Church Video Announcements; An on-going conversation

I struggled with calling this post ‘an on-going conversation’, it’s probably more of an obsession. While I would never classify myself as a communications expert, I’m passionate about communicating well within the church. I’ve posted about this passion before (See 8 Simple Rules for Video Announcements), and I’d really like to hear from other video producers who are tasked with making video announcements at other churches. If that’s you, drop me a line in the comments… I’d love to hear the philosophy behind the how and why from others.

I’ve been doing my current version of announcements at Seacoast Church for about 6 weeks now. I call it “The Dispatch” and thankfully, I was given a lot of artistic liberty on how to execute each week.

Some of the parameters that I work within:

• Keep the final piece at about 2 minutes long. We roll the announcements right before the message roll-in and the idea is to keep it short but informative.
• Cover no more than 3 calendar items. I believe that any more than 3 items will be quickly forgotten.

Here is one of my favorites:

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Some of my philosophy:

• Video announcements allow me to tell a better story. I don’t ever want to just move a “talking head” from the stage to the screen; with the bit about the Harbor Cruise, I was able to to get onto the boat that they were using for the event. The boat, the water, the bridge… these are strong visuals and they tell as much of the story as the spoken word. A third layer in this was the music; “Come Sail Away” by Styx was a great way to help people remember that event as well. Never underestimate the value of getting a song stuck in people’s heads!
• Pictures and a little bit of information get the point across. In the bit about Serve Saturday, with just a little bit of footage from a previous event, I was able to show that anyone can get involved, from someone with car skills to people who can throw a little paint around. An interesting side note is that the event organizer came to me after that piece ran with a concern that it needed more information, I assured her that it would be okay; all that people needed to know was already in the piece. They had only been averaging about 20 people in the past few months for Serve Saturday… we ran that bit for two weeks prior to the July event and they had 70 people show up! You don’t have to over-sell… keep it short, give people the what/why/when, and they will respond.
• Quick reminders work! At the end of the piece, I had the talent simply ask folks to silence their cell phones and I was amazed at how many people were reaching into pockets and purses to do just that! Beyond that, finishing with a way for people to get more information is another key to communicating well; Our website will always have more information than we will ever try to fit into 2 minutes, I like to finish each week with the church’s website address.

If video announcements are something you’re already doing, or looking to start doing, jump into the conversation! Let’s help each other out by swapping ideas. Feel free to include links to stuff you’ve done so we can all see what you’re doing.

Confessions of a Church Video Director: Run Over

This post will start with a visual aid, a moment from my career as a TV camera operator back in 2003 when I was covering an NBA game in Phoenix, AZ.

(Embedded video HERE)

That was my job. Right on the court, just inches from large athletes moving at top speed.

This clip shows just one of the many times that I got run over while on the job.

My hat and glasses went flying. I rolled backwards like a turtle. But the show must go on… so I dusted myself off and got back to work. Just another night at the arena.

Here is where I spin that story into a blog post:

3 years ago, I was working at a church that had hired me to “take them to the next level“. Early on everything was fine; the next level often means changes and the folks there seemed to embrace the changes I was making; sometimes reluctantly, others with a little more vigor.

Taking the job was not easy for my family as it meant moving about 2,200 miles… Moving my wife away from her mother, sister and friends… Moving my daughter away during her junior year of high school.

And then I got run over.

I didn’t realize that I was being run over until about 8 months into the assignment. My character began to be  questioned, my work was minimized, and all of my next level thinking was rebuffed. It was much different than being plowed by a point guard… Rather than being struck, I found my self stuck.

Stuck in a job that was giving me ulcers.

Stuck in a job that was making me seriously question my faith. My calling. My ability to lead my family.

I was completely run over.

One big problem here: This wasn’t the sidelines of a major sporting event, this was a church. A place where people are supposed to be gracious, kind, and supportive. Perhaps I will go into more of the details of all that happened there another time, just understand that by the time that I knew I had to leave, I was near ready to call it quits with church-work and do something else. Fortunately, I found a new job with an amazing church that I love to this day.

My confession: While I love God’s Church with all that I am, some of the wounds that I incurred in my previous position still sting a bit. Much the way an old injury will leave you with a scar or a slight limp, I wonder if I will ever be able to shake all of what happened to me. I want to be all that God wants me to be and I don’t want my past to define my future. People let me down, God didn’t… I can’t ever lose sight of that.

Rather than this muse being just another indictment on the inner-workings of the Church, I’d rather have it be a step in the direction of healing and forgiveness. Maybe you have been hurt by a church’s leadership… maybe you’ve questioned God’s calling…

Maybe you’ve been run over too.

Be encouraged; You will heal. You may lose your hat and your glasses, but you can dust off and go back to work.

For God’s gifts and his call can never be withdrawn. Romans 11:29

IMAG: Minimize Distraction

My pastor and others who appear on stage (or on video) say that I harp on them too much about what clothing they wear, perhaps you have run into the same angst. I can only hope that they all understand that my chief objective is to make them good as well as minimizing distractions during our worship services. I have a mantra that they are all learning (slowly):

No whites, no blacks, no stripes, no patterns, no plaids! (It has a little bit of a cool rhythm to it, if you say it right!)

Here’s an explanation:

White shirts/tops blow out the camera’s iris with even minimal stage lighting, thus making it very difficult to expose for a person’s skin tone. When I have to iris-down to expose properly for the bright white shirt, the subject’s face ends up very dark. I’m a firm believer that the eyes communicate as much as the mouth; we need to see your face! A little bit of white is OK (under a vest or sweater).

Black shirts pose a problem most when the stage’s background is dark. If the background is completely black, your subject can end up looking like a disembodied head and hands moving strangely across the stage! If you have a pastor who is completely enamored with the color black, suggest dark grays; something that picks up a little bit of light can make all the difference.

Stripes/patterns/plaids – There are a number of reasons that busy patterns can be a nuisance, mostly because they “dance” on screen.

{apologies to Rick Warren for making him the “don’t” example here!}

The other distracting problem with patterns is the potential for conflict with on-screen graphics. At Seacoast, our song lyrics are displayed as a lower-third with no background; a worship leader wearing a ‘loud’ shirt (or a shirt with a graphic design or lettering) can make the lyrics unreadable or confusing. I realize that your worship team is probably really cool, but they need to be mindful of how they look on screen. Everyone owns a solid colored shirt, or at least something that doesn’t pose as much on screen conflict. I’ve been working with our worship teams long enough now that they know that I’m looking out for the best interest of the worship experience and not just coming down on their wardrobe decisions. I have asked them to bring an alternative shirt/outfit if they are unsure about how something might look like on stage/screen.