Kendrick Brothers Film ‘Lifemark’ Celebrates the Gift of Life

The Kendrick Brothers new film, “Lifemark”, starring Kirk Cameron, celebrates the gift of life and inspires courage in the face of difficult circumstances.

“Lifemark” is based on the documentary, “I Lived on Parker Avenue”, which follows the story of adoptee David Scotton as he meets his biological mother. David’s mother was a teenager when she became pregnant with him, and backed out of having an abortion at the last minute, deciding instead to put him up for adoption.

One of the film’s writers, executive producers, editors, and stars, Alex Kendrick, has caught up with 96five’s Jess Drummond to mark the movie’s release in Australia.

Alex Kendrick says Kirk Cameron was moved by the documentary and reached out to him to turn “I Lived on Parker Avenue” into a feature film.

Alex says Lifemark speaks to the value of life.

“God gives us the gift of life and we want to guard it and preserve it, stand for it and support it,” said Alex.

Alex reveals that the Kendrick family, Kirk Cameron, and Lifemark co-star Rebecca Rogers all have personal experience with adoption and acknowledges that the adoption process can be painful at times.

“Adoption sometimes is a beautiful process, sometimes it’s a very difficult journey, but life is difficult! We are reminded that God loves us and is patient with us and affords us the opportunity to make mistakes and then learn from them. My brother’s adoption story had hardships but it is overall such a beautiful story and we’re grateful for my niece, Mia, who was adopted from China – she is as much a part of our family now as any of us, and Kirk’s got beautiful stories of his four adopted children.”

Alex also reflects on the spiritual reality of adoption.

“I’m also reminded that, reading the book of Ephesians, we are spiritually adopted [by God] when we go through Jesus Christ.

Yes, [adoption] has ups and downs but it’s still a beautiful ministry as well as offering hope and love to someone, so we are proponents of it and want to support it.”

Lifemark involves complex and sensitive issues including teenage pregnancy, infant loss, adoption, and abortion. Alex acknowledges that while the movie represents the true story of two families, people’s experiences in these areas can vary greatly.

“There is hope, there is redemption, there is beauty, there is forgiveness that can come from each person’s journey when you invite the Lord into your circumstance – they did in this movie, so we’re presenting what actually happened. We also thread the movie with humour, so when you’re watching it, it’s not just tearful moments.

Alex says many people have made contact to share how the film has impacted them.

“We have been contacted numerous, numerous times – letters, emails, phone calls – from people that said, ‘I have never shared that I had an abortion’ or ‘I’ve never shared that I was adopted’ and ‘Watching this film opened my eyes to how important it is to work through those things and release some things and forgive’, and we’ve been so grateful for that.

“When you watch this movie, it’s not just about life, it’s not just about adoption – it’s also about the hope that we have when we give our hearts and lives to the Lord.”

Lifemark opens in selected Australian cinemas on October 13. You can find out more at lifemarkmovie.com.au

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Listen to the full interview in the player above.