Three weeks before the video shoot for the 2010 Believe Tour (http://www.ciy.com/believe) there were a host of production problems to be solved, creative decisions to be made, and time was working against us. Were we going to have clear weather for our helicopter shot of Eric Timm (http://www.nooneunderground.com) painting on the roof of a warehouse? How in the world were we going to get a 60-foot canvas to the top of a 6-story building, shoot, and get it back down again within our four-hour time limit? And what was our back up plan in case Eric’s morning of the shoot flight was delayed?
Fortunately, all these variables slid into place so seamlessly you would have thought we had the whole shoot pre-produced to the second. Even the downtown airport re-routing local air traffic over our location didn’t keep us from getting everything we needed within our allotted four-hour window. The video came together because we worked together; we collaborated. When collaboration works it is one of the most energizing and rewarding experiences in life. Nine times out of ten collaboration falls because of one simple and sinister word, pride.
You must choose to collaborate and I can’t think of any better way to say it than this, “Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit, but in humility consider others better than yourselves. Each of you should look not only to your own interests, but also to the interests of others” (Philippians 2:3-4) Every time you start work on a new video you need to ask yourself, what is the desired outcome of the project? Think about that question for a few seconds in light of whatever project you are currently working on. Is your desired outcome that everyone who views your video recognize what a great filmmaker you are? Or is it that no matter what else happens, you won’t use another looping music bed? Or will you only be satisfied if the images you capture are in the purest form? Or will you only use slow motion if you capture in 60p, because you are a purest and there is no way you will ever allow 24p footage to be slowed down in Final Cut? These are all understandable desired outcomes but what if the only concern you had was how well the video you were creating fit into the larger whole?
Very few of the video producers I know are creating work that will exist in a vacuum. More likely than not, the video you are currently working on is part of a larger publicity campaign, sermon series, or promotional piece. Even if you are generating original work for sale on SermonSpice.com, it will be purchased based on how well it fits into a pastor’s existing sermon. A clear definition of your desired outcome will help you in collaborating with others. John Schimke, my producing partner for 36 Parables (http://www.36parables.com), says it this way, “Serve the story”. If you are having trouble figuring out what your desired outcome is for a given video ask yourself, “What is the story you are telling?”
But maybe you don’t know the desired outcome for a video because you just found out about it 5 minutes ago and it has to be done tomorrow. Let’s face it; many of you are in a tough spot. When you are the video producer, everyone in the organization looks to you as a wizard of some sort, the go to person who can save the day time and time again with mystical creative talents. The problem is, you’re not the one preaching on Sunday mornings, directing the event your video will premiere at, or creating the larger promotional context for your work. So when the pastor calls you Friday afternoon with a new creative direction for the Sunday morning video, you have got to come up with something magical in a matter of minutes. Or maybe you work at a ministry where at any moment several different departments may have video needs they need solved ASAP.
And this is where choosing humility becomes rather difficult. Pride can well up very easily in your heart when you feel like you have to solve everyone else’s problems but don’t have any part in the greater creative decisions being made concerning the context and presentation of the video. When the 11th hour creative decision comes your way pride may tempt you to tell whoever is making the demands why their idea won’t work simply because you feel put upon. However, your success as a creative team member does not come from defeating those who inconvenience or disagree with you. You are most effective when you are focused on being the very best you can be, which leaves very little room for monitoring others’ performance.
My dear brothers, take note of this: Everyone should be quick to listen, slow to speak and slow to become angry, for man's anger does not bring about the righteous life that God desires. James 1:19-20
When you are quick to listen you equip yourself to best serve those who need your video production expertise. Make sure you ask questions about the context and presentation of the video.
- Find out what elements it will be preceded and followed by
- Hear creative ideas without raising technical issues too soon
- Listen for the desired outcome and insure everything in your control serves that end
If you do these things and remain grounded in humility and listening to others, I guarantee your collaboration will begin to click, as the poet W.B. Yeats puts it, like a well-made box.
Of course, nothing will every change the fact that when you are working with others, opinions will abound. Put another way, the clearest way to accelerate collaboration is Stephen Covey’s 5th Habit from his 7 Habits of Highly Effective People, “seek first to understand, then to be understood”. Sounds like the quote from the Book of James doesn’t it? Collaboration is not the result of polarities defeating one another, but the power that is unleashed when they combine. Such is the story of electricity. This concept was introduced to me by Roy H. Williams, the Wizard of Ads (http://www.wizardacademy.org/scripts/default.asp). You really should check out his non-traditional business school and Monday Morning Memo (http://www.mondaymorningmemo.com/) if you want to learn more about making something out of nothing.
Messiah Sees More is the title of the video I was telling you about at the beginning of this article. We had a lot stacked against us that day, questionable weather, a sudden shift in air traffic interfering with our helicopter, and only 4 hours to get it all done. It was by no means because we had an easy day of shooting that the video turned out well; it was because we collaborated so well. We were able to communicate several times via videoconference before we shot. "On the morning of the shoot we took 2 hours to review our plan, time we could have spent shooting, and confirmed we all understood the desired outcome for the video."
Collaboration with others, when grounded in humility and listening, can overcome the most difficult shooting situations and will always produce your best work.
Watch Messiah Sees More by clicking here: http://stewarthredwine.com/2010/03/21/messiah-sees-more/
In order to fully appreciate the Messiah Sees More you will want to see it in context at the 2010 Believe Messiah Tour (http://www.ciy.com/believe/tour-dates/), and there are still five tour dates to go.
Written by Stewart H. Redwine
Stewart H. Redwine is a Video Producer for Christ in Youth as well as Producer and Director of Photography for onetimeblind’s hit mini-movies and Youth Specialties 36 Parables DVD series.
He enjoys writing, tending his garden, and slalom skiing in the gorgeous Ozark Mountain Country of Southwest Missouri where he lives with his wife and two children. You can read more of what he has to say about faith, culture, and the arts at StewartHRedwine.com.
