Portraying The Saviour In The Church's New Easter Videos - Gavri'el Wise

Gavri’el Wise is a professional actor best known for his recent portrayal of the Saviour in the "Greater Love" Easter video series produced by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Born in Minnesota to a Russian-Ukrainian mother and a Native American father, Gavri’el’s journey with church film projects began at age 11. He appeared as a background actor in the Bible and Book of Mormon video series before being cast in the sacred role of Jesus Christ. I wanted to speak with Gavri’el to explore the spiritual and emotional weight of walking in the footsteps of the Saviour for the camera. We discuss his transition from a child actor to a lead performer, the rigorous preparation required for the role, and how his own history of early responsibility and solitude allowed him to connect with the humanity of Christ. Gavri’el opens up about how periods of loneliness in his youth became a "well" of introspection, helping him portray a Saviour who was always deeply observant of the world and those around Him. Some highlights from this episode include: A Lifelong Journey on Set: Gavri’el reflects on starting his acting career at age 11 on the Church’s Jerusalem set and how those early experiences prepared him for the responsibility of portraying the Son of God. Channelling Personal Life Challenges: Gavri’el shares how growing up quickly and spending significant time in quiet observation of others allowed him to empathize with the "heavy knowledge" the Saviour carried. "With More Love": A recurring piece of direction on the "Greater Love" set was to perform "with more love". Gavri’el explains how this challenged him to stop "acting" and start genuinely loving his fellow cast members. The Master Teacher: During his preparation, Gavri’el found that a study of the Sermon on the Mount led to him understanding the beauty behind the simple, yet Masterful way Jesus taught. Improvising the Last Supper: Gavri’el shares behind-the-scenes details about the sensitive, unscripted moments experienced during the filming of the Last Supper, where the cast shared real moments of peace and reflection. From Belief to Active Discipleship: A shift in Gavri’el’s faith occurred when he realized that when the Saviour saves you, He "employs" you. He discusses the responsibility of being an active disciple in every aspect of life. You can keep up with Gavri’el and his future projects on social media: Instagram:   / gavrielwise   The Greater Love Video can be found here: https://newsroom.churchofjesuschrist.... Follow For All The Saints on social media for updates and inspiring content: www.instagram.com/forallthesaintspod   / forallthesaintspod   For All The Saints episodes are released every Monday on YouTube, Spotify, Apple Podcasts and more:    • Why Latter-Day Saints Love General Conference   https://open.spotify.com/show/3j64txm... https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast... If you have feedback or any suggestions for topics or guests, connect with Ben & Sean via [email protected] or DM on Instagram Conversations to Refresh Your Faith. For All The Saints podcast was established in 2023 by Ben Hancock to express his passion and desire for more dialogue around faith, religious belief, and believers' perspectives on the topics of our day. Tune into For All The Saints every Monday on YouTube, Spotify, Apple Podcasts, and more. Follow For All The Saints on social media for daily inspiration. 00:00 Gavri’el Wise and his heritage 01:27 Professional acting vs. spiritual reverence 02:41 Starting with Bible videos at age 11 03:51 Early roles and Church production blessings 06:55 A spiritual approach to the Saviour audition 08:36 The moment the role became real 10:31 Preparing through scripture study and discipline 13:00 Lessons from the Master Teacher in the Sermon on the Mount 15:07 Receiving direction and channelling real feelings 17:43 Atmosphere of unity and peace on set 19:52 Filming the intimacy and improvisation of the Last Supper 22:46 Overcoming challenges through spiritual focus 24:15 Checking ego on the Jerusalem set 25:31 Dedicating the role to God's glory 29:32 How life experiences serve as preparation 32:04 Loneliness and observation as a well for the role 34:13 Reflecting on the remarkable humanity of Jesus 35:35 Deepening faith and the responsibility of discipleship 38:44 Family reactions and teaching his children 42:03 Finding favourite moments in Christ's sacrifice 44:41 Final thoughts on Christ as a personal friend