by John Walton
Village Avenue, Inc.

Toolbox for Video Storytelling is the resource I use in creating missionary videos. I recommend it to any missionary considering creating a video to show to supporters and those back home. At the bottom of this page are links to Village Avenue and Toolbox for Video Storytelling.
- David Mansfield

Step one: Organize your thoughts.

Take an idea that you have and see if you can express it in the form of a story. Often, presentations are expressed through a topic, but topics usually lack human interest. Try to relate that topic to a person, and how he or she is affected by your topic. You may like to talk about the ministry of Bible translation, but your audience may get lost in the technicalities without a human-interest element. Share a story of how the Scriptures in their heart language have impacted a person, or the part that person played in the process of getting the Scriptures into his or her language, and then you will have a good story.

The most interesting stories will have three elements (besides a beginning, middle, and an end). They will have 1) a character, 2) a goal or destination, and 3) something standing in the way of that destination or accomplishment, such as a conflict or reversal.

The conflict could be in the form of another person (the antagonist), or it could be conflicting elements, such as the weather. For the missionary many conflicts, or reversals, take the form of spiritual opposition.

Write out a short paragraph, as if you were reading a blurb in TV Guide about your video. This is your summary statement. The summary statements purpose is to keep you focused. Focus is the most important element you can bring to your script.

Example:

Greg and Faith Waite, missionaries with TEAM, share how Eduardo, a confessed atheist, communist philosopher, and university professor, came to Christ as a result of their friendship evangelism ministry, and as an answer to prayer by their home supporting team.

In our example just stated, the Waites are in a church-planting ministry focusing on a friendship evangelism strategy. That is your topic. Their story is about Eduardo, a university professor who came to Christ as a result of their friendship evangelism ministry.

With your story elements now in mind, you can expand your summary statement into a one- or two-page treatment. A treatment is a narrative statement that helps you to articulate in your own mind how you want to "treat" your story material: why you are doing this video, how you hope the audience will respond, and how the video will look. I like to describe the first minute in more detail. It helps me to "see" the opening and gives me direction. For example, having read in the Toolbox the section on "captivating the eyes and the ears of your audience," you decide that a news opening would be effective for a video about Colombia.

Even though you may wish to tell one story, within that story are cultural elements, spiritual need elements, and end results. These are mini story elements by themselves, or modules. Each of these modules also fulfills the basic communication structure that is needed to effectively communicate with the intended audience. For example, the Cultural module helps to create interest and draw people in. The Spiritual Needs module lays down the premise of your work and also introduces what you are up against (the conflict). And of course, the End Result story module substantiates your premise. You may want to even name your individual story modules. For example, Bogota's Turmoil (cultural/news), Eduardo's Testimony (spiritual needs), Sylvia's Letter (end result).

You may want to briefly describe what story modules you are considering in the development of your script. You will not have to write everything out in detail. This treatment simply serves as a tentative road map for your video. Let others read it, and if they can find their way, then you know you're on the right track.

Step two: Structure your material.

Look at your treatment and see:

• Does your beginning get your audience's attention and create interest?
  
• Do your stories illustrate your ministry sufficiently so that you convince your audience that what you've just said is true? Here is where two or three story modules would illustrate the results of your ministry. These can be short redramatized modules (or picture stories carried by narration rather than dialogue), interviews, or testimonies of people whose lives have been changed.
  
• Do you provide your audience with a means to respond to your message? Will it be through a challenging story, an appeal from you or your subject, or an instruction of some sort? Perhaps directing them to your personal or missions Web site. Or, will you ask them to pray in a specific way for you or the subject of your video?
  You may want to invite people to respond apart from your video, perhaps by a live invitation or challenge from you, your pastor, or someone who may be hosting your meeting.

Step three: Expand your thoughts into an outline or script.

Now you are ready to write the first draft of your script. Use conversational English as your audience will listen to your script, rather than read it. You may want to transition between some of your story modules by using a scriptural thread to help carry your theme throughout your video.

Make notes in the margin of your script of the visuals you already have and would like to use, notations such as "Ann translating literacy primers" or "Charlie teaching Greek at the training institute."

You are well on your way to writing a good video script.

P. S. If this Quick Start guide has been helpful to you, please forward it or share it with another missionary. If it has been E-mailed to you by a friend, please visit our web site, www.VillageAve.com for further information or E-mail us at Toolbox@VillageAve.com

Copyright 2002 John Walton