Meet the Mormons again: New films to hit Legacy Theater Saturday


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SALT LAKE CITY — In the film, “Meet the Mormons,” audiences gained insight into the lives of six members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Saturday, three additional stories will be introduced in new films at Legacy Theater on Temple Square.

Blair Treu’s “Meet the Mormons: New Faces / New Stories” highlights “The Entertainers” from Tokyo, Japan, “The Horseman” from Morgan, Utah and “The Artist” from Paceco, Italy, according to the trailer.

Rather than being shown in one documentary, the three stories will be shown separately.

“These films will be playing in 30-minute rotations throughout the day,” Treu said. “So it’s much more user-friendly, much more tourist friendly, because not everybody has a full two hours to come down to the theater … to see the old film.”

According to the LDS Church, the six stories from the original film will be included in the rotation.

“The nine stories, including the three new features, will be rotated about every 30 minutes throughout the day in the Legacy Theater in the Joseph Smith Memorial Building on Temple Square in Salt Lake City,” the LDS Church reported. “The original six stories have been updated with additional footage to make them stand-alone features.”

Morgan resident and horse trainer Jeff Wadman told KSL.com their story is about their family and the hard way of life.

“Every day is horses,” Jeff Wadman said. “And we try to incorporate how God is a part of our life and how we get to see his hand every day.”

The horse trainer said if he treats the horses the way God treats his children, that is when the horses respond to the training the best.

Jeff Wadman’s wife, Emily, said they hope others can see the importance of family and how it draws people together and how people can work together to create a common goal and create peace in their home. “And there’s a favorite part I love in our segment, where Jeff says ‘to find the peace that comes from following the master,’” she said. “And there is peace that comes from living the gospel, and it’s only something that you can explain to someone who has lived it and/or not lived it, and has that contrast in their life.”

According to the LDS Church, two brothers and two sisters, the Kawamitsu’s, make up the musical group “bless4,” known as “The Entertainers” for the film.

“The unique message we share with people is how families can be together forever,” Aiki Kawamitsu said in a statement.

The Kawamitsu sisters have had a hard time with their body image. In the film, one of them talks about her experience with an eating disorder, the LDS Church reported.

“ ‘The Artist’ — which tells the story of Italian-born Giovanna Raccosta Nezhati, a Church member who re-engages with her faith — is actually a re-release of the bonus feature that was available on the “Meet the Mormons” DVD,” the LDS Church reported. “Nezhati lives with her husband and three children in Las Vegas and started a program to feed the homeless dinner once a month.” “We went back about eight months later and shot some additional footage, and it has a whole new surprise ending,” Treu said in a statement.

In August, the films will be available by request in other English-speaking LDS visitors’ centers, the LDS Church reported.

Those interested in seeing the films do not have to get tickets. Show times will be available on legacytheater.lds.org, and they might change depending on demand. The films will be played when requested in the other visitors’ centers, according to the LDS Church.

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Megan Marsden Christensen

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