Helping YOU preserve your precious family stories on video.
Don't have an video biography interview?
You can still tell the story with pictures, text and music. See the story below.
Welcome
to the August issue!
As I write this, a summer monsoon thunderstorm is quenching
the thirsty Sonoran desert outside of my Tucson office. The rains bring much
needed water and cooling relief to my area of the world. Growing up on the east
coast of the U.S., where rain was pretty common, I never thought I'd look
forward to showers. But I do! How perspectives can change.
This month we bring you some tips for using visuals to tell the story when an
interview can't, remind you of Family Legacy Video's editing services and answer
another reader question.
I hope you enjoy this issue of the Family Legacy Video™
Producer's e-Newsletter. Please e-mail me at
steve@familylegacyvideo.com or phone
toll-free (1.888.662.1294) with any
questions or comments you have. Visit Family Legacy Video on the Web at:
www.familylegacyvideo.com.
When you don't have or can't
use the interview, visuals can tell the story.
Most video biographies are built on an invaluable foundation: the interview with
the person who is the subject of the bio. But when you don't have an interview
or if the interview you do have is incomplete, it's time to get creative and use
music, photos and other visuals and text to help tell the story.
Here are a couple of examples from recent Family Legacy Video projects:
Challenge #1 - A customer's dad (the subject of the video biography)
ventured to Germany in 1936 by working as a baker on steamship. The customer
wanted this information included in his dad's video bio. Unfortunately, the
interview (on an old VHS supplied by the customer) didn't touch on the trip.
Fortunately, the customer did supply two visuals - the boarding passes from his
dad's voyages.
The Solution - A short "teaser" placed at the beginning of
the video, before the opening title sequence. The segment featured one of the
boarding passes superimposed over some archival footage of New York City's
harbor. Explanatory text fleshed out the details. A single piece of music played
under the teaser and continued under the opening of the video, providing
continuity and emotional tone.
Challenge #2 - As a result of an adoption, the subject's grandfather had
undergone a name change during childhood. But the story, as told by the
subject, was rather long and convoluted. In order to make the tale
understandable and entertaining, the information needed to be compressed. The
only visual available was a calling card advertising the grandfather's run for a
local political office.
The Solution - A brief sequence that replaced a portion of the interview. Family Legacy Video inserted the
calling card against a black
background. Accompanied by ragtime piano music, a series of text screens placed
under the card told the story in a clear and concise way.
So you've just taped a family interview - or maybe you've got
some old interviews on VHS that are just gathering dust - and you don't have the
time, expertise or desire to try to turn your raw tapes into a polished family
history video. What do you do? Call Family Legacy Video, of course. We'll be
happy to help you finish a project you've started. Put our award-winning editing
skills to work for you and we'll do our very best to transform your footage into
a treasured family keepsake. Call us toll-free at 888.662.1294 or e-mail Steve
Pender at
steve@familylegacyvideo.com.
Family Legacy Video
featured in new financial planning software.
Family Financial Advocates, a Florida-based financial planning
firm, has created a software product called the "Family Financial Advocates
Journal." In addition to helping you organize your finances, the journal can
also be used to record family history info. In fact, the software even allows
you to import your family history videos and make them part of your family
records. Family Legacy video recently supplied a short video bio demo that the
folks at FFA will use when they demonstrate the video capabilities of the guide.
If you'd like to learn more about the journal, visit
www.familyvaluecreations.com.
The show's on at the Family Legacy Video™ Theatre!
The Family
Legacy Video™ Theatre is the online theatre where you can view all the video
clips streaming from the Family Legacy Video Web site. The clips you see there
will surely inspire you with ideas for your family video, plus you'll get to see
Steve Pender talk about his passion for family history video in two television
appearances.
You'll see a window containing a video screen with controls and a list of clips.
Decide which clip you'd like to view and click on the correct speed (High, Low)
to match your Internet connection. In the bottom right of the theatre window is
a list showing the appropriate speed for your kind of connection. NOTE:
Please be patient - you may need to wait a few seconds before a clip plays.
Enjoy the clip!
Select another clip or close the theatre window.
The Family Legacy Video™
Theatre is always open, and YOU decide when the show begins.
PS - If you have any difficulties playing the clips, please let us know.
Ask Steve - This month:
Including a spouse's info in a video biography.
Q: Dear Steve,
I find that I am shooting a lot of widows and am struggling to find the best way
to incorporate information about their late spouses in the biographies. Can you give me
any suggestions of how this can be handled? I have the women talk about their
wedding day, courtship, family life but they usually can't talk about their
spouse's childhood. I've thought about doing a section featuring pictures of the
deceased spouse, titles including their birth info, schools, jobs, etc. I'd
appreciate any help you can provide. Thanks!
- - Susan S., Columbus, Ohio
A: Hi, Susan.
At first blush, I'd say that since you're producing a video bio about the widow,
the info about the deceased spouse that's important to include is the part of
his life shared by his widow. If it's important to your client to include more
information about her late spouse and you have some photos (or even one photo)
and some supporting information, I think a short montage, with music, would
certainly be appropriate.
If you're producing a DVD with a menu, you could make the
montage a separate "extra" or "bonus" segment. Or you can insert the segment
into the appropriate area of the video biography. For example, you might use the
montage to lead in to the subject's discussion of her late husband. She might
say, "My husband's name was Bill Smith." Then, insert a short introductory
montage containing info pertaining to Bill's life before meeting his future
wife. At the end of the montage, pick up with the interview as she speaks about
their life together. Or, if it makes more sense to insert the montage somewhere
else, do that.
Another thought: Depending on the amount of information you
need to impart and the number of visuals you have at your disposal, you might
want to think about using rolling or crawling text instead of static text.
I hope this helps. Good luck!
Cheers, Steve
Got a question about any aspect of family history
video production?
Send it to Steve at
steve@familylegacyvideo.com.
Challenge #1 - A customer's dad (the subject of the video biography)
ventured to Germany in 1936 by working as a baker on steamship. The customer
wanted this information included in his dad's video bio. Unfortunately, the
interview (on an old VHS supplied by the customer) didn't touch on the trip.
Fortunately, the customer did supply two visuals - the boarding passes from his
dad's voyages.
Challenge #2 - As a result of an adoption, the subject's grandfather had
undergone a name change during childhood. But the story, as told by the
subject, was rather long and convoluted. In order to make the tale
understandable and entertaining, the information needed to be compressed. The
only visual available was a calling card advertising the grandfather's run for a
local political office.
