Bryan, pro-life feminist, communications strategist, speaker, and writer. In this podcast, Marcellino and Kate talk about the call we have as creatives to challenge the culture and stand up for our core values and beliefs. They discuss the importance of being firm in one’s identity so as not to react to controversy out of wounds or fear, but to respond with love. Both Marcellino and Kate share stories of times they’ve had to stand up against the tide for their own beliefs - including the time Marcellino wrote a controversial blog post while in college and the time Kate called out the leadership of the Women’s March for not letting pro-life women participate. They also discuss the importance of community and solidarity in standing for your convictions, as well as the very real fear we all have of not belonging when we are called to stand up against what may be popular.

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This week we speak with Jenna Guizar and Erica Tighe, the Creative Director and Creative Manager of Blessed is She - a Catholic women’s ministry that uses art and scripture in its mission to create a Christ focused community of mothers, sisters, and daughters. In this podcast, Anthony, Jenna, and Erica discuss the beauty of collaboration, teamwork, and sisterhood. Jenna and Erica tell the story of the birth of Blessed is She and how they started working together. They share stories of times they’ve encouraged one another and speak about how respect, friendship, and a healthy balance of autonomy and collaboration have contributed to making their teamwork successful and effortless.

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Jenna Guizar believes every woman should be who she was meant to be.

Founder + Creative Director of Blessed is She Women's ministry + community

Erica believes beauty will save the world.

Founder of Be A Heart
+ Creative Manager of Blessed Is She

This week we share our conversation with Kate Anderson, attorney and legal counsel for Alliance Defending Freedom. Kate’s job is one that many might not think of when considering creative fields, but in the current political and social climate the work she does is vital in order for creatives to have total freedom of expression.

Marcellino and Kate talk about how important those first freedoms are to creatives in particular. They discuss how the culture is forgetting their importance and allowing them to be taken from us, just to be replaced with being told how to think. They discuss how throughout history, fear and polarization has pushed society to want to force everyone to think and act a certain way, denying the freedom of the will.

Kate also speaks about how her team helps artists and business owners who are filing pre-enforcement lawsuits in order to protect themselves and challenge certain laws that could ultimately be used against them.

If you have questions about how the law applies to your industry, ADF can field those questions at no cost. Check them out at www.ADFlegal.org.

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