“And The Winner Is..."

By Dan Wooding
Founder of ASSIST Ministries

CBN.com – BEVERLY HILLS, CA (ANS) -- “The envelope please. And the winner is….”

Mel Gibson’s The Passion of the Christ won the big honors at the 13th Annual Movieguide Faith & Values Awards Gala and Report to the Entertainment Industry, held in the International Ballroom of the Beverly Hilton on Thursday, February 24.

The glittering ceremony, also dubbed “The Christian Oscars”, was held just days before Sunday’s 77th Annual Academy Awards in Hollywood.

Here are the winners at the 13th Annual Movieguide Faith & Values Awards Gala and Report to the Entertainment Industry, held in the International Ballroom of the Beverly Hilton on Thursday, February 24.

$50,000 JOHN TEMPLETON FOUNDATION EPIPHANY PRIZE FOR MOST INSPIRING MOVIE OF 2004 – The Passion of the Christ, distributed by Newmarket Films.

Other Movie Nominees: America's Heart and Soul, I Am David, Ladder 49, and The Reckoning.

$50,000 JOHN TEMPLETON FOUNDATION EPIPHANY PRIZE FOR MOST INSPIRING TV PROGRAM OF 2004– The “Happy Trails” episode of Doc, broadcast by PAX-TV

Other TV Nominees: A Christmas Carol, Doc: Happy Trails, Love's Enduring Promise, Patrick, The Question of God, and Redemption: The Stan Tookie Williams Story.

TEN BEST 2004 FILMS FOR FAMILIES
1. The Incredibles
2. Miracle
3. Shrek 2
4. A Cinderella Story
5. Two Brothers
6. Win a Date with Tad Hamilton
7. America's Heart and Soul
8. The Polar Express
9. I Am David
10. Princell Diaries 2

TEN BEST 2004 FILMS FOR MATURE AUDIENCES
1. Spider-Man 2
2. The Terminal
3. The Passion of the Christ
4. Collateral
5. Hotel Rwanda
6. Raising Helen
7. Ladder 49
8. The Reckoning
9. Rosenstrasse
10. The Ladykillers

Read the list of movies that Movieguide named as the Worst Films of 2004.

GRACE AWARD FOR MOST INSPIRING MOVIE ACTING IN 2004 – Jim Caviezel for The Passion of the Christ

Other Movie Nominees: Paul Bettany for The Reckoning, Don Cheadle for Hotel Rwanda, Irma P. Hall for The Ladykillers, and Joaquin Phoenix for Ladder 49.

GRACE AWARD FOR MOST INSPIRING TELEVISION ACTING IN 2004 – Jamie Foxx for Redemption: The Stan Tookie Williams Story.

Other TV Nominees: Billy Ray Cyrus for Doc: Happy Trails, Kelsey Grammer for A Christmas Carol, Dale Midkiff for Love's Enduring Promise, and Tyler Garcia Posey for DOC: HAPPY TRAILS

BEST MOVIE DOCUMENTARY – America's Heart and Soul, distributed by Buena Vista/Disney

BEST TV DOCUMENTARY – The Question of God, broadcast by PBS

A Special Lifetime Faith & Values Crystal Teddy Bear Award for Dedication to Redeeming the Values of the Entertainment Media went to the Rev. David Mainse for his tireless and superior efforts over many years to redeem the values of the media in Canada and to present the truth of the Gospel of Jesus Christ.

For more information, go to www.movieguide.org.

Dan Wooding is an award winning British journalist now living in Southern California with his wife Norma. He is the founder and international director of ASSIST (Aid to Special Saints in Strategic Times) and the ASSIST News Service (ANS). Wooding is the co-host of the weekly radio show, "Window on the World" and was, for ten years a commentator, on the UPI Radio Network in Washington, DC.