Chasing Utopia Videos

The History
The Philosophy
The Target Audience
How To Use The Series
Discussion Starter Material

For many years there had been a growing conviction that the Church needed a resource which could more effectively assist Seventh-day Adventist Christians to reach out to people who did not have any knowledge of, or inclination toward faith. Then in 1997 a number of people including David Foster, Gabe Reynaud, John Banks and Barry Oliver conceived an idea to film a series of videos which would attempt to meet this need. A steering committee was formed and the task of financing and resourcing the production began.

The steering committee ensured that significant research was conducted in order to ascertain the needs and interests of the target audience. It was recognised that this initiative would need to be daring and different. Modes of communication would have to be found which went beyond anything that had been attempted by Adventist Media or the Seventh-day Adventist Church previously. While it had been the norm to communicate the truth of the gospel in an objective, propositional manner, it was recognised that this series would need to employ a more subjective methodology, examining issues of meaning and relevance. The outcomes could not be described so much in terms of answering questions as in terms of creating an intellectual and emotional environment in which the right questions could be asked.

The series has suffered a number of setbacks. It would seem that there are forces working against this production. First, we lost the creative genius of Dr David Foster. David was one of the Executive producers of the series and would have had the same formative influence over the production as he did with The Search. Then, tragically we lost producer and filmer, Gabe Reynaud. This series was, without doubt, Gabe's baby. He had long dreamed of a project such as this. Chasing Utopia is a lasting tribute to both of these visionary men.

THE PHILOSOPHY

In the early eighties, Christian communicator James Engel described the quest for faith as a "decision making process." He said that every person is positioned somewhere on a continuum between "no faith" and "total faith." At a point somewhere in the centre of the continuum is the decision of the individual to accept Christ as Lord and Saviour. The mission of the Church is to provide opportunities for the person to move along the continuum in the direction of "total faith." In this enterprise the Church has the joy of working with the Holy Spirit.

Traditionally the Church has done very well in providing opportunities for people who are at a point where they are becoming ready to accept Christ as Lord and Saviour to make that decision. Evangelistic programs, seminars, literature, small groups, etc have all served this purpose well and must continue to be utilised. Adventist Media has produced a mini-mountain of resources which meet the need at this point of "the decision-making process."

The Church has not done so well in producing resources which can be utilised to assist people who are right back at the "no faith" end of the process. But if we are serious about responding to Jesus' commission to take the gospel to "every nation, kindred, tongue and people," we dare not neglect the responsibility and privilege to reach out to this group. In increasingly secular contexts we must find the correct medium to convey the message. The message may be ageless but the medium must be as innovative and relevant as tomorrow. In an age that has discarded objective truth in the quest for meaning we must start with meaning if we are to lead them to truth. In a society which thinks it has all the answers we must compel them to ask new questions and lead them down a path which will give the answers to the questions they had once, never thought to ask.

This is the task of those of us who rub shoulders with people who do not profess or even think they need faith. Chasing Utopia can be a huge resource for this task.

THE TARGET AUDIENCE

Chasing Utopia is firmly in the tradition of Seventh-day Adventist evangelism. Our Church has always found new ways to reach our unsaved friends. But this series is startling in that it is designed to appeal to a wide secular audience. Specifically however, this series is targeted at the secular young professionals who are probably reasonably well off. They may or may not have children. Although unchurched and having a secular world view, they are not strongly atheistic. They probably have little or no awareness of Christianity but could well be open to considering spiritual realities. Reasonably happy, they may not perceive that anything is lacking in their own lives. When issues have surfaced, they have probably never looked at Christianity as a viable option.

The advertising company Saatchi and Saatchi was commissioned to research the intended audience and find areas that are of most interest and concern to them as individuals and as families. The production team has used this research to develop the main topics examined in the series.

Chasing Utopia will enable Adventists to better understand some of the issues and concerns faced by their unchurched friends. It will also help them discover and use spiritual connecting points that show the relevancy of Jesus Christ to their friend's life. An added bonus will be the discovery that the issues that face their neighbours are also the issues that concern them as Christians.

The series raises issues and questions with a very suspicious audience in mind. This audience expects that people will try to manipulate them and tell them what to do. For this reason Chasing Utopia does not provide answers but facilitates the asking of appropriate questions which can lead to positive dialogue between the Christian and the non-Christian friend.

HOW TO USE THE SERIES

The series has twelve episodes. Each episode includes:

1. A 23-minute examination of the issue being discussed.
2. Various clips of individuals, café groups etc - raising and discussing issues related to the topic that the viewers can then process and discuss.
3. Christian critiques that raise questions that can be discussed.
4. Lessons that can be used either individually or in small groups.

Chasing Utopia does not need to be viewed in numbered succession. It is specifically designed so that each topic shown on the video/DVD can be viewed without having to view the others.

The series was produced so that it can be used in a number of different ways. For example, it can be broadcast on TV or Cable with supporting web page and e-mail access. However, the principal use will be in small groups or in individual viewings. One method that has been successfully trialled is to lend a video on a topic of interest to a friend with a request to view the episode and then report back. On some occasions it may be possible to view the video together with the non-Christian friend. Pr Wayne Krause, Executive Producer of the series has reported that on every occasion he has done this, spiritual conversations have resulted, and already one person has attended church.

Another method that has proved successful is to screen an episode in a small group. For example, the main feature can be shown and then discussed. On the other hand, the short segments can be shown by themselves and then discussed. The study lessons can be used systematically, as prompters, or just to get ideas.

This series will be most successful if used by committed Christians who have developed friendships with unchurched people. Videos do not save people. Only Christ can do that. Chasing Utopia has been designed so that Christians who love the Lord will make friends in their community. Then prayerfully, they can use this series to touch a friend who may as yet not realise that they are a child of God.

Chasing Utopia was produced for the South Pacific Division of the Seventh-day Adventist Church. Further enquiries on the availability of this product can be made directly with David G Gibbons at Adventist Media.

Chasing Utopia has its own web-site at: www.chasingutopia.com.

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