What We’ve Learned After 100 Mini Movies
This is a post written by Jeff Parker for EchoHub.com. Did it make sense to reprint it here? You bet it did.
I’m writing this the same day we (Igniter Media) released our 100th mini movie. It’s been a journey of more than eight years that started with Rob Thomas creating “Are You Amazed?” under the name Vertical Sky Productions and has currently culminated with Igniter Media being a 10-person company that is as dedicated as ever to creating media that declares God’s truths.
As you can imagine, over the years we’ve learned so much about God, ourselves, media, and the Church. These lessons have pushed us in what we create, why we create, and how we create. So without further ado, here are those lessons (give or take a few missing ones) in no particular order:
- Visual media is powerful.
- God is creative. And we are made in his image.
- Excellence should be the minimum standard.
- You can’t please everyone.
- The best videos are the ones you can’t help but make.
- Encouragement from our audience is a powerful motivator.
- Sometimes the best ideas come while you’re showering.
- Making a great video requires a great team with a great variety of gifts.
- Cody McCasland is a special kid.
- Our visuals must serve the message … not the other way around.
- Mediums keep changing …
- … but the Message never changes.
- We have some of the best jobs in the world.
- God is THE Storyteller …
- … and He writes some amazing stories.
- Sometimes Chachi forgets to wear the right wig.
- Sometimes Chachi forgets to wear his teeth (skip ahead to 1:10).
- Kids are cute. (Okay, maybe we already knew that.)
- Gary Smalley does a ‘killer’ Robot (skip ahead to 3:32).
- God uses everyone’s offerings in ways we could never imagine.
- Churches aren’t comfortable showing potty humor in their services.
- The ideal length of a mini movie keeps getting shorter and shorter.
- Story moves people in a way sermons can’t …
- … and, yes, sermons challenge people in a way story can’t.
- Not everything needs to finish with a nice, beautiful bow.
- It is possible to create a mini movie from scratch in one long night (just ask Rob).
- We can make Oprah cry …
- … and Celine Dion too. (She was Oprah’s guest the day they showed “99 Balloons.”)
- Some of our best work occurs just past midnight.
- Mini movies can paint a fresh picture of a timeless story.
- Cameras overheat.
- Robert McKee’s STORY seminar is amazing and exhausting.
- Try as we might, we can’t help but have a few tpyos.
- Animal print tights aren’t flattering for anyone, including Rob.
- Physical DVDs are on the decline — so says our storage closet.
- Apparently nothing we do will ever top one of our first videos.
- The Panasonic HVX-200 is the best video camera. Whoops, I meant the RED. No, I really mean the Canon 7D.
- Working extremely hard on a video and then seeing a great response is an incredibly satisfying feeling.
- Ideas are cheap. Execution is not.
- It’s a beautiful thing when the visuals complement the music which complements the message.
- Details are, at times, excruciating.
- Always keep both your message and your audience in mind.
- Your first draft doesn’t have to be perfect — just get the clay on the table.
- The best mini movies come from a place of personal struggle or conviction.
- Carefully consider each creative decision so you won’t doubt yourself when someone says, “It’s too _____” or “Why did you _____?”
- There can be a fine line between something cheap and something great.
- Secretly, we feel somewhat forced to create so much seasonal media …
- …but it’s what churches like to use, so we want to provide the content.
- Sometimes we have to make a video just so the idea will leave us alone.
- We’re pretty sure we have another 100 videos in us.
The New Year
It’s January 4th…you’ve finished up your Christmas services and the New Year service is just behind you. Are you left with that “what now” feeling? Here are a few videos to help your audience continue to process that very same feeling – “a new year, what now?”
After Christmas has passed and the holiday traditions, stress and fun fade away, what happens next? Use this sermon starter to get the conversation going and share about Christ’s timeless message.
This video is a reminder that any progress is good and that the hardest journeys are fulfilled by taking one small step at a time.
RegretsWe allow ourselves to be burdened by our pain, scars and shame forgetting that Christ came to set us free.
International Versions
While we don’t have the time or resources to re-create our videos to be relevant to every culture and language, we do recognize that a sizable amount of our audience can benefit from a few changes.
The majority of our international audience is English speaking…but that other sort of English…you know, with the ou’s and such. So, we have been working to add in an alternative version with purchase. The alternative version changes spelling as well as strictly American references.
After checking out, you’ll find both the original and international versions in your My Media. For instance, if you live in England, Australia, English-speaking Canada, and anywhere else that spells Savior…Saviour, this Christmas you could choose from:
We Are Here (Christmas)
Social Network Christmas
We also have Regrets – perfect for your New Year’s service.
Spanish speaking? We have those too! Click here to see all that we have to offer.
New Christmas Mini-Movie!
What do a New Zealand English teacher, a cow and a baby have in common? Our brand new video, Christmas In 50 Words!
We love getting to share these types of projects and there were lots of moving parts to this one.
-The script: We asked Dana Livesay, an English teacher and poet from New Zealand to write the poem “Christmas Story In 50 Words” after we read and loved his poem, “The Bible In 50 Words.”
-The music: As Steve started editing, he felt that Brian Wurzell and TJ Hill had already written the perfect track. It’s called “Solace” from the album, Grace Ocean.
-The place: Creekwood United Methodist Church in Fairview, TX allowed us to use their live nativity. It was an amazing location and it turned out so beautiful. Thanks also to FBC Allen for the costumes!
-The baby: Kat French, former RT Creative Group intern, was so kind to allow sweet little Elias to play baby Jesus for a day. If you look close enough in the video you can also see Kat and her hubby as Mary and Joseph.
-The cow: Trent’s buddy Chris Kelly provided Molly Flop the cow and she did a great job.
-The video: Dan Baumgartner provided the Steadicam. Little known fact-he’s the only Steadicam operator in Texas that shoots from a Segway.
Projects like these keep things interesting! Thanks to everyone involved.
This mini-movie is a great resource for your Christmas service video needs. We hope you like it!
As you put together your Christmas service, here is a recap a few resources we have to offer:
A Social Network Christmas
This video is an artistic take on how the story of the nativity might have read had a social network existed at the time of Jesus’s birth.
Retooning the Nativity
As time has passed, in efforts to relay the story to others, man has perhaps taken some creative license with the events of the Nativity.This funny video is great for all audiences.
Johnny and Chachi’s Christmas Medley
In this hilarious musical medley, Johnny and Chachi attempt to spread some jam-packed Christmas cheer by singing 25 popular Christmas songs in under two minutes.
We Are Here (Christmas)
This call to worship reminds your audience, amidst the usual holiday traditions and madness, to slow down and reflect upon the wonderful gift of Christ’s birth.
The Paradox of Christmas
A long time ago, one silent night loudly proclaimed God’s love for us. He gave up what He had so that we might receive what we need.
Jesus and Santa
Lately, it seems like some of us have been confusing Jesus with Santa. Let us remember that one of them comes to give us what we think we want; the other came to give us what we need.
A Christmas Moment
The Christmas season is filled with gifts, decorations, songs, family, and traditions, but what is the true meaning of Christmas? Darrell doesn’t like the answers he gets at a local college campus.
A Child Is Born
This video tells the Christmas story in a way that captures the joy, wonder, and awe surrounding the birth of Jesus. This vignette reminds us of how God entered this world and why He did.
Though thousands of years have passed, the message still remains the same: come. Come and behold Christ Jesus. Come and experience His grace. Come and adore Him.
Still need another option? Look for a newsletter tomorrow as we release a NEW video just in time for Christmas!
