HOW TO HOST A SCREENING

Choose ways to promote your screening that suits you and your community. Social media, flyers, posters, word of mouth, whatever works for you will be fine.

You'll need to advise people of what's happening, when, and where. You can download our templates to help you get started.

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To promote your screening by word-of-mouth, the conversation might go something like this.

"Hey - we're screening a preview of an upcoming documentary - would you like to come and watch it with us?"

"Sure. What's it about?"

"So it's a documentary that explores the supernatural events that unfolded in the last year of a young Australian surfer's life, leading to his death by shark attack."

If you're not already doing this as a church group, it's always great to work with the support of the local pastors in the area. Give them a ring and let them know what you're up to, and be open to any advice they have.

If you're hosting a screening at your home, in your front or back yard, then you possibly don't need to notify anybody, except perhaps as a courtesy, your neighbours (who you can invite at the same time!)
If you want to do a screening in a public place, such as a park or at the beach, then you'll need to book the space with your local council. If there is a fee it won't be much, and quite often a public space like a park can be reserved for free.

There are a few ways to set up a screen. You could put your TV in your front yard, and get people to bring beach chairs, or you could go all out and borrow a projector from someone and use a big white bedsheet as the screen. Don't forget to think about sound, and make sure you've got speakers adequate for the size of the gathering.

Now you're all set, and it's time to host the screening!
Make sure you welcome everybody, and make sure you've remembered everybody's name. Write them down if that helps!
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To introduce the film you might want to share some information about the project, without giving too much away.
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You might say something like this.

"So this documentary, "Zac Forever Young," explores the extraordinary supernatural events that unfolded in the last year of a young surfer's life."
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"Port Macquarie, on Australia's east coast, had never seen an evangelist like Zac Young. People right across the city, from all walks of life, talk about the impact he had on their lives. He was only 19. And then he died."
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"This documentary is in production at the moment. Over the next two nights, there are 2 other parts of the project that we'll show, in addition to showing two films tonight, and so in a way, this is just a small introduction. After this screening make sure you stay around, and we can talk about what Zac's story means for each of us."
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If you want you can make drinks and popcorn available, making the event feel that little bit 'special!'

Small Groups.
Ideally, you want to keep a discussion to less than 10 people, so if you have a bigger crowd, break it up into groups of 10 with a mature Christian in each to lead the discussion.
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Let questions lead the way
The film is, in a way, a catalyst for the conversation that follows. Letting people's questions drive the discussion can help keep everybody involved and invested in the answers. The mature Chrisitan in each group should be ready to share their testimony and their own experience of Jesus Christ.
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Conversation starters, if necessary, might start with Zac's story at the time of his death, and lead to the parallel with Christ's love for us as so clearly demonstrated on the cross.
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Another idea for group discussion is to use the Q&A sections in the book "What Zac Believed." Found at the end of every chapter, these are quick and easy ways to get the group thinking about faith and what it means to follow Jesus Christ.

We suggest that the films are shown one after another, a new film each night for 3 nights. It could be weekly for a month, or nightly across a long weekend (Friday, Saturday, Sunday). Whatever works for you and your community.
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The films to screen are here on this page and also can be found on YouTube.
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• Documentary Preview (12mins) and

• Kevin Young | Life and Death (16mins)

• Zac Young's Story | Full Length Interview (40mins)

• A Conversation | Fireside Chat (53mins)

​FIRST SCREENING
Documentary Preview (12mins)
The first 12 minutes of the documentary, directed by Geoff Young, is the best way to introduce Zac's story.
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Kevin Young | Life and Death (16 mins).
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_WQarDamKuo
Although these interviews with Kevin Young were recorded as a part of the documentary, this 16-minute featurette is neither an excerpt of the final film nor a promotion for the project. It was edited by Geoff Young (the documentary director) at the beginning of the project as an experiment, opening the first page of the book, so to speak, to see if, and how, God might speak through it.
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SECOND SCREENING
Zac Young's Story | Full Length Interview (40mins)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4Jf5L4hFURg
Before Zac passed, he was interviewed by the team at Youth For Christ. In this remarkable interview, Zac shares his testimony, how he met God, and how God's love changed him.
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THIRD SCREENING
A Fireside Conversation (53mins)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iL7H-PM5U0A
As part of the documentary filming, Zac's friends came together for a fireside chat at Town Beach, Port Macquarie NSW. Memories of the way Zac lived and loved were shared, revisited, and embraced. Dive into this 53-minute conversation as inspiration sparks about how we can love perfectly.

Hidden within the story of Zac and his friends are messages of profound importance. Critical messages for the Church before Jesus Christ's return. After watching extracts from the documentary, these topics might come up on their own, or be a topic you want to introduce for discussion. There are blog posts for each, make sure you check them out!

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Time is short.

Time is really short. But God can do more with a surrendered person in one year than the rest of us can do on our own in a lifetime.

[Check out the blog post: Time is Short]

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Death.

The art of dying is lost. The bitterness of its bite is all that's known. Yet, death, in the hands of God, is a pathway for his children to see all things renewed.

[Blog post coming soon!]

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Courage.

Fearless courage comes to those who truly die to themselves. And this is the truth of Zac's story - he died twice. The death he died at first was the death of his pride, and down into this grave also went all his fears. Fear of man, fear of pain, fear of death, all gone.
[Blog post coming soon!]

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Love.

The biggest message is the message of love. A love way beyond what we've previously known.

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God's love for us is what overcomes us. God's love for us is what overcomes our fears, our insecurities and our inabilities. And his love in us is what overcomes our world. This is what we saw, in startling colours, in Zac Young. By the love of God, Zac Young changed his city. And by this same love, each of us can change our world.

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[Check out the blog post "When the lights go on"]

The hope is that people you invite find Jesus Christ for themselves, and experience the peace and love that he has for each of us.
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Befriending and nurturing these people is important, not just during a Love Thy Neighbour event, but continually, till each person becomes comfortable following Jesus for themselves.
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ADVISE CHURCHES / PASTORS
Keep the local churches and pastors in the loop, and if they're able to help disciple any new Christians make sure you connect them to the right people.
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GATHER, STUDY AND PRAY
Teaching new followers the gospel is incredibly rewarding. Together with a friend, encourage new followers to gather, study and pray. In doing so you're going to find your faith will grow, as you're not doing this on your own. Building his 'church,' his gathering of followers, is something that Jesus Christ will do with. you and through you.
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In addition to the bible, the book "What Zac Believed" is an essential guide to the gospels, and is complete with discussion and study Q&A. This can be downloaded for free as an eBook, and pages printed out to use as a discussion guide. Working through this book can take somewhere between seven weeks to seven months, depending on the appetite of the group. There's no rush, with the key being to keep it real.
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Connect with the community for support, prayer and encouragement, and to share ideas on how to make each meeting as successful as possible.