Our Laguna:

Phillips is a member of the Congregational Church’s Openly Affirming Committee. According to a published statement, the church seeks to include all persons, regardless of sexual orientation, gender, marital status, age, mental or physical ability, race, ethnicity or socio-economic background.

Laguna Beach Certified Public Accountant Jim McBride, who served on the High School Building Oversight Committee, saw “For The Bible Tells Me So” at a church in Newport Beach.

The idea for the film was born in Newport.

“Robin Cook, a Newport resident who is straight, went to a seminar at St. Mark’s Presbyterian Church on what the Bible really says about homosexuals and said ‘I have to make a movie about this,’” Harkness said.

Without any filmmaking experience, Cook dove into the project.

“She found director Daniel Karslake, who put together a trailer for the purposes of fundraising,” Harkness said. “I saw it Washington when I was there with the Human Rights Campaign and I was very impressed.”

Harkness and Ellis, both raised in Southern Baptist families, followed the project with interest. The movie was three years in the making, held up by fundraising, which was all by donations.

Saturday night’s audience included some of the local financial donors to the film.

“It was wonderful to have them here to feel what we have been feeling as we traveled around the country,” Harkness said. “There is such a sense of hunger for discussion about this.”

Donors included Ed Tosdeschini, John Ferrante, Jennifer Kessler, Paul Blank, Cara Logen, Francois LeClaire, Joe Ambrose, Mike Federson and of course, Harkness and Ellis.

“We thought at first we would be [listed as] donors,” Harkness said.

However, they earned the title of co-executive producers through their fundraising efforts and the time they devoted to the project.

Ellis said she had no idea the impact the film would have on her life when she first saw the trailer. The two women began traveling to opening nights around the county after the film made its debut in New York on Oct. 5, 2007, and went into general distribution a week later. They have been on the road since and will be again.

“It’s given me hope that I didn’t have going into this project,” Harkness said.

‘FOR THE BIBLE TELLS ME SO’

RELEASED: Premiered at the Sundance Film Festival on Jan. 21, 2007.

AWARDS: Won 7 awards for Best Documentary at film festivals around the country and was nominated at Sundance Film Festival in 2007 for Grand Jury Prize.

DIRECTOR: Daniel Karslake

OUR LAGUNA is a regular feature of the Laguna Beach Coastline Pilot. Contributions are welcomed. Write to Barbara Diamond, P.O. Box 248, Laguna Beach, 92652; hand-deliver to Suite 22 in the Lumberyard, 384 Forest Ave.; call (949) 494-4321 or fax (949) 494-8979 or e-mail coastlinepilot@latimes.com