Directed by Purpose: A Filmmaker’s Calling to Shine the Light of Christ
Kalley Beatrice Silva, SCA '19
Once, in a loving home in Brazil, a young girl chose to follow Jesus at just five years old. Every poem she wrote, song she sang, and story she told pointed to the love of Christ that had been revealed to her so young.
Years later, Kalley Beatrice Silva would bring hundreds more stories to life, including a compelling documentary that she wrote and directed as a graduate student at Regent University. Set Free – Fighting Human Trafficking in America was awarded Best Foreign Film at the 9th International Christian Film Festival in 2025. This and every story Kalley tells through film has one goal: to spread the gospel as far and wide as possible.
A Calling to Film
Kalley’s road to filmmaking was not direct. Although she always had a love for storytelling, her academic career started with a bachelor’s degree in economics.
“I was a good student, but this was not my calling,” Kalley says. “My calling is the arts. When I finished economics, I knew that I had to write stories, videos, films, documentaries, whatever. Something that will shine the light of Jesus in every way possible through audiovisual means.”
Kalley started creating freelance films in Brazil, working for several pastors and Christian ministries. In 2007, while working for a Christian television station at her church, she received an offer that would soon change the trajectory of her career. An office representing the Christian Broadcasting Network (CBN) offered her a position as a producer for The 700 Club Brazil, where she would go on to produce and translate Superbook, an animated Christian children’s series that teaches Bible stories and moral truths to a young audience.
“Producing the Portuguese version of Superbook was a big honor to me,” Kalley says. “The authors have to create elements that connect the dots. Reading the Bible is one thing, but when you’re producing something for kids? You have to connect, and I think they did that so well.”
Kalley’s production work in Brazil often brought her to CBN’s studios in Nashville, where her colleagues first told her about Regent University. Slowly, she developed a desire to return to school.
“I was telling myself pursuing my graduate degree here would be wonderful, but then, life happened, and I was like, ‘Maybe not,’ Kalley said. “I even met people who would encourage me to find a way for a scholarship, but I thought, ‘No, I don’t think it’s time.’”
It wasn’t until 2013 that she felt in her heart that the time to pursue her education had come. But even though she heard the Lord say yes, Kalley didn’t know how she, a Brazilian native, would make her way to a completely different country. As a foreign exchange student, she wouldn’t be able to work in the United States, and the exchange rate between Brazilian and American currencies was unfavorable.
“How can I live for three years and pay for tuition, housing, personal expenses, and books?” she asked herself. The answer was simple. She prayed.
Letting the Lord Pave a Way
Kalley got in touch with a friend who previously worked for Regent, and he told her about the Latin American Leadership Program. This partnership between the university and Semilla, a Christian leadership development organization, offers professional training to Christian leaders and provides aid to Latin American students who wish to study at Regent.
After a rigorous evaluation process, Kalley was offered a scholarship that covered tuition and housing costs, enabling her to earn a Master of Fine Arts in Film & Television Production in person at Regent.
“I really appreciate what Regent did for me — not only the scholarship and housing, which were amazing,” Kalley says. “But I met people who are real Christians who love the Lord. It was miracle after miracle.”
Kalley was consistently impressed by the impact of a faith-based education. “I think it’s great to be in a Christian school,” she says. “We get to the classroom, and the first thing that the professor asks is if anyone has prayer requests. I had professors who walked the extra mile to help.”
The caring professors, accessible equipment, and hands-on training that Kalley received fueled her passion for filmmaking, and being surrounded by individuals who wanted to use their creative skills to glorify God completely transformed Kalley’s outlook on film.
“Regent has a program that can assist people to not only be filmmakers, but filmmakers making Christian productions. It’s important to support schools like that, and not just by being a donor,” Kalley says. “If you’re a filmmaker and you’re successful in your business, contact the school. Offer a free workshop for the students. Support through your own work. You are helping other people who want to spread the word of God through places like Regent.”
At Regent, Kalley found an institution with the same purpose that she had pursued her entire life: to represent the Lord and make Jesus known.
“The idea is to have a production that will impact people, impact society, and bring healing to people,” Kalley says. Her most recent documentary, a film that exposes the reality of human trafficking in America, does just that and more.
Creating a Film, Sparking Action
When Kalley directed Set Free: Fighting Human Trafficking in America during her time at Regent, her goal was not to deliver a palatable version of the truth. It was the brokenness around human trafficking that she was determined to convey.
“Set Free brings awareness to people. Most people believe that human trafficking has to do with a person that is kidnapped, but it’s not like that,” she explains. “Most trafficked people are trapped by people that they know.”
Kalley presents the testimonies of various human trafficking survivors and advocates to teach viewers of her film just how close to home the global issue of human trafficking is. Her ultimate goal is to encourage people that such a heavy issue is not one that they are helpless to defeat.
“The idea of Set Free is to let people know what trafficking is, especially the Church,” Kalley says. “We can always do something. We can work alongside Christian organizations that rescue people from trafficking, we can support financially, and we can pray. We know that prayer changes situations.”
The documentary’s impact was undeniable. The film was awarded Best Foreign Film in the 9th International Christian Film Festival for its powerful unveiling of the harsh realities of human trafficking. Kalley’s acclaimed work was described as “blending technical excellence and social purpose, addressing complex topics with investigative depth and a deep commitment to human dignity.” Above all, the film was a call to action aimed at the hearts of those who follow Christ.
“I’m not saying that the Church is completely silent, but this is a subject that is uncomfortable,” Kalley says. “You don’t want to see all that pain; you don’t want to deal with all the dirtiness. But the Lord calls us to go there and show His light.”
Her strong conviction is that people stuck in the dark world of human trafficking need the Church, even if they don’t know it yet, and that just like Christ has saved the Church, there are those waiting to be pulled into the safety of Christ by his people, both during and after the life of darkness they were trapped in. If nothing else, she wants to motivate the Church to act on behalf of those in need.
“People are waiting for the love of God. They’re waiting for people to hold them and walk with them until they leave that life,” Kalley says. “When you’re trapped, usually you start at a young age, and you don’t have skills. Your vocabulary is awful. You don’t have a profession. And when they rescue you, what now? The Church can walk with these people until they are healed, because they need counseling. They face terrible things, and they need to develop skills to live as a normal person.”
Remaining Steadfast
Filming Set Free did not come without hardships — but many of Kalley’s projects don’t. She is no stranger to the enemy’s attempts to stop the truth from being told.
“As filmmakers, we go through intense spiritual warfare, especially in Christian productions,” Kalley says. It is in these times, she insists, that developing a meaningful relationship with the Lord is more important than ever.
Between distractions from the enemy and the pressure of maintaining every element of directing and producing, Kalley warns that it can be hard to hear the voice of the Lord. But if there is one thing that she has known since she was a young girl, it is that even though the Lord’s voice may be hard to hear, it is always there.
“He is always talking to us,” Kalley says. “He is there for you, He loves you, and He wants to support you.” That reassurance, despite all the battles, is what Kalley strives to convey to her audience in every film she creates. It’s the message that makes every battle worth it.
Inspiring a New Generation for Christ
When thinking about how filming Set Free changed her, Kalley’s biggest takeaway is the gravity of humanity’s need for God.
“Through this documentary, and other productions that were intense like this, we learn that we need God desperately,” Kalley says. “Productions that give me the opportunity to talk about the Lord or His love to impact other people — it’s important to me.”
As she looks toward making more films to inspire a generation of believers, Kalley has nothing but gratitude for the Lord’s provision and is excited about what she will create in the future. Yet the assignment to create for the kingdom is not hers alone. She knows this is just the beginning, not just for her, but for Christian creatives around the world.
“Everywhere we go, we have the Holy Spirit, and it’s not us — we’re tools,” Kalley says. “It’s the power of God through us, because He lives in us. That’s the idea behind Regent, so that’s the idea behind my productions.”