Thy Neighbor Directed by NAME won the Best Feature Film Award
A hotshot young Pastor moves to a rural town church, bringing a message of loving your neighbor as Christ loves the church. However, his message and even his faith are put to the test when he becomes suspicious that his new neighbor may be trying to destroy his family.
About the Director: By age 39, George A. Johnson had written, directed, & produced two theatrically released feature films, thousands of local, regional, national, and international TV shows, over 3,500 TV commercials, short films, promos, and music videos, and held the position of Director of Creative Development for a national television network, overseeing all things creative for content broadcast into over 70 million households throughout the US & Canada.
Grateful for every experience & every person whom he had the opportunity to meet and work with, Johnson made the decision to fulfill his lifelong vision & launched his own production company in 2014.
As a pre-schooler, friends would gather around to watch Johnson act out stories with his action figures. At age 5, he began writing screenplays, and at 7, he purchased his first 8mm film camera at a garage sale. His teen years were spent making short films, stop-action animations, and spoofs of popular movies and television programs.
After graduating from the Hollywood Scriptwriting Institute in 1995, he began his television career as the Program Director of WKTV in Grand Rapids, MI, where he wrote, directed, produced, and edited various television programs and commercials.
In January of 2000, George accepted a position as a News Editor at WZZM, an ABC Affililate station, and then, in August, he and his wife moved to Ohio when he was offered the position of Production Manager of WINM, a TCT Network television station.
As Production Manager, George managed TV production crews & directed thousands of television programs, which aired regionally, nationally, and often worldwide in 180 nations. He also continued to develop his filmmaking skills by writing, directing, producing, shooting, and editing short films & commercials, which aired globally on the network.
In 2004, George completed and released his first feature length independent movie, “DREAMER: The Movie”, which received a limited theatrical release. The movie also won several awards, including “Winner” (Grand Rapids Film Festival), “Outstanding Dramatic Comedy” (Windsong Film Festival), and “Official Selection” (Motherwell Film Festival, Scotland).
In 2008, George resigned from TCT Network to develop his second feature film, “Homeless For The Holidays”, which he wrote, directed, produced, edited, and released in 2009. “Homeless For The Holidays” sold out several theaters, and went on to win the “Redemptive Storyteller” award from Regent University’s Redemptive Film Festival, and “Official Selection” at the Grand Rapids Film Festival. It is currently being distributed by Bridgestone Multimedia Group. It has also been broadcast in over 100 million homes on ABC, NBC, CBS, FOX, MyTV, CW, DirecTV, and various faith and independent stations/networks.
After releasing the movie, George accepted the position of Director of Marketing for a startup company called Archery Tag, where he had the opportunity to introduce the world to the brand new sport, which is essentially paintball with bows and arrows. Archery Tag is now a global phenomenon with facilities located in many countries all around the world, as well as major theme parks.
In 2012, George was offered the position of Station Manger at the Fort Wayne TCT Network station, and, after 14 months of growing the station, he was promoted to the Director of Creative Development for the TCT Network, conceptualizing and overseeing all things creative for the national network & all of it's stations.
In 2014, George resigned from his position as the Director of Creative Development, and launched award-winning production company.
In 2014, George Co-Founded Gaffer Media, a digital filmmaking school that enables pre-teens and teens to creatively share their faith and develop their filmmaking skills as they write, direct, produce, and edit a full length feature film, wrapping the course with a world theatrical premiere of their movie. The first Gaffer Media student film, "Two Steps From Hope", was a huge success, and opened to sold out crowds on May 21, 2017. The movie is being distributed worldwide by Bridgestone Multimedia Group. Several of the teens involved grew so passionate about storytelling throughout the process that they changed their college majors to filmmaking.
In 2015, George wrote, directed, produced, and edited his fourth feature film, "Thy Neighbor".
In 2017, George received the distinct honor of being selected by the National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences Chicago/Midwest Chapter as a judge for the Regional Emmy Awards.
Trailer of the Film: Thy Neighbor
Behind the scene
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