Dust & Color
A documentary that follows artists as they navigate the beautiful, messy mesh of creativity, faith, and purpose. We witness their struggles and triumphs as they tackle life’s biggest questions: Who are we? Why are we here? Where are we going?
Dust & Color — Overview
Nine diverse artists transform dust into vibrant color, finding wholeness where faith, doubt, and creation intersect.
Dust & Color is a feature-length documentary that explores the joining of art, faith, and vocation through the eyes of nine artists from the United States, Canada, Brazil and Bolivia. Through personal interviews and studio visits, the film shows how these creators – illustrators, musicians, installation artists and digital animators – wrestle with the big existential questions that drive both their art and spiritual journeys.
The documentary follows these artists’ varying relationships with faith, from those who are certain of their Christian faith to others who are still struggling with questions that create cracks in their existence. Each brings their own perspective on how art can work through spiritual questions, personal trauma, and identity.
The film tackles difficult subjects including doubt, suffering, and the challenges that arise when tired imagery doesn’t fully express contemporary experiences.
At its heart, Dust & Color shows how artistic expression helps people work through life’s complexities and find meaning in a world filled with both beauty and pain. The artists speak openly about vulnerability as a necessary part of authentic creation and how their work creates space for others to explore their own paths.
Instead of offering easy answers, the documentary embraces the contradictions and complexities of making art, suggesting that art, like faith, can be a practice of wholeness – a way to engage honestly with the full range of the human experience and our walk with Christ.
Dust & Color captures how art reveals our fragility while lighting it with divine creative power.
Meet the Artists
Talented, passionate and eternally curious.
Scott Erickson
Artist, Author, Speaker
Dea Jenkinks
Mixed Media Artist
Paulo Nazareth
Musician & Pastor
Andrea Armstrong
Illustration & Fine Art
Nic Medeiros
Singer-songwriter
Mike Hernandez
Installation Artist
Daniel Ribeiro
Musician & Producer
Kely Pinheiro
Cellist & Composer
Jorge Canedo
Creative Director & Animator
Short Stories
With added funding, we are looking into short
5 minute vocational reflections on individual journeys of artistry and faith.
Miguel del Castillo
Writer, Tranlsator & Curator
Erica Grimm
Artist & Professor
Vô Maneco
Book Mender &
Handyman
Chris Sundby
Ultra Marathon Runner and
Community Worker
“The beauty of being a visual artist is that I have an outlet for the things that I’m curious about. I have a form that allows me to process.”
Mike Hernandez
Want to screen the documentary in your group, community, or church?
We offer special screening sessions accompanied by a conversation with the director, creating a rich space for dialogue and deep reflections on the themes explored in the film.
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Symbols are not confined to the past, they are signposts that allow us to deeper reflection. In the same way, art enables culture to embark on a renewed exploration of our relationship with Jesus, resonating deeply with the complexities of contemporary society.
FAQs
What is Dust & Color about?
Dust & Color is a full-feature, 65-minute documentary that explores the intersection of art, faith, and vocation through diverse artistic perspectives. The documentary dives into existential questions driving both artistic creation and spiritual seeking, examining how artists wrestle with heritage, vulnerabilities, and life’s complexities to find meaning through their work.
How does this documentary approach the topic of “deconstruction” in faith?
Art and creativity are gifts from God that reflect His own creative nature as the ultimate Creator. While any human endeavor can be misused, artistic expression itself isn’t inherently dangerous to faith. Throughout history, art has been a powerful medium for deepening and communicating faith, from medieval iconography to contemporary expressions.
The artists in this documentary demonstrate how creative work can actually deepen faith by honestly engaging with questions and struggles rather than avoiding them. The film shows how creativity, when approached with sincerity, often leads to more authentic spiritual expression rather than diluting it. As Scott Erickson notes in the film, art can provide a visual language for faith that traditional imagery sometimes cannot, helping people connect with God in fresh, meaningful ways.
How does this documentary approach the topic of “deconstruction” in faith?
The documentary treats deconstruction as a process of vulnerability that needs to be centered in Christ.
The work engages with the challenges and risks of deconstruction as an opportunity to honestly deal with deep questions, showing how artists live in the tension between tradition and faith expression.
What unique perspective does Dust & Color offer on the artistic process?
Dust & Color uniquely positions art as a way to practice “wholeness” and embrace human limitations while engaging with life’s complexities. It presents artistic expression as a powerful means of processing spiritual journeys, offering space for vulnerability and authenticity in a world marked by pain and uncertainty.
Why does producing a documentary like Dust & Color cost what it does?
Documentary filmmaking involves expenses including professional equipment, international travel (across US, Canada, and Brazil), post-production editing, sound design, crew salaries, translation services, and marketing. The costs reflect the commitment to producing a professional documentary that authentically captures artists’ stories and showcases their work at the highest quality.
How will my contribution to this documentary make a difference?
Your contribution helps bring important conversations about art, faith, and vocation to wider audiences. Funding enables completion of post-production, distribution to film festivals, community screenings, and educational institutions. Your support doesn’t just fund a film—it helps foster dialogue about art’s role in spiritual exploration and cultural engagement.
Imagination becomes a bridge, not an escape, through which the sacred reenters the conversation with the secular.
Re-enchantment, then, is not bound to a time period but becomes a continuous movement that always points forward to the Creator.
We are crafting media where art, culture, and faith meet.