With faith-based films having a turbulent time at the box office, Tim Tebow is exploring a new and surprisingly lucrative path into the entertainment industry. Tebow recently announced his venture, Lighthouse Verticals, to deliver a microdramas platform with a focus on faith-based entertainment, with an official launch in November.
The former first-round bust is not working alone. According to the Hollywood Reporter:
Studio316 was founded by former NFL pro Tim Tebow’s company The Tebow Group to produce faith-based entertainment. Snow Story Productions has produced several verticals for the DramaShorts app and commercials for the likes of Sonic, HP and Bud Light.
Lighthouse Verticals, which will focus on “uplifting, values-driven entertainment” per a press release, is co-founded by filmmaker Brent Ryan Green (an executive producer of The Chosen and co-producer of The Unbreakable Boy), Jesse Liddell (former evp of LD Entertainment), Justin Levy (executive producer of Black Rabbit and Treadstone) and Scott Holroyd (producer of Money Electric: The Bitcoin Mystery).
Liddell, who will serve as CEO of Lighthouse Verticals, described the company’s audience as one that “wants to engage with the culture without compromise.” He added of viewers looking for faith and family content, “They want entertainment with real emotion, real momentum and values they can trust, but they have largely been overlooked by the fastest-growing platforms in the space. Lighthouse Verticals was built for them.”
Analysis
This is a story that has captured my attention as Tim Tebow’s ambitions are well founded. TikTok movies are surprisingly profitable, not just from adds but ta pay to view business model or a subscription service that social media generates leads for. These microdramas have micro budgets, and the profitability of a movie is made in production, not release. And there is money to be made in this space.
However, where Tim Tebow’s venture is delusional is the assumption that TikTok movies will catch on beyond its core demographic: affluent women. TikTok movies are shot vertically (or for vertical viewing) and in self-contained increments. It is made to be watched on a phone.
This contrasts with men who prefer to watch on large TVs. Thus, this niche is dominated by romance. Studios have attempted to change this perception by making content for men. Wade Stotts made an excellent video detailing the industry’s attempt to make TikTok movies for men.
The example used was a microdrama about a sniper, a mentor’s death, revenge, personal struggles, and a gun competition, showcasing the genre’s trope-heavy, simplistic storytelling. He also discussed how the formulaic nature of these stories, focusing on tropes like “bad guy runs away,” “employee beats people,” and simple revenge plots, leads to viewers expressing addiction and frustration over incomplete stories.
This is the trend that Tim Tebow wants to break into, and perhaps faith-based movies can fit alongside the other female-centric genres in an increasingly competitive industry. But he should steer clear of attempting to target men until American men have adopted TikTok movies.
