You know...for kids!

There is an interesting quote in the current issue of Entertainment Weekly from Brad Bird, director of "The Incredibles" and Pixar's newest "Ratatouille." Speaking about animation he says:

"I can't think of one other art form that has its audience so narrowly defined. If you work in animation, people are like, Oh, it must be wonderful to entertain children. Yes, but that's 10 percent of the audience I'm going for."

Of course, I can think of one...puppetry.

Kids love animation, and many times it's good to use that art form with kids in mind. Same with puppets. But one of the things that is great about both art forms is that they can be used to create a type of entertainment (and education for that matter) which is appealing to both young and old. That's what Henson did and I believe Pixar is doing the same.

It's an interesting challenge when thinking about children's ministry. Most of the resources out there focus on how to communicate lessons to the kids, and rightfully so. But perhaps sometimes we should look for opportunities to minister in a way that reaches kids and parents at the same time.

One of our puppet builders at One Way Street recently attended the Orange conference put on by Northpoint Church. There he got to experience the family services they do. It's a part of the children's ministry, but it's a kids service that the kids experience with their parents. It seems to be a similar concept to what we've seen from the likes of Pixar and Muppets...creating a great experience for kids and parents together.