Coming up with good film clip ideas can be the challenge. There have been a number of books published full of clip ideas, such as the Videos That Teach series and Blockbuster Movie Illustrations. Subscription-based and a la carte websites such as movieministry.com, wingclips.com and screenvue.com are also helpful.
Our new favorite search method is to use the Movie Keyword Analyzer at The Internet Movie Database. Simply type a word such as “compass” (one of our metaphors from spark volume 1) in the search field and then click on the keyword result than comes up. As of this writing compass brought up 15 movies with good potential such as Out of Africa, The Client, Message in a Bottle, and more.
Often, the best source is a movie buff sitting next to you in a worship design meeting.
10. “On the Street” videos
A format that has been around a long while but made popular (again) on late night television, these are an effective way to set up a theme and get a feel for real-world opinion on a topic. We wrote an entire article devoted to this format that explains tips and techniques in great detail.
Maybe it’s because we’ve done these pieces for so long, but our feeling is that this format can get old quickly. A good rule of thumb is not to use any one of these types too often, but try to vary them as much as possible.
11. Scripture videos
These are visual representations of scripture and can be driven by voiceover, text on the screen, or both. Break out of the “scripture reading” rut and present the same stories in another medium. It will likely make the Bible more connectional for your congregation.
This is a favorite of ours because it brings biblical story into contemporary worship (as opposed to single verses extracted from their context to prove doctrines and concepts). See Figure 6 for an example.
11A. Testimony Videos
Duh – we forgot to include this the first time out. Thankfully, poster koc brought it up as a comment, so we went back and stuck it in. Like koc said, tesimonies are great for compressing a long story into a concise summary, with the added emotional benefit of music and images to illustrate. They can also make people sound more articulate than they really are–anyone who has ever squirmed through a interminable live tesimony in worship can appreciate that.
12. Theme/metaphor setup videos
Think of these as digital parables. Much of what we have produced our first few years as a ministry has been thematic in nature, including our flame series of thematic intro videos. Usually, they are short and are not designed to stand on their own but rather as part of a multi-sensory experience in which many different elements all work together to communicate a single idea. For example, a service about direction, using a compass metaphor, can use a spinning compass video to begin worship.
13. Transition video/animations
One of the keys to worship that connects to the digital culture is moving away from a linear format where one element ends, then another begins, often after an excruciating 20-30 second pause in which whatever awareness of the Holy Spirit the congregation has is lost. More tightly connected worship flows create the sense of one seamless worship experience. One of the best ways to achieve this is by overlapping elements and using visual imagery to fill gaps. Fifteen to thirty second videos and animations can bridge from one element to another, creating a smooth worship experience.
In the industry, these are called “bumpers.” For reference think about the short pieces with the corporate logo that come up during commercial breaks on network television. The same thing can be done in worship; even better than the church logo, however, is using a thematic element for the day. This transforms what was once a negative gap in between other elements in worship into a new and different way to further drive home the main idea.
Worship is a big blank canvas, and you are an artist responsible for helping to paint the picture. Keep your palette fresh. Experiment with different combinations until you have a picture that helps people see the truth of the gospel in fresh, meaningful ways.
The MO Guys said,
Wrote on June 15, 2006 @ 2:24 pm
So, what did we miss? How have you used media in ways not covered here? Let us know by adding comments below.
Gene said,
Wrote on June 15, 2006 @ 7:22 pm
Great article, guys. One thing you’ve mentioned elsewhere but I didn’t see here was ‘physical’ media. Like a bookmark printed with something connecting to the service, or the coffee filter thing…something that people are given and either take away to remember the service or do something symbolic with.
The MO Guys said,
Wrote on June 15, 2006 @ 9:17 pm
Definitely, Gene. We just talked about graphics and video on screen but you’re absolutely right–there’s a plethora of different things you can do with physical media as well.
Henrietta Kissel said,
Wrote on June 20, 2006 @ 10:48 am
Title is 18 ways and I only see 13. Where may I find the other 5?
thank you
The MO Guys said,
Wrote on June 20, 2006 @ 4:36 pm
Henrietta, It’s 5+13.
koc said,
Wrote on June 21, 2006 @ 10:09 pm
one of the best ways we’ve used video in worhsip is to interview people telling their faith stories. It allows us to edit down a 30-45 minute interview into a concise 3-4 minute story. These ‘real life’ faith journeys are a very powerful part of our worship!
Craig said,
Wrote on June 26, 2006 @ 1:13 am
I’ve had an artist do a ‘live’ drawing on-screen using a drawing tablet – illustrating the scripture text as it is read. “Painter” is a great software program for this.
I’ve also experimented in a smaller church with a ‘prayer window’ setup in Powerpoint (but it could be done in Flash). One or more children are invited to come and click on a panel of the window (on a computer at the front of the sanctuary) – the panel contains an invisible action button that links to another screen. we’ve done this to focus our prayers on particular people and places around the world. (I’ve got an interest in ‘interactivity’ – there’s an essay on my website in the downloads section).
I’ve also done a “pretend” live satellite cross, where the person is actually in a room nearby. It was very funny in the context of a drama where we crossed “live” to New York and the person on screen was standing in front of what was obviously a poster on a wall.
I’ve just started playing with a “VJ” program – Arkaos – http://www.arkaos.net – which some contacts in the US have used a lot for live vision mixing in young adult oriented worship. It allows for mixing pre-prepared and recent media elements (eg. images or clips from an event) with a live video feed if you want. used in dance club settings.
thanks guys – keep up the good work!
Bonnie Greene said,
Wrote on June 26, 2006 @ 3:01 am
We use all of these regularly, plus videos that convey a really powerful song, like Greg Ferguson’s “Leave a Light on for Me”. I’ve become aware that we’re evolving to a different stage. Instead of video or media as illustration for the spoken message, it’s that we have the Gospel “preached” in 3 different languages in each service: oral, visual, auditory (the featured music). Each is a sermon–on the same theme–but in a different medium. I think of this as a transition like the one made when we moved from “illuminations” of the first letter of a hand-copied book in the Middle Ages to a fully illustrated book in William Blake to comic novels today. Very exciting time.
The MO Guys said,
Wrote on June 26, 2006 @ 7:20 am
Bonnie,
That is exciting. This is the ultimate goal, for us at least, of what we’re talking about with media in worship…. to discover a visual language to communicate the Gospel, and to not just use the screen to support, or illustrate as you say, messages rooted in text and orality. The support mindset, which we call the AV Mentality among other things, fails to truly capture the power of the medium. It takes a while to begin to grasp this difference. Sounds like you guys are doing it.
paul bagley said,
Wrote on June 26, 2006 @ 5:57 pm
Often we like to highlight lyrics in a familiar worship song by flipping to a scene from a movie. It works better with a worship song that the church can sing with out the words so that when you flip from the text on the screen to a movie scene the church will continue to sing the song at the same time as the scene.
Also we have enjoyed using a movie scene with no sound just the visual to highlight a point during the pastors message.
Paul Clifford said,
Wrote on June 28, 2006 @ 10:19 am
What about in-drama support? Game show spoofs need things like a Jeopardy board. A drama about a church that isn’t welcoming might use a projected still of a church building as a set.
Additionally, IMAG (if done properly) can draw the audience into the experience of the service in ways that just having a small room cannot.
Paul
Susan Ewing said,
Wrote on July 20, 2006 @ 2:41 pm
As a very small church >100 including children we have $$ issues but lots of ideas and talent. We are doing a mosaic July 30 with those old enough to write writing a word or two of what grace means to them on a broken piece of tile which will form the dove in the mosaic. Having attendees participate in something concrete that will be displayed as a work of art in the church adds much to the worship experience.
YouthMinistryTV.com » Blog Archive » Tips For Using Media in Worship said,
Wrote on July 21, 2006 @ 9:05 am
[...] Midnight Oil Productions has posted a great article about using media in worship called Expanding the Pallette: 18 Ways to Use Media in Worship. I especially liked their tips on using video in worship. Some of their ideas include: [...]
CHURCH VIDEO IDEAS » What’s new with Midnight Oil Productions? said,
Wrote on August 22, 2006 @ 11:20 am
[...] ***Midnight Oil Plus*** Join their new annual membership program to get free products, coupons for media, software, seminars, and more. Articles This summer MOP published a number of new articles. Read them all on their site. Here’s a cool one entitled “19 Ways to Use Media in Worship“. [...]
Expanding the Palette: 18 Ways to Use Media in Worship « Ray Emery said,
Wrote on July 17, 2007 @ 5:01 pm
[...] Expanding the Palette: 18 Ways to Use Media in Worship 20 06 2006 Posted June 15th, 2006 by The MO Guys [...]
Ronda said,
Wrote on February 19, 2008 @ 10:34 pm
These are good ideas but can you address some rules for what not to use for song backgrounds or sermons. It seems to us that our media volunteer has a willing spirit but doesn’t really understand the importance of the what/how of choosing slides. He chooses slides basesd on subject but doesn’t consider the potential distraction they pose. Often the images are distorted, distracting, awkward. Just some basic “rules”. A distracting, uncomfortable slide is more damaging than no slide at all.
Brian William said,
Wrote on June 18, 2008 @ 10:24 am
I know the article was posted a couple years ago, but one of my favorite uses for the screen has been for popular music. I’ve used the actual music videos at times — such as Black Eyed Peas’ “Where Is the Love?” with key lyrics added over the top of the music video to emphasize the message. But then I’ve created my own music videos for a variety of other songs — “Watching You” by Rodney Atkins (the verse about the kid learning how to pray by watching his dad), “Let Love In” by the Goo Goo Dolls (the chorus about letting go of fear the ‘moment we decided to let love in’), and “The Great Divide” by Scott Stapp. The one I liked the best was “Bring Me to Life” by Evanescence, using a simple sunrise video while highlighting key lyrics over the top of it.
I’ve been surprised that with the number of books, websites, etc. that have used movie clips as sermon illustrations that there hasn’t been anything similar (that I’m aware of) for popular music. Especially because pop songs are already perfectly edited for worship use — two and a half to three minutes is just about right for an illustration.
*BKW