By Tiffany Rueckert
The reality entertainment craze is about to hit Utah--hard.
Daryn Tufts, who acted in 'Singles Ward' and 'RM', and Jed Knudsen, from 'Armour of God' and other seminary videos, are teaming up to do something that has never been done before. Knudsen said their approach is a little different than other LDS films. They want to tap into a market that has gone unnoticed.
'For a long time I was toying with the idea of making a film that explored the world of mormon dating,' Tufts said.
Knudsen and Tufts said that there is no better way to capture the culture within LDS dating, than to actually explore it in real circumstances. They said they do not want to make another just another LDS movie, they want to do something with longevity that is fun, upbeat, positive and funny.
'We just felt like a fictitious account would not be as fun as the real thing; truth is much funnier than fiction,' said Knudsen
'I think it would be fun to show other people typical mormon dating, and to show the rest of the world that it is okay to make friendships and maybe one of them out there is the one for you,' said BYU student Susan Kelly from Detroit majoring in psychology.
The film will explore the culture of mormon dating all over the country.
'The scope of what we are doing actually extends far beyond Provo and Orem, and far beyond Utah,' said Tufts.
Tuft said they are not looking for actors. He said they want to cast people according to their real personalities and real experiences. They don''t want any scripts or memorized lines, just natural responses.
The filmmakers have not yet revealed the exact direction of the film, saying they want the people who audition to dictate the course of the film. They plan on taking a more in-depth look at many of those people by following them on dates, and maybe even participating in proposals and weddings.
'We want to go straight to the source and explore it in a very open and non-biased way, and have a lot of fun taking people locally right now that are experiencing mormon dating first hand, and explore that culture,' Tufts said.
Matt Godfrey, 22, a criminal justice major at UVSC, came to the audition with his fianc?e. 'I came out here because my finance knew about it from the Daily Universe. We get married a week from Saturday and it would be cool if our wedding was involved in this.'