For the Salisbury Post

Morgan Elizabeth Bowman of Salisbury has joined the film “Elijah and George” as a producer.

Bowman is a 2018 cinematic arts graduate of Liberty University and the daughter of Rick and Deborah Bowman of Salisbury. She is a graduate of North Hills Christian School.

“The film has attracted a number of qualified graduates from the cinematic arts department at Liberty University,” said producer, director and writer Andrea Clarke.

A 1663 Media Arts Production, the film has a $2.9 million budget.

The production is campaigning to raise money before March 30 to begin shooting in early summer in central Virginia, with a release date of Oct. 19 — a nod to the final day of the Revolutionary War.

Tax-deductible contributions may be made through the film’s Network for Good crowd-funding page. The project also is entertaining major sponsors.

Clarke has set out to create a family-friendly movie about America’s founding principles: family, freedom and home, according to a news release from Media Arts.

“While our film is not political, it is very timely,” Clarke said. “At its core, the story of ‘Elijah and George’ celebrates unifying values: the beauty of a loving family, the resilience of the human spirit as father and son fight to get back to each other, and the goodness of freedom and home.”

The story was adapted from Michael Dooling’s popular children’s book “George Washington’s Army and Me,” which also featured his illustrations. Based on letters and diaries from the period, “Elijah and George” is an adventurous, sometimes humorous, and heartfelt tale that aims for a PG rating, according to the release.

In the story, a young boy sneaks out of George Washington’s encampment to find his father, a soldier who does not return from the Battle of Monmouth. A game of draughts (checkers) could save the young boy’s life and get him home.

Starring Colin Dyer, the film tells how young Elijah pursues his father, a farmer who joins the 6th Pennsylvania Regiment during the Revolutionary War after Loyalists storm his farmhouse and tragedy ensues.

“It’s one of those stories that leaps off the shelf,” Clarke said. “My hope is for ‘Elijah and George’ to be a thought-provoking unifying film.

“It’s part love story, part American history about how our freedoms came to be. The story brings the audience into the characters’ struggles and triumphs in what they can and do endure in the name of family, freedom and home.”