Echo | Church Media Conference

Incorporating media of any kind into a church's strategic plan, Sunday services or website takes thoughtful consideration. This session will provide some simple and practical ways to allow a church of any size or budget take advantage of global communication platforms not just to entertain or reinforce a brand but actually extend your Church's kingdom impact.

After eight years in vocational ministry as director of programs at a Southern California camp, Michael Ames is now the director of the project truthcasting.com, in his role with business development for The Pursuant Group. Michael’s previous experience has taken his abilities as a teacher and facilitator into hundreds of churches across the country. Michael lives in Dallas with his wife and four children.

Andre Guidry is the Media Engineer for Lakewood Church and Joel Osteen Ministries in Houston Texas. In 2005 he was the project manager for the Audio, Video and Lighting areas of Lakewood Church. This included the 10,000 square foot broadcast build out. Most recently in the summer of 2007 he upgraded Lakewood Church's broadcast facility to a 54TB Xsan with 6 Edit stations, 12 Ingest/Playout/Encoder servers, and 2 Graphic stations.

Evan Hamilton is a passionate Apple geek that works for LifeChurch.tv, a multi-site church based in Oklahoma, As the Apple specialist and engineer, Evan focuses on managing a 50TB XSAN installation as well as fifteen FCP editing stations, an Episode Engine Encoder and four Gallery 1080i broadcast capture & playback machines, using Picture Ready and Virtual VTR.

Jim Sutton is an experienced data professional and Apple fanatic the works as the Director of Video Engineering for Prestonwood Baptist Church in Plano, TX. Having just completed a major "HD" upgrade, Jim manages the video operation that includes a 50TB XSANinstallation, 50TB of Omneon MediaGrid, ten Xserves that perform capture, playout, and render operation, as well as seven FCP edit stations. The operation is complete with state of the art Sony 1080i broadcast cameras and switches.

This class is a discussion of innovation and creativity in the local church. Besides hearing about how you can utilize Web 2.0 technologies such as Twitter, Facebook, Myspace and other Web 2.0 technologies for ministry, you will hear the stories of churches that are "doing church" differently and really making an impact. This class will stretch your definition and understanding of creativity and innovation.

Greg Atkinson lives in Dallas with his wife and their three small children. Greg served previously as the Director of WorshipHouse Media, after having served as a worship pastor for 11 years. Greg is now the Technical Arts Director at Bent Tree Bible Fellowship and continues to consult, teach and write about worship, media and creative communication. You can connect with him through his daily blog, Church Video Ideas, his podcast, Creative Synergy , or his email: greg@churchvideoideas.com.

In this class, facilitated by Greg Atkinson, you will hear and see demos from representatives of the top 3 worship presentation software companies. Come see the power, potential and latest features from EasyWorship, MediaShout and ProPresenter. See them compared side by side and you decide which is best for your situation.

Greg Atkinson lives in Dallas with his wife and their three small children. Greg served previously as the Director of WorshipHouse Media, after having served as a worship pastor for 11 years. Greg is now the Technical Arts Director at Bent Tree Bible Fellowship and continues to consult, teach and write about worship, media and creative communication. You can connect with him through his daily blog, Church Video Ideas, his podcast, Creative Synergy , or his email: greg@churchvideoideas.com.

This class will teach the Big-3 of Web Standards: XHTML, CSS and JavaScript. Attendees will enjoy an informal environment in which to ask questions and receive advice. Topics covered will be structural semantics in markup, advanced CSS techniques, and enhancing the user experience with Ajax interaction. The JavaScript library jQuery will be introduced, and the benefits of using frameworks will be discussed. Grab your laptop and bring a hunger to learn, as we roll up our sleeves and dive into some code!

Christian Bradford works as Information Architects for EMC, where he get to build enterprise level web applications for large companies. Christian is a mobile technology enthusiast and a member of Watermark Community Church. Nathan works as a front end developer at Viewzi, a revolutionary new search engine. He is the founder of the Godbit Project, advocating better use of the web by churches and ministries. Nathan is also a published book author on open-source content management, and is finishing up MDiv studies via online courses from Asbury Theological Seminary.

Producer, filmmaker, and media strategist Phil Cooke - author of "Branding Faith: Why Some Churches and Non-Profits Impact Culture and Others Don't" - describes the new rules for communicating your message in the 21st century. Cut through the overwhelming media clutter, connect, and then develop a meaningful relationship with your audience. Controversial, compelling, and undeniable, this workshop will change the way you look at advertising, marketing, and promoting your message. It’s essential for anyone in the business of communicating a message, with the hope of changing the world.

Phil Cooke is CEO and Creative Director of Cooke Pictures - a media production and consulting company in Santa Monica, California, and is a founding partner at TWC Films - a TV commercial company, which produced two commercials for Super Bowl 2008. The author of "“Branding Faith: Why Some Churches and Non-Profits Impact Culture and Others Don't”", Phil is changing the way religion and culture interact – and the way churches, religious organizations, and other non-profits use the media to tell their story. From small churches and non-profits to global organizations, Phil Cooke’s ideas and strategies are being used and valued around the world, and his blog at philcooke.com is bringing a new perspective to the discussion of media and faith.

A discussion of how the decentralized nature of the internet already affects your members and how to leverage the power of decentralized communications to strengthen small groups mobilize volunteers, activate new members and encourage deeper community. These are all the benefits of utilizing Web 2.0 technology as a way to connect and equip your members. This session will provide a thorough discussion of how a church of any size can safely navigate a world of decentralized communication. By putting the tools of production into the hands of your members you empower them to participate and contribute like never before.

Matt Frazier is the founder and CEO of Pursuant, a full service fund raising agency serving over 150 Ministry Non-Profit, University and alumni based organizations. Matt has spent his entire career in development and technology. He is an online fund raising futurist, development strategist and sought after speaker on issues related to tomorrow's donor. Matt is best known for his creative approach to integrating Internet technology, direct marketing and development methodologies to help strengthen organizations.

This class will focus on the before and after process of taking a church website and adding features, usability, design, and strategy to create a website that is an effective ministry tool. Over the course of the next few months we will be taking applications at www.churchwebmakeover.com and then featuring that church on the website and at the conference. Visit www.churchwebmakeover.com for more details and to stay informed

Travis Gates is Vice President/CVO of Church Media Group, Inc. located in Southlake Texas. Travis has over 12 years of experience in developing online media for a wide range of organizations including; Apple.com, Jones Soda, Israel Houghton, Kenneth Copeland, Gateway Church and many more. His passion is to train ministry leaders how to effectively leverage the internet to communicate the Gospel and connect people to the local church.

It's one thing to embrace short films and visuals as valid communication tools. It's another thing to actually implement them into your worship services. This seminar (or session, or whatever you're calling it) will focus specifically on how to (and how not to) use video shorts as teaching tools for teaching pastors and worship leaders. Other topics will include: Verbal segues, almost "live" videos, and worship "drops".

Gary lives in Fresno, CA with his wife Angela, and three daughters. Gary has a Masters of Arts in Creative Arts/Worship Ministry, and served as a Creative Arts Pastor for eight years. Gary founded Floodgate Productions, along with his partners, Dave and Jason. He believes wholeheartedly in the use of the creative arts as life-changing tools. Gary contributes a regular bimonthly article on corporate worship in Collide Magazine. He enjoys Saturday Night Live, Night Ranger, and both Fletch movies. He is depressed that the new season of "24" isn't gonna happen.

Is it possible that Christianity is drowning in a sea of propositions that will only make sense when we reconnect with our role as the people that tell The Story that takes all the broken fragments in this world and sculpts them together as a beautiful whole. If our brains are made for story, how should the church step forward and take our place as The Storytellers?

Chris Seay is an internationally acclaimed pastor, speaker, and president of Ecclesia Bible Society. He is the author of The Gospel According to Tony Soprano, The Gospel Reloaded, Faith of our Fathers, and The Voice Revealed.

Discover how series planning happens at Granger Community Church in this incredibly practical session. Not only will you hear about some of the behind-the scenes thinking that influences the weekend at Granger, you will also experience it first-hand as Tim Stevens brings along loads of video examples.

Tim Stevens is the Executive Pastor of Granger Community Church. For 13 years, Tim’s leadership has helped Granger connect with people who think church is irrelevant. He has done this through the creative blending of architecture, strategy and technology. He’s acutely tuned in to popular culture and is instrumental in balancing operations, building creative teams and inspiring artists to brand each message series and sharpen the weekend experience. He has co-authored three books in the Simply Strategic series, and is author of the brand new book, Pop Goes the Church, released in 2008. You can find Tim blogging at LeadingSmart.com.

Based on the newly released book by the same name, this session will explore why it is crucial that we learn to leverage pop culture in the church. But it goes beyond theory. Tim Stevens will unload practical examples about how to convey your message in the language of the culture around you. You will learn the biblical basis for leveraging culture, and see how it can be done without compromising the message.

Tim Stevens is the Executive Pastor of Granger Community Church. For 13 years, Tim’s leadership has helped Granger connect with people who think church is irrelevant. He has done this through the creative blending of architecture, strategy and technology. He’s acutely tuned in to popular culture and is instrumental in balancing operations, building creative teams and inspiring artists to brand each message series and sharpen the weekend experience. He has co-authored three books in the Simply Strategic series, and is author of the brand new book, Pop Goes the Church, released in 2008. You can find Tim blogging at LeadingSmart.com.

Finding the way to work with staff and people in your church may be the most important technical skill you learn. Resolving conflict is an essential skill for ministry. Join Watermark Church's Senior Pastor Todd Wagner, and his Director of Arts Gary Stroope as they share how they regularly work through conflict. Todd and Gary will share biblically and practically how you navigate the scary world of resolving conflict. The possibility of living and serving with a joyful heart is more possible than you think. And if we are lucky maybe Todd and Gary will disagree and get into a fistfight.

Gary Stroope is Senior Director of Arts at Watermark Community Church in Dallas, TX. Gary has extensive directing experience in Theatre and Film. As a writer he has written 3 full-length musicals, magazine articles, and authored a line of scripts for worship. Presently he is in process of completing a book on worship.

Todd Wagner is the Pastor of Watermark Community Church in Dallas, TX. Todd has extensive experience in both church and para-church ministry, having served on both Young Life and K-Life staff as well as 10 years at Kanakuk where he last served as Assistant Director at K-2. After leaving Kanakuk in 1990, Todd has been leading in the local church.

Attendees will learn what visual worship is about, why it is relevant to the church today, and how to correctly implement simple but powerful visual elements into their own worship service. Specific elements that will be discussed include lighting and color design, font choice, media content, and projection technology. Architectural Projection will be demonstrated as well, illustrating how to transform the entire worship space into a powerful and dynamic worship environment using technology that almost every church currently possesses.

Camron Ware attends his home church, Irving Bible, in Irving, Texas where he also serves as the lighting and projection designer. He has taken his knowledge and experience developed during the last six years at IBC and concurrently teaches and consults with churches and individuals on how to enhance their visual worship. You can find out more at www.visualworshiper.com.

Shawn Wood thinks that we are at a crucial fork in the road for technology in the church. With no governor in place it seems that we are on a endless quest at break-neck speeds for excellence. In this session this Experiences Pastor at Seacoast Church and lover of all things media explores how this quest is choking our creativity and innovation in the local church. Shawn will ask the question, "what if 'good enough' is actually more effective than excellent", and talk about how that is rattling the cage of all the creative lions in the church. If you want to keep chasing excellence - DO NOT REGISTER FOR THIS SESSION - if you want to be effective...we will see you there.

In this session Shawn Wood will draw from his upcoming book, "200 Pomegranates and an Audience of One", about the story of obscure Old Testament figure Huram of Tyre, an artist putting the finishing touches on Solomon's temple. He honed his craft and contributed something of beauty and excellence, though some of his most detailed and time-consuming work was more than thirty feet off the ground, where few people would notice its intricacies. Likewise, we have the ability and opportunity to create something of worth, be it for the lasting enjoyment of others or for God's eyes only. You too are an artist, equipped with a palette of skills and strengths that can honor God and impact the world in amazing ways. Where will you make your mark?

You don’t need to break the bank to use media and be creative in your church. Every church wishes it had more money and resources, but the key is to use what you have as wisely as possible. During this break out Brad Zimmerman, host of churchmediadesign.tv will share how to get the most out of your money. From free and open-source tools for audio, video and photo editing, to freebies that will help drive your creativity, and how to take ideas from big budget productions and implement them in your local church. So stop worrying about money and start being creative!

Brad is the host of ChurchMediaDesign.tv, and has worked in the local churches from small to mega for over 8 years. He is passionate about using media to get the most important message across distraction-free. Brad graduated from Fullsail in Orlando, FL with a digital media degree and currently works and lives in West Michigan.