Home Media Magazine - Christian Entertainment Report - Fall 2008 - (Page 4) the dove foundation THE DOVE FOUNDATION: THAT IS INFLUENCING THE MOVIE INDUSTRY FOR GOOD f you’re like a handful of parents from Grand Rapids, Michigan chances are you’ve complained more than once about the lack of family-friendly films at your local movie theatre. According to Dick Rolfe, Dove Foundation cofounder and CEO, “We were frustrated because we felt inadequate to make selections on behalf of our children without watching the films themselves beforehand. And we didn’t trust the Motion Picture ratings; G, PG, PG-13 and R.” So in 1990, Rolfe and several other parents started reviewing and assigning their own ratings to films. At first they just made a sort of laundry list of movies they liked and handed it out to friends, family and church members. The list was such a hit that they decided to expand the idea and created the non-profit Dove Foundation dedicated to advocating for families and moving Hollywood in a more family-friendly direction. The Dove reviews, posted online at www.dove. org and www.FamilyEntertainmentCentral.org, are based on traditional Judeo-Christian values. There is a content chart and descriptions that gauge six criteria: Sex, Language, Violence, Drug and alcohol use, Nudity, and Other. And while Dove’s scorecard reviews online are what Dove is probably best known for, the Foundation is making waves behind the scenes, too. “We commissioned an industry-wide study in 2005 that revealed the fact that over the last 15 years, Hollywood produced 12 times more R rated movies than G. And yet, during that same HOW A FEW PARENTS LAUNCHED A MOVEMENT I DICK ROLFE, Dove Foundation co-founder and CEO period of time the average G rated film was 11 times more profitable than its R rated counterpart.” Rolfe sent a copy of the Film Profitability Study to every major studio exec in Hollywood to show them that yes, family movies can be profitable and yes, there is a large family audience out there waiting to get back in the theatres. “Our influence with the movie studios has grown to the point where some films are being sent to our Grand Rapids office to review well in advance of release, sometimes even in rough cut,” says Rolfe. “On a couple of occasions we have expressed concern about a few things we thought might offend the family audience. Studios cleaned them up and we were able to give them our Dove Family-Approved Seal” The Dove Seal was referred to by entertainment legend, Steve Allan as “the Good Housekeeping seal for family entertainment.” The Dove website is visited by parents like Vickie Vermeer. She logs on to www.dove.org for guidance when it comes to choosing which movies her kids can see. Ten times out of ten she says she’ll trust Dove’s scorecard review over one written by a film critic in the general media. “When we read a review in our local paper or in the NY Times, the reviewers are coming from a different perspective,” says Vermeer. “They’re looking more at the quality or artistic value of the film. They have more tolerance for the violence or language or sexual content for the movie; whereas The Dove Foundation’s guidelines are more in line with our own family’s values and that makes us feel comfortable when choosing our entertainment.” 4 CHRISTIAN ENTERTAINMENT REVIEW — SPECIAL EDITION / FALL 2008 http://www.dove.org http://www.dove.org http://www.dove.org http://www.dove.org http://www.dove.org http://www.FamilyEntertainmentCentral.org http://www.christianentertainmentreview.com/
Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of Home Media Magazine - Christian Entertainment Report - Fall 2008 Home Media Magazine - Christian Entertainment Report - Fall 2008 Frequently Asked Questions About the FEC The Dove Foundation: How a Few Parents Launched a Movement The Dove Foundation's Entertainment Content Analysis About the Parents Television Council Helping Parents Choose TV Safe for Their Children Family Friendly Game Reviews Are You Free to Play? Home Media Magazine - Christian Entertainment Report - Fall 2008 Home Media Magazine - Christian Entertainment Report - Fall 2008 - Home Media Magazine - Christian Entertainment Report - Fall 2008 (Page Cover1) Home Media Magazine - Christian Entertainment Report - Fall 2008 - Home Media Magazine - Christian Entertainment Report - Fall 2008 (Page Cover2) Home Media Magazine - Christian Entertainment Report - Fall 2008 - Home Media Magazine - Christian Entertainment Report - Fall 2008 (Page 1) Home Media Magazine - Christian Entertainment Report - Fall 2008 - Home Media Magazine - Christian Entertainment Report - Fall 2008 (Page 2) Home Media Magazine - Christian Entertainment Report - Fall 2008 - Frequently Asked Questions About the FEC (Page 3) Home Media Magazine - Christian Entertainment Report - Fall 2008 - The Dove Foundation: How a Few Parents Launched a Movement (Page 4) Home Media Magazine - Christian Entertainment Report - Fall 2008 - The Dove Foundation's Entertainment Content Analysis (Page 5) Home Media Magazine - Christian Entertainment Report - Fall 2008 - The Dove Foundation's Entertainment Content Analysis (Page 6) Home Media Magazine - Christian Entertainment Report - Fall 2008 - The Dove Foundation's Entertainment Content Analysis (Page 7) Home Media Magazine - Christian Entertainment Report - Fall 2008 - About the Parents Television Council (Page 8) Home Media Magazine - Christian Entertainment Report - Fall 2008 - Helping Parents Choose TV Safe for Their Children (Page 9) Home Media Magazine - Christian Entertainment Report - Fall 2008 - Helping Parents Choose TV Safe for Their Children (Page 10) Home Media Magazine - Christian Entertainment Report - Fall 2008 - Family Friendly Game Reviews (Page 11) Home Media Magazine - Christian Entertainment Report - Fall 2008 - Are You Free to Play? (Page 12) Home Media Magazine - Christian Entertainment Report - Fall 2008 - Are You Free to Play? (Page Cover3) Home Media Magazine - Christian Entertainment Report - Fall 2008 - Are You Free to Play? (Page Cover4)
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