Plumb News just celebrated its first month, and we’re deeply grateful for everyone who’s joined us along the way. Your curiosity and conviction remind us why we started this: to explore how faith and creativity can co-exist, even through the stories that challenge us most.

Now that Halloween has passed, we’re shifting from what unsettles us to what sustains us. The question isn’t whether stories should push boundaries, but how they do so with meaning. Because conviction isn’t about playing it safe, it’s about pursuing what’s true with both courage and care.

Based on a true story, Machine Gun Preacher follows Sam Childers, a reformed outlaw who risks everything to save orphans in war-torn Sudan. It’s violent and raw, but never gratuitous — it wrestles with the conviction of doing what’s right against all odds. The film reminds us that authenticity and redemption can share the same frame, and that discernment is what keeps one from overwhelming the other.

WHERE TO WATCH →

Four brothers from 1908 build a time machine to find their father, only to end up stranded in the future. Blending comedy, music, and faith, the film turns its fish-out-of-water adventure into a reminder that every era has lessons worth keeping... and that sometimes, growing up means learning to stay grounded in the present.

WHERE TO WATCH →

Faith-forward storytelling isn’t about sanding down the edges. It’s about knowing why they’re there.

Every filmmaker wrestles with this balance: how to tell the truth without overwhelming the hope beneath it. Story depends on conflict. Redemption shines brightest against brokenness. Yet, for many in the faith audience, entertainment is also a place of rest — a momentary escape from the world’s harshness.

That’s the tension of redemptive art. A story can be both raw and reverent, unflinching and uplifting. The question isn’t whether to show the grit, but how to show it.

In Machine Gun Preacher, that struggle plays out vividly. The film’s violence and language make it difficult to watch, but its heart remains fixed on redemption. It reminds us that faith doesn’t require perfection. It requires honesty. The same world that holds beauty also bears the mark of sin, and both can point us back to truth when handled with care.

For faith-driven creators, authenticity comes with a cost. Go too far, and you risk glorifying the pain you meant to expose. Pull too far back, and the redemption loses its weight. The middle ground — where honesty meets restraint — is where Plumb hopes to stand.

Because storytelling isn’t just about what we reveal, but what we redeem. And when art confronts the real without losing sight of grace, it has the power to change hearts and minds.

The results are in! 67% of you voted for Authenticity to human experience in last week’s poll: What matters more when faith shows up on screen?

“Whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable — if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise — think about these things.” - Philippians 4:8 (ESV)

Now that the season of shadows has passed, it’s worth asking what comes next.

We recently explored how stories confront fear, but faith invites us to something deeper: to look for what’s good, pure, and lasting in every genre we enjoy.

The goal isn’t to avoid challenging stories or “edgy” moments. It’s to approach them with awareness. Not everything that stirs emotion is good for the heart, but not everything honest is harmful, either. God gives us discernment not to hide from culture, but to move through it with clarity and conviction.

Paul’s reminder to think on what is excellent doesn’t mean ignoring what’s hard to watch. It means noticing what’s worth keeping. When we approach entertainment this way, we move from reaction to reflection. We begin to see how beauty, truth, and creativity can work together... even in unexpected places.

As this newsletter continues to grow, that’s what we’ll keep exploring: stories that shape without compromising, that build but also challenge. Because pursuing what’s True Vertical isn’t about retreating from culture. It’s about seeing it through the lens of redemption.

Until next time,

THE PLUMB NEWS TEAM