Actor and "Little Boy" producer Eduardo Verastegui has encouraged young people entering the entertainment business that it isn't necessary to compromise one's faith in order to be successful.
Speaking to the Blaze, the 40 year old life-long Catholic said that when working in Hollywood, Christian actors should focus on relevant projects that don't lead them to sacrifice their morality.
"Use your creativity to find new opportunities that both align with your beliefs and inspire those around you," he said.
Verastegui revealed that when his acting career first took off, he found himself acting in a way which he knew violated Biblical principles.
"Whether I like it not," those movies, TV shows and music videos "affected how people think, how they behave," Verastegui explained in an earlier interview with the Christian Post.
After realizing this, the Mexican actor made a promise to God that he would never again use his talents for something that would "offend" his "faith, family, or Latino culture."
"Faith became the center of my life for the first time," he said. As a reflection of his beliefs, Verastegui created Metanoia Films, an independent production company that allows him to pursue projects that align with his Christian beliefs.
"We could control the message and stories being put out - movies where I didn't have to close my mom's eyes or my sisters wouldn't be offended," Verastegui said.
The latest film to come out of Metanoia is "Little Boy" (PG-13), a 1940s-era story that follows a 7-year-old boy named Pepper who is devastated when his father is shipped off to World War II. Although his friends and family don't believe his dad will return alive, Pepper learns to have a giant faith and to draw strength from Jesus' words in Matthew 17:20: "If you have faith as small as a mustard seed, you can say to this mountain, 'Move from here to there,' and it will move.'"
In addition to a heartwarming storyline, the film possesses all-star cast and crew, with Roma Downey & Mark Burnett ("The Bible," "A.D.") serving as executive producers, Alejandro Monteverde ("Bella") as director and Eduardo Verastegui ("Bella") one of the producers. The cast features Oscar nominees Emily Watson ("Harry Potter," "War Horse") and Tom Wilkinson ("Batman Begins," "John Adams"), along with Kevin James ("The King of Queens," "Paul Blart: Mall Cop").
"Little Boy," which hit theaters April 24, has already earned high praise from numerous faith-based groups. Faith Driven Consumer, which connects Christian consumers with faith-compatible entertainment, has given the film a solid 4 stars, a strong indication it will resonate with faith-based audiences.
Though his film, Verastegui says he hopes that people are inspired to "love big, dream big, forgive big and to do great things with their [lives]."
You can get tickets and watch the trailer for "Little Boy" here.
