Missionary Positions
Mockumentary or a Documentary?
Circa 2005

More Background On MissionaryPositionsMovie.com

MissionaryPositionsMovie.com was the official website for Missionary Positions, a 2005 American documentary directed and produced by Bill Day. The film follows two young Christian pastors, Craig Gross and Mike Foster, who attracted national attention by taking an unconventional approach to combating pornography. Rather than condemning the adult entertainment industry from a distance, they entered its conventions, interacted with performers and producers, and used provocative advertising to encourage discussions about sexuality, faith, personal responsibility, and addiction.

The documentary became particularly noteworthy because its subjects challenged conventional expectations about Christian ministry. Gross and Foster established XXXchurch.com, an online religious outreach organization that deliberately adopted the language and imagery associated with pornography to reach audiences that traditional churches often struggled to engage. Their activities generated controversy among religious conservatives, curiosity within the adult entertainment industry, and substantial media interest. MissionaryPositionsMovie.com served as a promotional and informational destination for the film, presenting its story, introducing the filmmaker, sharing reviews, and highlighting the public discussions surrounding its release. Although the documentary originated in the mid-2000s, its subject matter remains relevant to discussions about religion, digital media, unconventional marketing, and the relationship between personal beliefs and popular culture.

The History and Purpose of MissionaryPositionsMovie.com

MissionaryPositionsMovie.com was developed to promote Missionary Positions and provide audiences with background information about the documentary and its principal subjects. The film reached audiences during a period when independent productions increasingly relied on dedicated websites to establish visibility, distribute trailers, announce screenings, and connect with specialized communities. The website's historical content included a synopsis, filmmaker biography, promotional materials, reviews, endorsements, and news coverage. These elements helped introduce an unusual documentary to viewers who might otherwise have encountered it only through a film festival, church screening, or newspaper article. The site's presentation emphasized the film's combination of humor, religious controversy, and social commentary.

The central question surrounding the film was whether its extraordinary story should be understood as a straightforward documentary or something resembling a mockumentary. Gross and Foster used methods so unconventional that their real activities sometimes appeared more like satire than traditional religious outreach. This ambiguity became an important part of the film's appeal and helped distinguish its marketing from that of conventional Christian documentaries. The website was associated with the film's original promotional campaign rather than a permanent religious institution. Its historical material identifies Bill Day and Smiling Zebra Pictures with the production, but publicly available information does not conclusively establish the domain's original registrant, its present legal owner, or the circumstances of any subsequent transfer of ownership. The surviving website functions primarily as a historical resource about the film.

The Documentary's Story and Central Characters

Missionary Positions centers on Craig Gross and Mike Foster, two pastors who believed that the increasing accessibility of Internet pornography presented serious challenges for individuals, marriages, families, and religious communities. Their approach to addressing these concerns differed dramatically from the methods traditionally associated with conservative Christian activism. The ministry's origins were traced to an experience Foster described having in 2001, when he believed God had directed his attention toward pornography. He and Gross subsequently developed an outreach strategy built around reaching people directly rather than waiting for them to approach a church. Their solution was XXXchurch.com, a website that used an intentionally provocative name to attract visitors interested in pornography but offered religious messages, personal guidance, and resources addressing compulsive sexual behavior.

The documentary follows the pair as they travel to locations associated with the adult entertainment industry and engage with people whose beliefs and lifestyles often differ sharply from their own. Their journey includes Amsterdam's red-light district, pornography conventions in Las Vegas, adult-film production environments in California, and rehabilitation-oriented settings in Kentucky. Along the way, the pastors confront practical and personal obstacles, including financial pressures, disagreements, criticism, difficulties managing their public image, and opposition from some members of the Christian community. The film also explores the personal consequences of their unusual work, including the tensions it sometimes creates within their families and professional relationships. Rather than portraying the pastors as flawless religious figures, Day presents individuals navigating contradictions between their intentions, the methods they employ, and the reactions they provoke. Their willingness to engage with an industry they morally oppose produces situations that are sometimes uncomfortable, frequently humorous, and occasionally revealing.

Director Bill Day and the Film's Production

Bill Day brought considerable documentary production experience to Missionary Positions. A graduate of the University of California, Los Angeles film program, Day had worked on television and documentary projects for major broadcasters and production organizations before undertaking the film. His professional background included assignments involving ABC, the Discovery Channel, National Geographic, and other television outlets. Earlier credits included documentary and nonfiction productions concerning music, medicine, emergency services, and environmental issues. His film Saviors of the Forest had also been associated with the Cinequest Film Festival.

Day's interest in Missionary Positions developed from his fascination with activists and the personal lives of people committed to difficult or seemingly unwinnable causes. In a February 2005 interview with Richard von Busack for Metro Silicon Valley, he explained that he was interested in discovering what motivated such individuals and how they sustained their commitment. Before encountering XXXchurch.com, Day had considered documenting other activist organizations, including anti-gambling and anti-pornography groups. After learning about Gross and Foster, he recognized that their unusual combination of religious conviction, humor, publicity, and personal vulnerability offered compelling documentary material.

The filmmaker began following the pastors during their travels, documenting both public appearances and moments of uncertainty away from the spotlight. The project became associated with Smiling Zebra Pictures, with Day credited as director and producer. Film databases identify the production as an American documentary released in 2005, with a running time of approximately 80 minutes. An important distinction is that Day was not presenting himself as a spokesman for the ministry. Contemporary reporting described him as a secular filmmaker interested in observing and understanding the participants. That perspective contributed to the documentary's ability to appeal to viewers beyond its subjects' immediate religious audience.

XXXchurch.com and the Development of an Unusual Ministry

The activities of XXXchurch.com provide the foundation for the documentary. Established by Gross and Foster in the early 2000s, the organization challenged conventional assumptions about how religious institutions should communicate with people interested in pornography. Its name was deliberately provocative. Visitors expecting explicit entertainment instead encountered religious messaging, educational materials, and resources intended to encourage conversations about pornography use. The strategy was based on attracting attention through an unexpected message rather than relying on traditional church advertising.

Gross and Foster also developed publicity campaigns involving billboards, promotional vehicles, branded merchandise, and appearances at adult entertainment trade shows. Their black Scion xB, decorated with advertisements for XXXchurch.com, became a recognizable symbol of the ministry. The vehicle generated conversations with people who were surprised to discover that its occupants were Christian pastors rather than representatives of the adult entertainment industry. Another distinctive element involved the distribution of promotional materials expressing compassion toward adult performers. Rather than treating everyone involved in pornography as an adversary, the pastors attempted to establish relationships with performers, producers, and consumers. Supporters regarded this as a practical demonstration of their religious beliefs, while critics questioned whether provocative publicity was compatible with Christian values.

The ministry also promoted X3watch, an accountability software program designed to help individuals monitor their Internet activity. The software could notify a designated accountability partner when certain websites were visited, encouraging discussions about online behavior. Contemporary reporting indicated that approximately 100,000 downloads had been claimed by the ministry by late 2004, although that historical figure should not be interpreted as an independently audited total or a current usage statistic. The combination of digital technology, media spectacle, and religious outreach made XXXchurch.com an unusual example of early Internet-era ministry. The documentary captures this experimentation at a time when social media had not yet become the dominant distribution channel for unconventional religious messaging.

The Collaboration With Adult-Film Director Jimmy D

One of the documentary's most memorable storylines concerns the pastors' collaboration with James DiGiorgio, an adult-film director known professionally as Jimmy D. Their relationship illustrates the complicated boundaries between religious activism, personal conviction, and the entertainment industry. DiGiorgio became involved in producing a public service announcement for the ministry featuring a puppet character. The collaboration was unusual because the participants disagreed fundamentally about the moral implications of pornography but recognized opportunities to work together on a message about protecting children from inappropriate material.

The documentary explores the tensions created by this partnership. For Gross and Foster, working with an adult-film director represented an opportunity to establish relationships beyond the religious community. For DiGiorgio, the collaboration provided publicity and a chance to participate in a project outside his normal professional activities. Contemporary interviews suggested that DiGiorgio appreciated the pastors' willingness to interact with him without constant attempts at conversion. At the same time, he recognized that the unusual partnership generated attention for everyone involved. His observations added a skeptical dimension to the narrative by raising questions about the relationship between sincere beliefs and publicity-driven behavior. The collaboration became one of the strongest examples of the film's broader theme: people with opposing beliefs can sometimes find limited areas of cooperation, even when their motivations remain substantially different.

The 2005 Cinequest Film Festival Premiere

Missionary Positions received its world premiere at the Cinequest Film Festival in San Jose, California, on March 11, 2005. The premiere represented an important milestone because it introduced the documentary to a broader filmgoing audience and placed it within a respected independent film festival environment. Cinequest was celebrating its fifteenth anniversary that year and presented films from a variety of countries, genres, and independent production backgrounds. The documentary's inclusion offered an opportunity for audiences to encounter a story that combined contemporary religious activism with elements of comedy and cultural criticism.

Contemporary festival coverage recorded screenings on March 11 and March 13 at Camera 12 Cinemas in downtown San Jose, with an additional March 11 showing at the San Jose State University Theater. Camera 12 was located at 201 South Second Street, within walking distance of San Jose State University and the surrounding downtown entertainment district. The screenings were therefore accessible to festival participants, university audiences, local residents, and visitors attending other Cinequest events. The downtown location also placed the documentary within San Jose's broader cultural environment, where independent filmmaking, technology, and community discussion frequently intersected.

Advance publicity proved significant. According to Metro Silicon Valley, Gross reported that an earlier religious outreach event in Gilroy helped generate interest in the festival screenings, with approximately 200 Cinequest tickets reportedly sold through that connection. This illustrated how the filmmakers and their subjects used existing ministry networks to bring audiences into an independent film festival setting.

Screenings Beyond San Jose and Religious Community Outreach

The documentary's distribution strategy extended beyond the traditional festival circuit. Before and after its Cinequest premiere, Gross and Foster participated in church events, public discussions, and screenings designed to introduce the documentary to religious audiences. In February 2005, the Gilroy Dispatch reported on an event at South Valley Community Church in Gilroy, California, where the pastors planned to present their message alongside a screening of the film. The event was connected with additional appearances involving youth outreach and discussions about sexual behavior.

These screenings sometimes required negotiation with church leaders concerned about the documentary's language, imagery, and controversial subject matter. The film was not a conventional family-oriented religious production, and its presentation of adult entertainment environments made it potentially uncomfortable for conservative congregations. Nevertheless, the unconventional material also helped attract attention. The documentary offered church audiences a way to discuss subjects that were often avoided in formal religious settings. Its humor and willingness to depict difficult situations gave viewers a different entry point into conversations about pornography and personal accountability.

The film was also featured at Reel Nashville in April 2005. Coverage in the Nashville Scene identified screenings and indicated that Gross and Day were expected to appear. This demonstrated that the documentary was reaching regional independent-film audiences beyond California. By June 2005, ABC News was reporting that church screenings associated with the documentary had become sufficiently popular to inspire plans for a nationwide event known as Porn Sunday. Gross and Foster hoped to involve at least 200 churches in a coordinated program later that year. Although the film did not become a major commercial theatrical release, its presence in festivals, religious gatherings, and public discussions gave it a distribution pattern suited to its subject matter and target audiences.

Critical Reviews and Audience Reception

Critical reception of Missionary Positions reflected the film's unusual combination of serious religious themes and frequently absurd situations. Reviewers were interested not only in the pastors' beliefs but also in the contradictions surrounding their work. Film critic Steve Rhodes reviewed the documentary in March 2005 and awarded it 3.5 out of 4 stars. His review emphasized its considerable humor and raised the question of whether the extraordinary events on screen resembled a genuine documentary or a satirical mockumentary.

Rotten Tomatoes lists Rhodes's review and displays an 80% audience score, although the platform identifies fewer than 50 audience ratings. With only one listed professional critic review, the film does not have the breadth of critical coverage associated with major theatrical releases. Its Rotten Tomatoes information should therefore be understood as a limited historical snapshot rather than evidence of broad critical consensus. Other reviewers offered more complicated assessments. Writing for the Nashville Scene, Jim Ridley considered the film particularly interesting when it examined how religious messages could become entangled with modern publicity and mass-media culture. His observations highlighted the tension between the pastors' spiritual objectives and the promotional methods they adopted.

Audience reactions were similarly varied. Some Christian viewers appreciated the documentary's willingness to confront an uncomfortable subject with humor and compassion. Others criticized the film's portrayal of sexuality, questioned its methods, or objected to the promotional presentation. Online film databases also provide evidence of a modest but continuing audience. IMDb lists the documentary with a rating of approximately 7.0 out of 10 based on 87 user ratings. Such figures suggest that the film has retained some interest among documentary viewers, although the relatively small number of ratings limits what can be concluded about its overall popularity. The mixed responses are central to understanding the film's significance. Missionary Positions was not designed to provide a neutral textbook examination of pornography. It documented a specific religious campaign, its participants, and the conflicts generated by their methods.

Awards and Recognition

The documentary received recognition within the independent film community. TV Guide's film listing records a 2005 Honorable Mention in the Best Documentary Feature category. The listing does not clearly identify the awarding festival or organization, so the recognition should not be attributed to a specific event without additional documentation. Its inclusion at Cinequest was itself an important achievement for an independent production. The festival provided a public premiere, professional press exposure, and opportunities to reach viewers outside the documentary's immediate religious community.

The film's visibility was further supported by its coverage in regional publications, national news reporting, and established film-review platforms. These appearances contributed to its historical record and helped preserve its reputation as a provocative documentary about religion and contemporary popular culture. There is no reliable evidence that the film received major Academy Award recognition or became a substantial commercial box-office success. Its significance rests primarily on its festival exposure, unusual subject matter, and influence on discussions surrounding Christian outreach.

National Press and Media Coverage

The people and issues documented in Missionary Positions attracted national media attention before the film's official premiere. One of the most important examples appeared in The New York Times on October 31, 2004, when journalist John Leland published an article titled "Suffering the Pornographers." Leland's reporting examined Gross and Foster's ministry, their publicity strategies, and the reactions they generated among religious leaders and members of the public. The article described their promotional vehicle, online accountability software, and efforts to engage directly with people involved in pornography.

The coverage also revealed divisions within conservative Christian communities. Some religious figures admired the pastors' willingness to confront an issue they believed churches had neglected. Others worried that the provocative tactics compromised the dignity or moral authority of religious ministry. In February 2005, Richard von Busack published an extensive article about the film in Metro Silicon Valley. The feature included comments from Bill Day and explored the filmmaker's reasons for documenting the ministry. It also provided important context about the production process, including Day's early experiences traveling with the pastors.

ABC News subsequently reported on the spread of church screenings and the development of Porn Sunday. This coverage demonstrated that the documentary had become more than an isolated film project; it was also being used as a communications tool within a developing religious outreach movement. Together, these articles establish that the documentary received attention from publications serving different audiences, including mainstream news readers, independent film enthusiasts, and religious communities. They also provide valuable independent documentation of the film's historical context.

Geographic Locations and Their Importance

Although Missionary Positions is an American production closely associated with Southern California, its story unfolds across several locations. Each setting contributes to the documentary's portrayal of the pastors' unusual mission. Southern California served as an important operational center for the ministry and filmmaking activities. Gross and Foster had connections to churches and outreach organizations in the region, while the Los Angeles area provided access to the American adult entertainment industry and its participants.

Amsterdam, particularly its internationally recognized red-light district, offered a contrasting cultural environment. The city's approach to regulated adult entertainment differed considerably from the conservative religious perspectives represented by the pastors. Their visit created opportunities to examine how attitudes toward sexuality and commercial pornography varied across societies. Las Vegas provided another significant location because of its association with adult entertainment conventions and promotional events. By attending these gatherings, the pastors deliberately entered commercial environments where their religious message would be unexpected.

Kentucky appeared in connection with rehabilitation-oriented services, introducing the subject of treatment and recovery into the documentary. These sequences helped expand the film beyond trade shows and publicity campaigns to consider how some individuals sought assistance with behavior they regarded as compulsive. San Jose became especially important in the film's public history because of the Cinequest premiere. Unlike the places visited during filming, San Jose represented the point at which the finished production entered the independent film festival circuit. The geographic range helped demonstrate that the documentary concerned more than one church or one local controversy. It examined a developing cultural conflict involving religion, digital technology, commercial sexuality, and differing social values.

The Website's Content, Navigation, and Historical Materials

MissionaryPositionsMovie.com reflected the structure of a promotional film website from the mid-2000s. Its content was organized around the documentary itself rather than commercial products or unrelated services. The surviving material includes a synopsis explaining the film's premise, a trailer introducing the principal characters, and information about the story's real-world origins. These sections allowed visitors unfamiliar with the production to understand its central subjects before attending a screening or seeking additional information. A director biography provided background about Bill Day's career, education, and earlier documentary work. The biography helped establish his professional credentials and distinguished the film from productions created solely for religious advocacy.

The website also preserved promotional endorsements, critical commentary, and audience reviews. These materials demonstrated the film's appeal to several groups, including Christian viewers, documentary enthusiasts, and people interested in cultural debates about pornography. News and publicity content highlighted screenings and the attention generated by the pastors' activities. The site's combination of film information and media coverage made it useful for visitors researching the documentary's release history.

Unlike a restaurant, retailer, or entertainment venue, MissionaryPositionsMovie.com did not have menus, dining facilities, or a physical destination open to visitors. Its relevant navigational content consisted of informational film sections and promotional resources. Historical screenings took place at theaters and churches rather than at an address associated with the website. The available evidence does not establish current domain traffic, visitor demographics, advertising revenue, or verified ownership records. However, the continuing availability of film listings, reviews, and historical articles demonstrates that the documentary remains discoverable through online research.

Cultural and Social Significance

Missionary Positions is particularly valuable as a record of changing religious communication during the early Internet era. Gross and Foster represented a generation of Christian activists who recognized that traditional institutional messages were competing with rapidly expanding digital entertainment. Their solution was to adopt techniques associated with commercial advertising, youth culture, and provocative entertainment. The ministry's branding deliberately challenged the expectations of both religious conservatives and audiences interested in pornography. This strategy anticipated some features of later digital outreach campaigns, including attention-grabbing branding, direct engagement with specialized audiences, and the use of controversial topics to generate online discussion.

The documentary also illustrates the challenges of building relationships across ideological boundaries. The pastors' collaboration with adult-industry participants generated publicity but raised questions about sincerity, compromise, and mutual understanding. Their behavior challenged the assumption that religious opposition to an industry necessarily required avoiding personal contact with everyone associated with it.

At the same time, the film reflects the limitations of its historical moment. Its discussion of pornography frequently uses the language of addiction and moral crisis, reflecting the beliefs of its subjects and some commentators of the period. Contemporary clinical discussions make distinctions between pornography use, moral distress, and clinically significant compulsive sexual behavior. The film should therefore be viewed as a record of a particular movement rather than a comprehensive medical or scientific explanation of pornography-related concerns. Another important theme is the tension between publicity and authenticity. Gross and Foster sought media attention because they believed it could help spread their message, but that same publicity sometimes created doubts about their motivations. The documentary examines this contradiction without reducing its subjects entirely to either heroes or opportunists.

Popularity, Distribution, and Long-Term Audience Interest

The documentary's popularity is best understood through its specialized audiences rather than conventional box-office measurements. Its festival screenings, religious events, and press coverage indicate that it attracted attention in several overlapping communities, but reliable nationwide attendance or revenue figures are not readily available. Film catalog listings show that Missionary Positions continued to circulate after its initial release. Its appearance in online rental, purchase, and review records indicates that audiences encountered the documentary beyond its original festival screenings.

The historical presence of customer reviews associated with digital video distribution also suggests continuing interest during the 2010s. Responses varied substantially, with some viewers praising its humor and sincerity while others objected to its religious perspective or expected a different type of film. The documentary's unusual title undoubtedly contributed to its discoverability. The phrase Missionary Positions combines religious terminology with a familiar sexual reference, immediately introducing the contrast that defines the film. This wordplay was consistent with the promotional tactics used by Gross and Foster themselves.

Today, the documentary is most likely to interest viewers researching early Internet culture, American evangelical movements, independent filmmaking, religious marketing, and the history of public debates surrounding pornography. Its relatively small online rating samples suggest niche rather than mainstream popularity.

Why MissionaryPositionsMovie.com Remains Historically Relevant

MissionaryPositionsMovie.com preserves information about a documentary that captured a distinctive period in American religious and media history. The film appeared when broadband Internet access was expanding, pornography was becoming increasingly accessible online, and religious organizations were experimenting with digital outreach. The website provides a window into how independent filmmakers promoted specialized documentaries before social media became central to film marketing. Its combination of trailers, press coverage, biographical information, and audience commentary reflects the promotional methods of that era.

The film itself also documents the beginnings of a ministry whose branding and outreach methods challenged established assumptions about Christian evangelism. Rather than concentrating exclusively on preaching, Gross and Foster used publicity stunts, technology, personal relationships, and encounters with the adult entertainment industry to communicate their beliefs. For historians of religion, the documentary offers evidence of changing evangelical communication strategies. For film researchers, it represents an example of independent documentary production that reached audiences through festivals and community screenings. For students of media and marketing, it demonstrates how provocative branding could generate attention for a message that differed sharply from what its advertising initially suggested.

The documentary also remains relevant to discussions about the ethical boundaries of activism. Its characters struggle to reconcile their convictions with the publicity tactics they consider necessary, creating a story that raises broader questions about persuasion, personal integrity, and engagement with opposing viewpoints.

The Legacy of Missionary Positions

More than two decades after its 2005 premiere, Missionary Positions remains an unusual documentary about faith, pornography, and the sometimes contradictory ways people pursue causes they believe are important. Bill Day's film captures two pastors who rejected conventional outreach methods and attempted to engage directly with people whose activities they opposed. Its strongest contribution is not a definitive judgment about pornography or religion, but an examination of the individuals involved and the circumstances surrounding their unconventional work. Humor, disagreements, cultural misunderstandings, and unexpected partnerships give the documentary a character rarely associated with traditional religious programming.

MissionaryPositionsMovie.com played an important role in presenting that story to the public. Through its promotional content, historical information, reviews, and filmmaker background, the website helped explain the project and preserve material associated with its release. Although the documentary did not achieve the commercial prominence of major theatrical productions, its festival history, independent press attention, and connection to a controversial religious movement give it a recognizable place in early twenty-first-century documentary filmmaking. For readers interested in the intersection of religion, technology, sexuality, and media culture, MissionaryPositionsMovie.com remains a useful historical starting point for understanding a film that challenged expectations about both Christian activism and documentary storytelling.