It’s never been done before, but it’s the way movies will be done from here on out. SURGE is bringing a revolutionary experience to movie theaters across the United States that promises to change the expectation of what a night at the movies should be.
Part rock concert, part youth rally, SURGE is an audio-visual movie event that gives attendees the chance to participate in the movie—with other attendees all over the United States—using smartphone apps that are free and widely available on Apple and Android-based devices.
SURGE is the brainchild of Ron Luce, a youth expert who has worked for nearly 30 years to bring uplifting and empowering messages to teens through his ministries Teen Mania and Acquire the Fire. The continued success of the Acquire the Fire conferences—two-day events that combine rock/rap/pop concerts with inspiring messages of healing and purpose that have reached 3 million teens since the conference’s inception—provoked Luce to look for a whole new way to reach a wider audience of teens in a format they’d embrace.
“We are simply communicating to teens in their language,” says Luce, who brings an empowering message to teens in the SURGE film. “We’re creating an event that is visually and audibly stimulating, that incorporates teens’ love for social media and cellphones and combines it all into a positive message that will empower them to do good in their world.”
One highlight of the SURGE movie experience is an audience-created light show. At the start of the film, attendees are prompted to download a free app that uses sound waves to create a light display. When prompted, theatergoers start up the app and see a light show timed to the rock concert playing on screen.
Throughout the film, teens are encouraged to share their thoughts via social media apps on a variety of issues they face on a regular basis in school and life. Issues like:
- Bullying
- Relationships
- Rejection
- Peer pressure
- Violence
- Financial worries
They also have the chance to compete for prizes through an Instagram contest and even request prayer or talk with other teens dealing with the same life-issues through Twitter, using hashtags prompted throughout the movie.
“We are breaking new ground in how we communicate a positive message to teens in a way they will embrace,” Luce says.
SURGE is showing at more than 400 theaters nationwide on two nights only—Oct. 9 and 16. More information, including theater locations, artist bios and ticket information, can be found at surgeexperience.com.
Joseph Mattera 
BJ Foster 
Shelby Bowen 
