“No one is exempt from a bad time,” she said. Johnson emphasized that tragedy comes at some point for everyone but that it's a person's reaction that makes the difference. ![]() “Working on this movie and … being in touch with Emily just warmed my heart because of their sincere, honest, authentic belief in God,” Johnson said. Johnson was mentored by Jones-Sanchez in order to prepare for her role, and she said that she was greatly impressed by the family’s faith in the face of adversity. ![]() In the movie, Jones’ wife, Emily, is portrayed by actress Alexis Johnson, who said she also had plenty to learn from a closer examination of the Jones family. “I will always be indebted to John for that,” Hopson said. Hopson also described Jones’ character as “incredible,” “compassionate,” “tolerant” and “anti-ego.” He said that by studying Jones’ life and interacting with his family, it has motivated him to become a better person. “Usually, your heroes (in movies) have to overcome an internal conflict or a flaw, but John doesn’t really have any flaws in the film.” ![]() “John was a remarkable human being,” Hopson said in an interview with the Deseret News. He hoped that, by drawing on those films and creating a sense of closure for his characters, he could produce a powerful feeling in "The Last Descent" that viewers could turn to in times of contemplation.Īfter months of research, along with consultation with Jones-Sanchez, Halasima felt he had captured the appropriate “hills and valleys” to depict the events in a way that would both honor the Jones family and impact audiences in an emotional, yet positive way.Īlthough the film revolves around Jones’ ill-fated excursion, it also takes time to delve into his personality, family life and faith in God.Īctor Chadwick Hopson, who plays John Jones in the film, said that his part in this movie was unlike any role he has ever had. The director said he turned to movies such as “Titanic” and "Ghost" for inspiration. “I sat on (the idea for this movie) for years, just trying to get an angle on it.” “For me, I wanted to create a feeling that people want to go back to when they want to feel a certain way,” Halasima said. Making a movie that audiences immediately know won’t end “happily ever after” is a difficult thing to do, Halasima said. During the production of “The Last Descent,” Halasima said the cast and film crew worked closely with Jones' widow (now Emily Jones-Sanchez) and the rescue team involved in her late husband’s attempted extraction to accurately and sensitively approach the story. With his untimely passing, Jones left behind his wife Emily, who was seven weeks pregnant at the time, and a 13-month-old daughter. … But then, when you learned about what kind of person he was, that made it a story.” ![]() “And the interesting part for me is when it was going on, you heard about how he was trapped and how painful it must be and how hard it was for the rescuers and how everything was going. “It’s a story that, I think, got all of us,” Halasima said. He remembers hearing the tragic news on TV that Thanksgiving weekend. When deciding on how he wanted to break into the movie industry, Halasima told the Deseret News that there was no question in his mind that Jones’ story was the one he wanted to depict. The catastrophe remains a delicate subject to this day, but local filmmaker Isaac Halasima believes it’s a tale worth telling.Īlready a well-established music video director, Halasima is making his first venture into the world of full-length filmmaking with his upcoming film, “The Last Descent,” which was filmed entirely in Utah and hits theaters Sept. While navigating a tight passage, Jones became stuck in a crevice 125 feet below ground and, despite a rescue crew’s best efforts, Jones ultimately passed away inside the cave a day later. Twenty-six-year-old John Jones was exploring the cave with his brother the day before Thanksgiving in 2009. It has been nearly seven years since tragedy struck at Utah’s Nutty Putty Cave in Utah County.
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