Q : Francesca , recently you starred in the fourth movie in the God ’ s Not Dead series : We the People ( 10 / 2021 ). Tell us what made you choose to step back into the role of actress ?
As a homeschooling mom who values freedom , I was passionate about the message of the film and excited to play a strong character .
Q : In We the People , you play a concerned homeschooling mother named Rebecca McKinnon . What can you tell us about Rebecca that resonates with you as a mother ?
Rebecca and I have a lot in common . We both love God and our children , and we both value the freedom we still have in America to educate our children as we see fit . That is not the case in every nation , and it may not always be the case here .
Q : Homeschooling saw a significant increase during the COVID-19 pandemic , climbing from around 3.3 % to 11.1 % in the fall of 2020 . Why do you think more families are jumping on the trend to homeschool these days ?
I think the agenda behind public schooling is coming more and more to light in these days , and parents who choose to homeschool don ’ t want to co-parent with the government .
Q : I understand you were homeschooled through part of your childhood , and that you also homeschool your own children . What led you and your husband , Matt , to decide to homeschool ?
It ’ s something we ’ ve been called to for a while but finally decided to jump in when all this mess started , and it ’ s one of the best things we ’ ve done for our family .
Q : We the People is about taking a stand for American rights and freedoms even when they ’ re challenged in what appears to be smaller ways . Were there any discussions on set about why this movie is so relevant for today ?
Absolutely . The script was written several years ago , and it ’ s eerie how timely it is with all the freedoms that are being stripped and threatened in America right now .
Q : What were some of the challenges you faced during the filming of this movie ?
We shot this film over the course of a month in Oklahoma in the dead of winter . There were several days where crew couldn ’ t even make it to set because the ice was so bad on the roads . For us personally , just living in a new state while homeschooling our kids and me needing to be gone for many long days in a row was a challenge , but it was also an adventure . And , ironically , homeschooling gave us the freedom to even say yes to this opportunity in the first place . I never would have left my family for a month , and if they were in traditional school , that would have been the only option , and I would have turned it down .
Q : We the People features one of your new , original songs , “ God is Good .” I love this song , by the way ! Can you share the backstory of the song with us ?
I wrote this song in 2018 after a friend of ours went though a devastating loss . We wanted to write something to encourage him and honestly all of us in that season , that no matter what we walk through , God is still good . We recorded the song for my last album and at the last minute , I felt strongly that the Lord was leading me to save it and
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