SaveLongGod & Automated Music Video Creator
By Jerry Walker
2024.11
Date:
Original email campaign link:
SaveLongGod & Automated Music Video Creator
By Jerry Walker
In a world where information is often taken for granted, many people in Papua New Guinea (PNG) have limited or no access to the Internet. To assist those who do have Internet access to find God’s Word in their Tok Ples (heart language), we created SaveLongGod.org (meaning "Know God"). Our goal is to make it easy for individuals to find Scripture materials in their Tok Ples without requiring extensive reading or complex navigation.
To simplify the search, we use maps and lists of provinces along with their flags. Our research shows that users can find their languages in just a few clicks and in seconds. While SaveLongGod.org does not host content itself, it provides links to various online resources where Tok Ples Scripture materials can be found.
We have many Tok Ples songs that we recorded over the years and want to distribute. We decided to use YouTube because people in PNG who have Internet access are familiar with it, and it works even with slow Internet speeds. However, YouTube does not accept MP3 files directly, so we needed to convert our audio into videos.
One of the most-viewed music videos on the SaveLongGod YouTube channel. Initially, we created the videos manually using royalty-free tropical videos, as they are nice-looking and non-offensive. The response was overwhelmingly positive, and people said they are proud to have their Tok Ples video look so professional. However, creating the videos one by one took too much time. So we decided to automate the process.
Fortunately, one of our audio tech team members, David Lamb, has programming skills in Linux. He developed a Bash program that automates video creation.Here’s how it works: We name the MP3 files in a specific way so the program knows how to create the title for the video. Then, we put the MP3 files into a folder, and the program automatically makes a video for each audio file. It determines the length of the audio and randomly picks a different part of our tropical scenery from a longer video, so each video starts in a unique spot. The program combines the audio and video, adds fade-in and fade-out effects, and shows the title at the beginning of the video. It then creates an image that we use for the YouTube thumbnail. This whole process takes about 75% of the time it would take to play the MP3 file.
You can check out our sample playlist on YouTube: YouTube Playlist.
Click the video link above to watch dozens of music videos on the SaveLongGod YouTube sample playlist.
We’ve uploaded these videos to our SaveLongGod YouTube channel and added links to the YouTube playlist on SaveLongGod.org. The response has been encouraging so far. We haven't really promoted the videos, yet Papua New Guineans are finding them through the YouTube search. To improve YouTube search, we list all the known alternative names for the language and the provinces where it's spoken in the “more” section under the video. We also include a link to SaveLongGod.org, hoping people find more Tok Ples Scripture on other websites. The language's ISO code is to help us search and find all the videos related to a language.
We are excited about the impact that SaveLongGod.org and our SaveLongGod YouTube videos are having in sharing Tok Ples songs and Scripture materials. By making these resources easily accessible, we hope to see more people in Papua New Guinea connecting with God through their heart languages and deepening their faith. PNG has a rich diversity of languages and cultures. As we continue to develop new ways to distribute Tok Ples Scripture, we remain committed to making God’s Word accessible in their Tok Ples.
Jerry Walker is the SIL Papua New Guinea Scripture Media Manager. He has been involved in Scripture media since 1999. He can be reached by the following ways:
How to Use A.I. with Social Media?
Especially in ways you might not have thought of? Last week, we learned about one SE consultant who is training nationals in how to apply AI to social media, in order to gain and influence a larger audience. If you are interested, you may request the November CoP recording from IMS.
Email margaret_doll@sil.org to request the video presentation.