The two stars are also locals, which was an asset, given the film's limited (less than $1 million) budget. Vuissa had to shoot entirely in Utah, and he estimates that he and his location scout put thousands of miles on their respective vehicles to find a variety of settings. "It was one of the many times I've been thankful to live in this state.

"We were able to find our Baptist church in Payson, our canyon in Springville (Hobble Creek Canyon) and actually parked our double-wide trailer in Lehi. And that was just in Utah County."

After the film was finished, a deal was struck with local film distributor HaleStorm to get "Baptists" into theaters. "We wanted to shop the film around, but they seemed like the perfect place to take it," Vuissa said. "Most of (HaleStorm's) films are comedies, so that's what people have come to expect from them. And they told us they loved the film." (HaleStorm produced "The Singles Ward," "The R.M." and "The Home Teachers," and earlier this year distributed another film it did not produce, "The Best Two Years.")

Vuissa said he has attended some test screenings and audiences are laughing in all the right places. "That's all you can ask. It sure feels good, though."

Vuissa said he's already planning his next movie, which will return him to his dramatic roots. "This was very rewarding, because now I feel I'm more confident in my filmmaking. But now I would like to get back to something that's a little more personal, more heartfelt for me."

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E-mail: jeff@desnews.com