Biola University sophomore Matthew Robertson will take his passion for film to Africa this summer where he will join YouTube sensation Jefferson Bethke. Partnering with Dollar for the Poor, an organization working to end the water crisis, the pair will document their trip.

From May 29 to June 9, the group will travel to Kenya and go from village to village, drilling wells to provide clean water for the people. Robertson will capture their experience on camera. The two look forward to helping people who are suffering from a lack of water in other countries.

He and Bethke began posting YouTube videos in May 2011 as a fun and creative way to spread the gospel. They were surprised to see the large response they received, which helped launch their careers.

Robertson used his creative talents to film and produce Bethke’s poem, “Why I Hate Religion, But Love Jesus.” They posted the video on Jan. 10, expecting to receive about 100,000 views over a span of two months. More than one million viewers watched the video on the first day. The video reached 10 million views within one week. As of May 11, that number had climbed to 20 million views.

Robertson is continuing his studies in Biola’s cinema and media arts department. He said he decided to study film at Biola because of the strong film program and biblical integration.  

“The teachers are a good resource. The network of students are good because we challenge each other,” said Robertson. “There is a competitiveness about it.”

See more of Robertson’s work on his website (www.cikproductions.com) or his YouTube channel at YouTube.com/mrob7. More of his work can also be found on Bethke’s YouTube channel at YouTube.com/bball1989.

Written by Tenielle Schroeder, Media Relations Intern. For more information, contact Jenna Bartlo, Media Relations Coordinator, at 562.777.4061 or at jenna.l.bartlo@biola.edu.