Here’s this week’s dispatch from the crossroads of faith and culture:

Michael Van Dyck has a positive vision for the future of TV and movies.  After 13 years at the packaging powerhouse Paradigm, the veteran literary has left to realize his vision of build his own industry paradigm, one based on building a roster of unique, high quality inspirational brands with broad mainstream appeal. Inspired Entertainment, his new management/production shingle, is being backed by Pure Flix, the very successful independent producer of faith-themed films like God is Not Dead and The Case for Christ. While those movies pretty much speak to the proverbial choir, Inspired will actively seek a more mainstream audience.

Inspired Entertainment will be a one-stop shot to develop, package, and broker big tent inspirational content to broadcast, cable, and streaming networks, building a presence in the entertainment market that Van Dyck believes is not currently being adequately filled. He will also continue to represent staff writer and director clients on current network series.

Van Dyck, who himself has built a pretty impressive resume since entering the TV/Feature Literary agent business in the early 90’s, will manage and direct Inspired Entertainment’s operations, identifying and representing top accredited writers/content creators, actors, and directors through
long-standing relationships with the artists, TV and feature lit agents, managers, and studio/network executives.

Throughout his decades-long career, Van Dyck has had a tremendous influence in the entertainment industry by packaging and selling scripted and non-scripted series and movies of all genres – through it all his passion has been for placing positive entertainment in the hands of networks and studios. While his resume includes the decidedly edgy serial killer drama Dexter for Showtime, he also has been a force behind bringing Peter Barsocchini’s High School Musical  to Disney Channel and Martha Williamson’s Signed, Sealed, Delivered to Hallmark. His other projects have included Kirk Franklin’s Sunday Best for BET and the guardian angel drama pilot Unveiled for NBC, among many others.

Inspired Entertainment has the financial capability to option, buy, and finance development and production. Inspired also controls significant intellectual properties for broadcast, cable, and streaming development in TV and features. In short, the new kid on the block is already a positive force to be reckoned with. We’ll be monitoring its growth here.

John W. Kennedy is a writer and script consultant who specializes in family-friendly and inspirational the development of inspirational entertainment.