Posted by Scott McClellan on March 3rd, 2010 at 3:12 pm
Tony Steward is LifeChurch.tv’s Online Community Pastor, an Echo 2010 breakout speaker, and an all-around great guy. Oh, and he has a brand new blog! I’m happy about that.
One of Tony’s first posts is titled, “Making Videos That Work Socially,” and it’s well worth your time. Tony shares practical tips that’ll help you improve your videos without learning any new techniques, hardware, or software.
So, stop by Tony’s new blog, learn some video tips, and say hello while you’re there.
Posted by Scott McClellan on January 11th, 2010 at 1:20 pm
Did you hear the one about the guy who filmed his own version of the Rambo novel First Blood? It’s true. Zachary Oberzan plays all the parts in his film, Flooding with Love for the Kid, which he made in his 220 sq. ft. apartment in New York City. His budget for the project — $96. Here’s a clip:
It’s entertaining … in its own way.
The buzz the video is getting reminded me of the “Embrace Constraints” concept from 37signals’ Getting Real. The idea is simple: accept the limits of your time, money, personnel, and expertise for a given project, then make the best of it. Get creative and do what you can do. Oberzan didn’t have a studio, a crew, a budget, or a great camera, but he embraced those constraints and did what he could do. The guys at 37signals didn’t have a lot of time or manpower when they were building Basecamp, so they set their sights on a simple, lean tool instead of a massive, feature-intensive solution.
The Getting Real authors point out that it’s easy to get the “‘not enough’ blues” — but don’t fall into that trap. “Constraints are often advantages in disguise,” they say, because they force you to discover creative solutions and identify your strengths and core competencies.
You don’t have the time, money, staff, or expertise to create Avatar, but that’s OK. Embrace that constraint. Avatar has already been made anyway. What you can do, though, is make something creative, fun, poignant, personal, uplifting, heartbreaking, and quirky. You can do your own thing, working with what’s available to you. Greatness isn’t reserved for people with big bucks or big guns — it’s reserved for people with big ideas and the commitment to make them happen.
Posted by Scott McClellan on December 21st, 2009 at 9:39 am
I’m pretty excited about LifeChurch.tv’s plan for Christmas Eve. They’ve produced an original short film that’s going to serve as the primary message for their online and meatspace services. They’ve put together a nice invite page here, which also features free downloadable Christmas tunes and the intriguing trailer below. If you have a chance, log on and check it out.
Posted by Scott McClellan on December 1st, 2009 at 11:13 am
That is a viral masterpiece known as “David After Dentist.” It has more than 36 million views. Wow.
Anyway, we’re asking for your nominations for our Readers Choice Awards here. Go nominate your faves if you haven’t already. But here’s the deal: I accidentally omitted the viral video category on the nominations form. Thus, I humbly request you leave a comment on this post name-dropping or link-dropping your favorite viral video of the year. Next week, we’ll vote for some winners.
Posted by Scott McClellan on November 17th, 2009 at 10:44 am
Five years later, people are still talking about the commercial success of Mel Gibson’s The Passion of the Christ. It has become the preeminent case study for raking in the entertainment dollars of Christians. Since The Passion’s staggering commercial success, films such as Rocky Balboa, The Nativity Story, Amazing Grace (the William Wilberforce movie), and Evan Almighty have been directly marketed to church leaders as inspirational films that teach good lessons and inspire spiritual conversations. Heck, if memory serves, the Evan Almighty campaign included a faux cover wrap for Christianity Today — an expensive measure that was indicative of the studio’s aspirations.
Now, The Road is inviting church leaders to kick its tires (as discussed by The Christian Post here and in the current issue of Entertainment Weekly). Personally, I find this fascinating.
The Road – in theaters November 25 — is the film adaptation of Cormac McCarthy’s book by the same name. I think McCarthy is an outstanding author and his premise (a father and son journey across post-apocalyptic America dodging cannibalistic bandits) seems like a good one. But does The Road (rated R for intense language, violence, and imagery) really sound like a film that churches can publicly throw their arms around? I hear the film is excellent, but that’s not always the most important criterion for church folk in search of resources and conversation starters.
To give you some idea of what the film’s all about, here’s the intense trailer:
