A movie theater recently made the mistake of not previewing the movie they had in queue.
A theater full of parents with young children were excitedly waiting for Madagascar 3 to start. Instead, the horror movie Paranormal Activity 4 started playing.
Almost immediately, as many as 25 families rushed their kids out of the theater, but not before a gruesome opening sequence — in which a bloodied female corpse is thrown at the camera — was witnessed by children as young as five.
“They started playing the movie and I thought – this doesn’t look right,” Natasha Lewis, mother of eight-year-old Dylan. ”Everybody just scrambled for the exits, all you could hear were children crying and screaming. Everyone was very upset.”
I have learned the hard way to always preview a video clip before showing it to children. We decided to use a clip from a movie for a children's service and didn't preview it all the way through. Imagine our shock when a curse word was uttered in the clip. We had to do a lot of explaining and damage control. Luckily, I kept my job.
Here's a few things to keep in mind when using movie clips for a children's service.
- Primarily use clips from G-rated movies. PG can be used occasionally, but never use clips from R rated movies.
- Consider informing parents ahead of time when you are going to show a clip that is not from a "Christian" movie.
- When in doubt...don't.
- Make sure the clip is age appropriate. A clip that is appropriate for a pre-teen may not be appropriate for a 5 year old.
What are some other tips to keep in mind when using video clips?
Share your comments with us below.
