Collide Magazine

Church Spotlight: New Hope Christian Fellowship

COLLIDE Staff - Originally posted Monday, November 10, 2008

Not only is Hawaii the home of surfer dudes, gnarly waves, and bodacious beaches, it’s also the home of one of the largest and fastest growing churches in America. New Hope Christian Fellowship, launched in 1995 under the leadership of Pastor Wayne Cordeiro, has a weekly attendance of more than 12,000 across five campuses, plus an Internet Campus of more than 1,000 users. On top of all that, we think their multi-campus approach, extensive use of video, media-rich website, annual IT conference, and iPhone web application deserve some recognition.

Tim Savage – Creative Multimedia Director

COLLIDE: In what ways does New Hope utilize media and technology in its services?

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SAVAGE: We try to use as much media from contemporary culture as possible because we believe that we have to be able to fluently speak the language of our society in order to reach them.

A. We produce videos for our weekend celebrations that are dramatic, emotional or informational. For example, we put together a package each week called Top of the Hour which introduces 3 of the over 100 ministries available at New Hope. We also produce a video called New Hope in Action, which, in a fast-paced, creative and entertaining way, features highlights from a past/current event or promotes an upcoming event.

A few times a year we produce testimony videos, which share the powerful and emotional story of a changed life. We try to make them as intriguing as possible even going so far as to recreate the scene of a bad accident with a wrecked car, makeup effects (blood), smoke and an ambulance. I visited some “interesting places” to try to track down a crack pipe and lighter!

We have produced 2 short dramatic films in which we have worked with professional actors and crew to create stories that are relevant and have an impact for believers and non-believers alike. In addition to play in our services, they also screen in film festivals and television.

Recently, we produced a 30-minute “message documentary” entitled God in Hawaii, in which our Senior Pastor, Wayne Cordeiro, recounted the history of the ancient Hawaiian monarchy and their relationship with God. We filmed him at the edge of a smoke-fuming volcano, an ancient Hawaiian sanctuary and the grounds of the United States’ only royal palace, ‘Iolani Palace. We are planning 2 more documentaries to finish telling the history of the Christian monarchs and western missionaries.

B. We use multi-camera coverage at our weekend services for live Internet streaming, recording and image magnification. Because we have several remote or distant campuses and because our service programming includes complex drama, dance and music specials, our live camera coverage and sound mixing is critical. Most of our gear is mobile because we don’t own our buildings; we still meet at a local high school.

We are preparing for the dreaded jump to high definition! The money, the complexities and the fast-changing landscape of technology all make this transition nerve-wracking, but we all feel that it’s necessary to try to stay ahead of the curve.

C. I haven’t touched on the tech involved with our sound, lighting and web, but they are extensive. Last year we were blessed to be awarded 2 Solomon Awards for Best Technical Production Team and Best Overall AV Project.

Like most other churches we are able to accomplish all of these things only because of our amazing volunteers who week after week give of their time, effort and spirit because they believe in the mission and vision of the ministry and the Church (capital “C”). They push themselves and train to be as good or better than most professionals and without them, there would be nothing to write about.

And we’re still learning - from people like you and other pioneering churches like Lakewood, Fellowship, LifeChurch, North Point, Willow Creek, Port City Community (kick butt videos!) and a whole new generation of media artisans that are sold out for Jesus!

COLLIDE: What is the importance of New Hope’s online presence?

SAVAGE: The importance of the Web, in general, can’t be overstated—it will surpass the reach of TV, newspaper, books, and most other traditional media as the de facto delivery system in the near future. While it will, hopefully, never replace personal gatherings like church services, we must understand, harness, and redeem the power of the Internet.

Much of what the Web does best is provide information, so we have videos, pictures, stories, and content constantly updating and changing to give people a reason to check the site often. We provide more teaching, instruction, and answers via the Web so that those with questions have an immediate and sometimes anonymous way of getting more information.

COLLIDE: Tell us about the media team you work with and your creative process

SAVAGE: We have 3 full-time staff, 4 part-time staff, and several volunteers on our video production/post-production team. Three of the staffers are writer/shooter/editors and the rest are producers, engineers and assistants. We currently own a couple of Panasonic HVX200 (HD) workhorse cameras and edit on Final Cut Pro stations. I think we place a lot of emphasis on creative and storytelling, but need to improve on motion graphics and design. We have a creative/status meeting early each week to catch up and go over assignments, then we get together later in the week to hold each other up spiritually.

Creatively, we’ve done both group and individual creative processes and I think, theoretically, we prefer the group experience, but realistically, right now, we are in a season of each editor coming up with their own ideas for the weekly packages. We certainly believe, however, that we get better and stronger ideas as a team.

COLLIDE: How has media and technology changed in the last few years and how has New Hope adjusted to this change?

SAVAGE: Isn’t media and technology always changing?! And now, more than ever, and we have to be okay to change with it. From megabytes, to terabytes, to non-linear editing, to DTV, to HD and all of its new (and frustrating!) codecs and formats, I am learning to embrace progress. We are definitely in a period of massive transition – not everything that we learn and invest in will survive the long term (i.e. betamax vs. VHS and blu-ray vs. HDDVD), so we have to identify trends and be smart as to when to jump in to the mix. For instance, we are researching a networked storage solution for the edit bays. A couple of years ago those systems were really only available to TV news networks or large post-production facilities, now, we’re in the market and need to make a good choice because it’s not cheap and we can’t afford to make a mistake. Luckily, God has provided people much smarter than I to research and explain these things.

In all of the technological revolution and change, nothing beats a good story, and, as Christians, we have the best story of all to tell.

Eun Ho Lee – Senior Post Production Editor

COLLIDE: Explain your role at New Hope as the Senior Post Production Editor.

LEE: I believe my primary role at New Hope is to love God and to love our team. This love is displayed in deadline-induced caffeine-powered all-nighters, teary-eyed devotional sharing sessions, sweaty-browed production days, and spirit-infused embraces of celebration and victory. Submission to authority and exercising leadership have been the two greatest challenges I've faced in my role, but both have been fruitful struggles as they've drawn me closer to the heart of God. To be serving in the capacity I am now is a testament to the remarkable team of skilled, creative, loving brothers whom God has placed in my midst, and the vision of our Senior Pastor, Wayne Cordeiro, to release dreams and equip young leaders. As one of the few females involved in this ministry, I try to be the best big sister I can be to a team of very patient brothers, who are learning - whether they like it or not! - how to understand women. I'd like to think God is using me to prepare them for the joys of married life! Hopefully they'll thank me later. ;-)



COLLIDE: What role do video and multimedia play at New Hope?



LEE: The role of video and multimedia at New Hope are not unlike the roles of the Sunday school teachers at Children's Ark, the worship leaders in our Frontlines ministry, the receptionists in our office ministry, or the Levites who clean the restrooms. It's a means of making a genuine connection with someone - unsaved, faithless, hopeless, empty or hungry - and petition for them to receive the touch of the Holy Spirit.



COLLIDE: How has media and technology aided New Hopes multi-campus approach?



LEE: I believe it's imperative to remember God's limitations - that there are none! His love for His people are boundless and so should our efforts be in finding new and innovative ways to spread His message. Media and technology, when harnessed with a God-fearing heart and the right education, can serve as a powerful agent of hope, community, and belonging. We do the best we can (and continually try to improve) to integrate New Hope's multiple campuses and foster a culture of teamwork and family.

COLLIDE: How and why does New Hope create their own multimedia?

LEE: I believe in the limitlessness of God's creativity. I love creating our own multimedia because it stretches us to discover and depend on God in new ways. We pray, we scribble, we fall on our knees; we plead for God's divine inspiration, vision, strength, and perseverance. We collaborate with volunteers, call experts, watch YouTube, and take classes. We create, debrief, learn, improve, and create again. It’s in this trying process that we are released to rejoice in ways we wouldn't be able to if we weren't pushed beyond ourselves.

We also create our own multimedia because you can tell the difference if your brother makes your graduation video, for instance, vs. a hired hand. We believe in treating our work like we're doing it for our family. There's a sensibility and sensitivity that can only be conveyed when your brother or sister tells the story. Because of the global reach that God has bestowed upon our church, sometimes certain jokes and references may go over people's heads, but we're committed to the unique identity that God has given to our ‘ohana (a Hawaiian term meaning extended family).

Mike Sharpe – Innovation and Technology Director

COLLIDE: Being a multi-site church, how has New Hope taken advantage of video technology?

SHARPE: One of the first pioneering ventures we took on several years back was to partner with Time Warner Cable to compress and send our video signal via cable to our multiple campus locations. This allowed all our campuses to see our service live at the same time. After about a year using cable, we switched to fiber optic, which has been flawless for the last two years. For locations that do not have cable, or are located in other countries, we have been using AppleTV to download the service. We also stream all five of our weekend services live on the Internet. We have people from all over the world joining us online to attend church virtually.

COLLIDE: A new addition to your website is the iPhone web application; why did you create the web application?

SHARPE: Shortly after the iPhone came out, we started having Internet connectivity problems at our ministry center. When we looked into the cause, we found that more than half of our IP addresses were being snatched up by iPhones! We quickly realized that the iPhone was very popular at our church and many of our members were carrying them. Since daily devotions are the cornerstone of New Hope, we thought it would be great to have a web-friendly application that would allow iPhone users to either read or listen to the daily Bible reading right on their iPhone, no matter where they are. It was a hit from the moment we released it.

COLLIDE: Tell us about the IT and arts conference you are hosting.

SHARPE: Our conference is called Bringing IT to Life, and I feel it is titled appropriately because it is important that we place an emphasis on the role people and “life” play in innovation and technology. What I have learned is that in any organization, real innovation happens when people dream up new ideas and then use technology as the tool that brings the idea to life. At the same time, technology is rarely what limits innovation; it is almost always people or groups that are resistant to change. What we hope to accomplish at our conference is to show how the church of the 21st century can utilize innovation and technology as a tool to advance God’s kingdom. Innovation brings change and some might be resistant, but we hope to encourage churches to see that it is OK to keep up with the times.

For more information about New Hope, visit www.enewhope.org.