FILMMAKER- Jon Avery

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I am Chris Benjamin and the producer of the show and director for the Salvation Army's outcast.

Now in our third week of a new series called crafted and throughout the series were speaking with different artists of all types of mediums and learning about their craft learning about their passion and then also finding out how they use their art as an act of worship. In this episode we speak with a good friend of ours John Avery and he is a filmmaker we actually get to collaborate with him a lot with sound cast a lot of our ministries here and he just has a really cool story in and his passion in filmmaking.

He's very aware that we can use this art to just tell people stories and through that we can really invoke empathy for people that otherwise we would have no idea what it's like to walk in their shoes so we really hope you enjoy this conversation with John Avery, John Avery, thank you so much for joining us words of light absolutely rabbit have you. We are currently in a serious, crafted, and in the series were interviewing different artists of all kinds of different mediums you on because we know your passion and your talent or biography filmmaking. So which one to sit down and about your passion, your gift yeah first of all, what was your current role with Salvation Army so my current job title is media ministries editor and so I do mostly videography on some motion graphics can travel around the territory because ratty HQ and and we get to see what's happening in different divisions and events and we do live streams and it's it's really fun.

How do you find the Salvation Army. What brought you to this position. So my parents are officers in the Salvation Army actually is where my grandparents and my great grandparents and a long line very involved from the beginning so I grew up going to church at the Salvation Army and that just kind of lead from one thing to the next to me working here at the Salvation Army as well. Like we said, get your passion is videography filmmaking at your current role. How did you first fall in love with that like what what led who inspires you films and inspires you how to find, I mean it's kind of a long story. I know how much you want to hear but going up actually, this isn't what I want to do. I wanted to be an architect which is very different and is still very creative role in and I decide I want to be an architect because I liked to draw and I like to build things. I like high school before high school before I solemnly for my fourth grade, I like decided architectures what is going to do. I love building like tree forts in the backyard with my brothers and everything and so that's what I plan for.

I took all the classes got straight through until my first semester of college I started a school in Michigan and like within the first month – is like what my doing this is not what God has called me and I don't know like what exact moment that was that made me realize that but I just like I do. I need to change like this. This needs to I need to stop and listen to what God is telling me and sell it through that I I didn't even that wasn't even a moment where I decided like videography was really where I wanted to be either I went to another school setting meeting communications in Kentucky as per University and I wanted to work in a recording studio and I thought that's where God is calling me to. But the moment that I really realize that this is what I want to do was after I quit that college to immediate mutations. There I went on an 11 month missions trip and it was 11 different countries and as I was out there like there is just these amazing things happening and I took a camera and that point is my first camera is like semi Pro level was still very beginner, but an being able to just capture what was going on in these other countries.

What God was doing in these countries.

I like this is amazing. Why don't more people know about this insight.

I wanted to be able to take that and share it with others. So that's what ultimately pushed me on what I do today.

I think it was probably my month 10 or 11 on that one month trip where I realize like this is it. This is why when I do, but then I came back and it was 11 months of no income, so just like I had to get a job and figure out how to make that happen. So I ended up working at the Salvation Army division headquarters in Philadelphia for a while in their use department. It was there that I was kind of able to fit all those pieces back together and make a plan from there and I worked there two years and is able to start incorporating like the video into my job there.

I was working there at camp, especially taking videos and from there that was is when I applied to full sale University and their meeting communications program which is very different than the meeting communications program.

The first time I set a meeting, communications, and so it was it was that that ultimately then pushed me into this role here with that much experience that degree that powerful thing that I think is with that amount of talent that you have. You could've gone to any number of past it would've taken to look at anything in the film will not necessarily in the Christian world and made a lot more money so so how how did you how did you decide that will this this is more important, yeah. And I think a lot of that does go back to the. The missions trip that I was on to because any full sale isn't a Christian University so I was really in the minority.

Even there, but fortunately the way that the meeting communications program worked is they had these portfolio classes and they are really self driven classes where you could do whatever you wanted as long as it fit within the guidelines in size able to even then still keep my focus on God and like what God was calling me to and work towards that side of it, because really Everone else was looking for the secular positions and it would've been really easy on me tons of connections I was there that I could've even jumped into the film world and started making movies, working on who knows what even here in Atlanta that's huge movie scene and I could just as easily jump out now and find something there but I know that this is what God is calling me to especially right now to be able to use the gifts that he's given me for his ministry and really help build his kingdom and move forward is amazing. I will say to them, and I'm sure you agree, even if that is where where God takes you is into the secular world, even making non-Christian film there something to just being a light wherever you are late and like you said, even a full sale. You're the minority is as far as going to be a Christian artist and I think being able to still know that my craft is this this is part of my worship, no matter where implanted yeah and so it's amazing and the subject was better for it that you're here, but I just think is listening like that's that's valid and yeah and and I think that's in a lot of ways just as important because it is the minority out there and so it's like to be that light out there in those areas is super important young even in like to to this day. This is 33 and half years later after I graduated.

I'll still get messages from our program director like hey this Christian student coming through like.

Could you reach out to them or just like encourage them in and help them because I know that this is what you are very much involved in the just be that's an encouragement to them such great are there specific projects opportunities that you've now had with the Salvation Army create something that really stands out memories really happening.

Yeah some of the other projects, then drawn into life. I've been in this role of been disasters at the territorial level and there the bigger ones and they need the extra support from our team. We get called out and in order to really kind of share what God is still doing this disasters because it's this this horrible thing of destruction and loss in and it's really incredible to still be able to see God moving as we get called out to the worst of the worst is well and God is still there seeing people help others in and clean up in and help feed and and it's just it's it is very encouraging and I love being able to take what is like this.

This horrible horrible event in circumstance and be able to show God redeeming it and ultimately bringing himself glory through through all other couple things that God has taught you through the process of your craft that really stick out absolutely one of the biggest things when were out filming something or filming a project or feeling something that's happening anything. One of things we always say is like if it moves, shoot it like get on camera because were always looking for more. At the end. It's like we've used up these clips. What else can we throw into this video and so being on the lookout for.

Just like anything that's moving kind really opens up your eyes to what God is doing to his like because God is always moving and you just have to really open your eyes to see him moving in every situation and so it is looking in every little aspect of your life for where God is moving.

So when you're obviously are out in the field and in your filming. You don't have a lot of time for reflection or rest is there, the part of your of your craft of your arts that you enjoy because you're able to use it as a moment of rest for yourself yet.

There's probably 22 sides of this. There is one, one side where I'm actually editing what it is that I have gone out and filmed, especially if it does involve an interview of some sort because like when I'm editing an interview, one of the things I do is I sit there first and I literally just type out the entire thing. I know there like programs that will do that for you and make it a whole lot quicker but it's is really helpful in my process to literally listen to it and type it out word for words that I can get every piece that is in there and kind of pray over and figure out God wants me to pull out this section and all that with this an interesting piece it together to tell the story that he's telling through that person rather than like the story that I want to tell and so I think that that is one of those moments where I can just kind of really sit back and rest and and and listen to him and hear what he speaking to me the other side of that though is is when I'm not necessarily working with footage, but I do a lot of motion graphic stuff to and design that's that's creating something out of nothing, really. And so it really is.

It's it's a lot of praying over and trying to figure out the live transfer that we will have a script and so it's going through word by word.

How can I visually represent what's being said in the audio and so it's important for me to just sit back and pray over it and rest and just visualize that myself before you put anything out onto the screen. I have this go up on my monitor that I pulled off the somewhere and I I edited it a little bit just so that was applicable to what I do, but I have it in the says create but do so in a way that you can't run fast the place. The Salvation Army's mission doing the most good means helping people with material and spiritual needs become a part of this mission every time you give to the Salvation Army visit Salvation Army USA.org to offer your support and love to hear from you. Email us radio USS.Salvation Army.org or call 1-800-229-9965, write us at PO Box 29972, Atlanta, GA 30359 tell us how we can help share prayer request or share your testimony. We would love to use your story on here.

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