Have you ever been to Hollywood?

For first-timers, it can be something of a shock. And no, I don’t mean because of all the glitz, glamor, and celebrities, but because of the filth, crime, rampant homelessness, danger, open prostitution, and overall dinginess of the place. As someone who lived in Los Angeles for many years, whenever people ask me what to see in Hollywood, I always have to tell them to manage their expectations.

Hollywood is kind of gross.

Perhaps that is why we so often see a low view of humanity coming out of our culture. Films, TV shows, and even music are far too often deeply cynical and nihilistic. While there are certainly multiple reasons for this, could it be that part of the reason our creative elite puts out lowbrow, despairing content is because the place in which many of these creators live is, well, the way that it is?

Billionaire Chick-fil-A chairman Dan Cathy seems to think so. But he frames it in positive terms rather than throwing shade at Hollywood. He focuses on what he can do.

And turns out, there’s quite a lot you can do with connections, vision, a motivated team, Georgia tax incentives, and billions of dollars.

Dan’s solution? He calls it “Place-Making.” What if the creatives who make our popular culture lived and worked in a place that encouraged rather than suppressed their humanity? What would be the effect of a place that values good ol’ decency, sunshine, trees, and walking? What could be accomplished by good working conditions, safe streets, a place to raise a family and rub elbows with potential collaborators?

What if we treated these people, from the studio executives to the key grip holding up the boom on set, like they were made in the image of God?
That is Dan Cathy’s vision. That is Trilith Studios and the brand new neighboring town of Trilith.

Trilith

I spoke to Mr. Cathy about his project last year. His excitement was palpable, and he seemed very driven. He emphasized his desire for people who work demanding jobs on a film set (crew can often be on their feet doing physical, precise work for 14-hour days) to have a place during filming that feeds their soul. He calls it “place-making,” and he hopes that by creating an environment that is rich in hospitality, that goodness will bleed down into the art that we make.

He has been quoted as saying, “If you live a broken life, you tell broken stories. If you live a beautiful life, you tell beautiful stories.” Evan Baehr, who has had occasion to work with Cathy, sums up the visionary’s philosophy. “Dan says: Let’s find the best people in the world and love on them radically; their work will be the fruit of how we serve them.”

Trilith, formerly Pinewood Studios, is no small player, either.

“Marvel is making movies here, Disney,” Dan Cathy says. Some of the highest-grossing films of all time were filmed at Trilith, including Avengers: Endgame, Avengers: Infinity War, and Spiderman: No Way Home. Then, each day after work, these high-powered creatives are just a short golf cart ride away from homes that are clustered in little communities, restaurants that serve healthy farm-to-table food, and nature everywhere to help them refuel.

This project, now a few years in, is chugging along steadily, and Trilith is still building. (If you’d like to live there, new homes are running from about $750k to $1.5M.)

Cathy’s faith certainly plays a prominent role in this vision. Arguably, the development’s symbol and namesake is a nod to the Christian doctrine of the Trinity.

“Trilith” refers to a monument made of three stones (such as Stonehenge). Those three pillars, according to Trilith, stand for storytelling, purpose-built places, and emerging technology. “A trilith is an appropriate symbol for our new identity,” according to the president and CEO of Trilith Studios, Frank Patterson.

“We’ve been very careful to envision a community that will attract a wide spectrum of people, that will inspire folks to live well and to honor others. I believe this is the model for future generations,” Dan Cathy said when he originally announced the project nearly ten years ago.

Selah

Cathy’s vision is intriguing, both for its wild ambition and for its humble smallness. Sure, a nearly 1,000-acre studio and town that aims to support the health, wellness, fitness, mental health, and community needs of the world’s greatest creators is no small feat. With 51% dedicated greenspace, a layout designed to maintain the “walkability” of the place and to eliminate the need for local cars, and an entire educational system for K-12 and post-grad studies – not to mention the world-class studio where top filmmakers produce their work…

The vision and execution have certainly been impressive. But at the same time, Cathy does not make movies. He does not buy scripts. He does not require creative control.

He makes the space. He’s treating people with dignity. And he’s leaving the rest up to God.

Quick Hits

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• Amid a sinking local stock market, Chinese money increasingly moves to digital assets.
• $1 and free timeshares are increasingly common, as inflation and rising fees increasingly make owning a timeshare a financial burden.
• Universal Music Group to remove its catalog from TikTok, meaning no more Hillson, Tauryn Wells, TobyMac, Chris Tomlin, et al in TikTok Videos
• Due to a lack of exploration, experts predict an oil supply shortage by the end of 2025.
• Joel Belz, founder of WORLD magazine, a Christian news service, passed away at 82.
• Pew Research has released a new study this week on American’s views of keystone institutions: “From Businesses and Banks to Colleges and Churches.”.