The making of a TV commercial

The writer, with 28 years in television management, is a consultant to the media committee of the United Church of God, an International Association. Mr. Hall has served as a manager or consultant at nine stations, including NBC, ABC and CBS affiliates. He is advertising coordinator for KREM, the CBS affiliate in Spokane, and he anchors the weekly half-hour Business in the 21st Century for KREM. He helped write two UCG booklets, The Road to Eternal Life and God's Holy Day Plan.

For the main article quoting Mr. Hall about the making of the UCG's latest TV-commercial series, see the print version of The Journal, June 30 issue.

By Rod Hall

SPOKANE, Wash.--When you do anything on television effectively, a lot of research, thought and preparation must go into it to assure you receive the desired result.

We live in a media-savvy age. The baby-boomers were the first to grow up with television. The younger generation spends more time watching TV while growing up than it ever will in a classroom.

TV doesn't have to be perfect to be persuasive, but it must be believable, relevant, involving, intrusive and captivating with visual appeal. It also needs to be convenient and easy to respond to. It needs to be produced in the best-quality way possible.

I knew we had accomplished our task when one of the directors at the television station where I work asked, "Where did you get these actors?"

When I informed him they were all church members from our congregation, he was surprised. The outside cinematographer I hired to film the commercial was pleased when a colleague of his commented he was impressed with the quality of the shooting.

The details that dramatically affected the final product's effectiveness had to be hammered out over the two months before their completion. Every detail from eye shadow and makeup to wardrobes and number and types of actors had to be labored over. Locations, sets and backdrops for each shot had to be planned to assure the right image and setting was obtained. Presenting the magazine (The Good News) and the What Is Your Destiny? booklet in the most favorable light was a critical factor in the success of the commercials.

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