World War II veterans are dying at an alarming rate. Do you have a vet in your family? Preserve his or her story on video before it's too late.
I've read that we're losing between 1,000 to 2,000 World War II vets every day. I'm sure Korean War vets aren't too far behind. I think it's a tragedy that so many of them pass on without leaving a record of their experiences - in war and in peace, for their family archives.
The sacrifices made by our veterans are tremendous. Their stories need to be preserved so their families can truly understand and appreciate what their relatives did in defense of freedom.
If you have a vet in your family, I urge you to make a Memorial Day resolution: Don't let another Memorial Day pass without capturing your veteran's life story on video.
Sunday, May 29, 2005
Friday, May 27, 2005
A Note About Planning Ahead
Here we are, on the cusp of another Memorial Day weekend, certainly a time to reflect and focus on family history. It's the perfect time to start planning a video biography. Start now, and by the end of the year your production could be ready to present to your family. Imagine what a wonderful and unforgettable gift that will be.
Please leave a comment to let Cafe readers know about your video biography plans and hopes and dreams. You may get some useful feedback and you may inspire someone else to capture his or her family stories on video.
Short commercial: If a video project seems daunting, don't forget that Family Legacy Video stands ready to help - with how-to guides and workshops, or by providing complete video production services.
Please leave a comment to let Cafe readers know about your video biography plans and hopes and dreams. You may get some useful feedback and you may inspire someone else to capture his or her family stories on video.
Short commercial: If a video project seems daunting, don't forget that Family Legacy Video stands ready to help - with how-to guides and workshops, or by providing complete video production services.
Wednesday, May 25, 2005
If you can shoot it or scan it, you can use it
Capturing a loved-one's story on video is a fantastic experience. But even the most compelling interview can cause an audience to nod off if all they're seeing is a "talking head" on the screen. A variety of visuals can help make your interview entertaining and take your video biography to a higher level.
What visuals can you incorporate into your family history video? Photos are the most obvious choice, of course, and can lend great visual impact to your family story. But, they are by no means your only option. Family films (transferred to video) can also be used to great effect. Don't forget about letters, journal and diary entries, magazine and newspaper clippings, wedding announcements and invitations, plaques, trophies, medals, etc.
In short, anything visual that supports the story and that can be shot or scanned can be a part of your next Family Legacy Video.
What visuals can you incorporate into your family history video? Photos are the most obvious choice, of course, and can lend great visual impact to your family story. But, they are by no means your only option. Family films (transferred to video) can also be used to great effect. Don't forget about letters, journal and diary entries, magazine and newspaper clippings, wedding announcements and invitations, plaques, trophies, medals, etc.
In short, anything visual that supports the story and that can be shot or scanned can be a part of your next Family Legacy Video.
Saturday, May 21, 2005
Second workshop is finished!
Just a short note today to say how excited I am about the first six-session do-it-yourself Family Legacy Video workshop that finished today!
It began in March. We started small, with four extremely motivated students who had very little experience shooting, producing and editing video. In just three short months they organized their productions, shot interviews and learned the basics of editing. It's been great for me to see their progress and the participants are jazzed as well.
We plan to meet later this summer, when their videos are completed, for a screening session. I can't wait! This makes me all the more eager to move on with planning for a weekend workshop in Tucson this autumn.
It began in March. We started small, with four extremely motivated students who had very little experience shooting, producing and editing video. In just three short months they organized their productions, shot interviews and learned the basics of editing. It's been great for me to see their progress and the participants are jazzed as well.
We plan to meet later this summer, when their videos are completed, for a screening session. I can't wait! This makes me all the more eager to move on with planning for a weekend workshop in Tucson this autumn.
Friday, May 20, 2005
It's all about the stories
With each passing day I'm more and more convinced that the practice of preserving family stories is gradually catching fire. What stories do you want to preserve and pass along?
It never fails - after each and every speaking engagement or workshop session, audience members approach me with stories about their families. I enjoy hearing the stories of course, but most of all what I really love is watching the people telling them. They're always excited and proud and actually glowing as they relate the family tales that mean so much to them.
I do think there's a growing awareness of the importance of capturing family stories in some form to pass along to coming generations. And yet a lot of people, the same people who so value their family stories, never do preserve them. Maybe they're inhibited by technology or the time and effort they think it would take or the perceived expense.
What about you? Are there family storytellers and stories you want to save? What are they? What's keeping you from starting your family history video project? I invite you to leave some comments. Perhaps I and other visitors to the Family Legacy Video Cafe can offer the advice and encouragement you need to get started.
It never fails - after each and every speaking engagement or workshop session, audience members approach me with stories about their families. I enjoy hearing the stories of course, but most of all what I really love is watching the people telling them. They're always excited and proud and actually glowing as they relate the family tales that mean so much to them.
I do think there's a growing awareness of the importance of capturing family stories in some form to pass along to coming generations. And yet a lot of people, the same people who so value their family stories, never do preserve them. Maybe they're inhibited by technology or the time and effort they think it would take or the perceived expense.
What about you? Are there family storytellers and stories you want to save? What are they? What's keeping you from starting your family history video project? I invite you to leave some comments. Perhaps I and other visitors to the Family Legacy Video Cafe can offer the advice and encouragement you need to get started.
Thursday, May 19, 2005
Summertime: A great time to capture family interviews
Here in Tucson the Saguaros and Palo Verdes are in bloom - a gorgeous site! This means summer is near. It's the time of year when most of us vacation (or go on "holiday"). It's also prime time for family reunions and for reconnecting with family members we see only once every few years, or just once in a blue moon. If you've been wondering when and where you can capture footage and interviews with distant family members, an upcoming reunion or family visit can offer the perfect opportunity. Follow a few simple tips and you'll leave your next family get-together with a smile on your face, a passel of great memories and some video interviews you and your family will cherish for generations.
Tip #1: Plan ahead. Contact the relatives you'd like to interview before the reunion. Make sure they're willing, and brief them on the questions you plan to ask.
Tip #2: Schedule a time for the interview. Figure out a time that will work best for you and your subject - then stick to it. Having a firm appointment helps both you and your storyteller prepare and is a statement of commitment. If your attitude is "we'll get around to it sometime during the reunion," chances are you never will.
Tip #3: Set up away from the crowd. You'll need a quiet place away from the crowd in order to avoid distractions, keep your subject from feeling self-conscious and guarantee sound that's as noise-free as possible. Maybe your hotel room is the best bet, or maybe your host has a room you can use. Be sure you're set up and ready to record when your subject arrives.
Tip #4: Use the same room for all your interviews. If you have multiple interviews scheduled, don't waste time looking for different locations for each of them. Use the same room! You'll only have to set up all your gear once. Then, between interviews, shift your camera and subject positions slightly. Simply shooting into a different corner of the room or changing some of the background objects can give the same room a whole new look on video.
Tip #5: Treat your tapes like gold. Label them. Don't leave them in hot cars. Do whatever it takes (legally, of course) to get them (and yourself) home safe and sound.
Tip #1: Plan ahead. Contact the relatives you'd like to interview before the reunion. Make sure they're willing, and brief them on the questions you plan to ask.
Tip #2: Schedule a time for the interview. Figure out a time that will work best for you and your subject - then stick to it. Having a firm appointment helps both you and your storyteller prepare and is a statement of commitment. If your attitude is "we'll get around to it sometime during the reunion," chances are you never will.
Tip #3: Set up away from the crowd. You'll need a quiet place away from the crowd in order to avoid distractions, keep your subject from feeling self-conscious and guarantee sound that's as noise-free as possible. Maybe your hotel room is the best bet, or maybe your host has a room you can use. Be sure you're set up and ready to record when your subject arrives.
Tip #4: Use the same room for all your interviews. If you have multiple interviews scheduled, don't waste time looking for different locations for each of them. Use the same room! You'll only have to set up all your gear once. Then, between interviews, shift your camera and subject positions slightly. Simply shooting into a different corner of the room or changing some of the background objects can give the same room a whole new look on video.
Tip #5: Treat your tapes like gold. Label them. Don't leave them in hot cars. Do whatever it takes (legally, of course) to get them (and yourself) home safe and sound.
Monday, May 16, 2005
Harold Lloyd, "Safety Last," & my Grandmother
As kids, I bet most of us never thought of our grandparents as ever being children themselves. I know I didn't. Then one day my grandmother Ciurczak told me a story about a childhood indiscretion that revealed her inner child to me.
Seems my maternal grandmother was in the school choir during her high school years in Elizabeth, New Jersey. One day after choir practice, she and a group of her friends decided to go see the latest Harold Lloyd flick, "Safety Last," which was playing at the local theatre.
Unfortunately, my grandmother forgot to let her parents know about her after school plans. She got home later than usual only to find all the doors to her house locked. She was a bit confused at first, and then it dawned on her that her parents had actually locked the doors on purpose - to teach her a lesson! They finally let her back in, of course, but they'd made their point.
The day she first told me this story, I listened intently, drinking in every detail, enjoying the pleasure she took telling it. Her eyes took on a special glow as she relived that long ago incident and experienced those childhood emotions once again. It's significant to me not because it's a grand tale of some great accomplishment but because it's a small story that shines some light on my grandmother's life and helps me to see her as a youngster capable of making silly mistakes.
I wish I'd captured her telling her "Safety Last" story on video. I know my family would treasure it.
Seems my maternal grandmother was in the school choir during her high school years in Elizabeth, New Jersey. One day after choir practice, she and a group of her friends decided to go see the latest Harold Lloyd flick, "Safety Last," which was playing at the local theatre.
Unfortunately, my grandmother forgot to let her parents know about her after school plans. She got home later than usual only to find all the doors to her house locked. She was a bit confused at first, and then it dawned on her that her parents had actually locked the doors on purpose - to teach her a lesson! They finally let her back in, of course, but they'd made their point.
The day she first told me this story, I listened intently, drinking in every detail, enjoying the pleasure she took telling it. Her eyes took on a special glow as she relived that long ago incident and experienced those childhood emotions once again. It's significant to me not because it's a grand tale of some great accomplishment but because it's a small story that shines some light on my grandmother's life and helps me to see her as a youngster capable of making silly mistakes.
I wish I'd captured her telling her "Safety Last" story on video. I know my family would treasure it.
Saturday, May 14, 2005
Racing the clock
I'll always thank my lucky stars that I captured my paternal grandmother and her wonderful stories on video. I wish I'd been able to do it with my other grandparents as well. I really feel a keen sense of loss when I think about all the family stories I'll never hear and especially about the fact that the chance to capture the images and voices of my other grandparents is lost to me forever.
Through the phone calls and e-mails I receive I'm finding that more and more people are realizing how important it is to preserve family legacies on video. That really cheers me. But still, thousands of family members die each day without leaving a video record of their lives behind. And when I hear family members say that a video biography is something they should "get around to" someday I really feel for them. That's because I know most of them will wait until it's too late - and I know the sense of loss they'll feel.
I hope I can inspire more people to "beat the clock" and preserve their stories, or the stories of their parents, grandparents, great-grandparents, etc. on video - before it's too late.
Through the phone calls and e-mails I receive I'm finding that more and more people are realizing how important it is to preserve family legacies on video. That really cheers me. But still, thousands of family members die each day without leaving a video record of their lives behind. And when I hear family members say that a video biography is something they should "get around to" someday I really feel for them. That's because I know most of them will wait until it's too late - and I know the sense of loss they'll feel.
I hope I can inspire more people to "beat the clock" and preserve their stories, or the stories of their parents, grandparents, great-grandparents, etc. on video - before it's too late.
Thursday, May 12, 2005
An Olympic Family History Moment
Imagine finally seeing your father run in the Olympics - the 1912 Olympics, that is.
Creating video biographies is always fulfilling for me. But occasionally I'm able to provide a special service that really gives me the warm fuzzies. Here's what I'm talking about:
Just before Christmas of 2004 I completed a Family Legacy Video for a wonderful couple, Mary-Lou and Dick, here in Tucson. It turns out that Mary-Lou's dad was a college track star in the 1910s, held the record for the mile for a number of years and placed fourth in the 1500m run in the 1912 Olympic Games in Stockholm, Sweden.
After I finished the video, Dick asked me if I thought film footage of the race might exist. I told him I'd check around. I contacted a few film archives with no success, then managed to find my way to the Web site of the International Olympic Committee. I submitted a query through the site, and then went on to other things.
After about a month, I received an e-mail from an archivist at the IOC. Believe it or not there was a film clip, thirty seconds long, of the race I was looking for!
Long story short, the IOC sent me the clip. The quality of the film was surprisingly good and gave views of the starting line, the mid point of the race and the finish. I added a title screen and created two versions of the clip, one running at normal speed and one in slow motion, adding a freeze frame of Mary-Lou's father crossing the finish line. Then I put it all on DVD.
A few days ago, Mary-Lou wrote me, saying, "You can't imagine what a thrill it was to see Dad running. That was an amazing thing you did for us but it meant the most to me. Thank you again and again."
I feel great knowing I helped make a very special and unique addition to a family's archive.
Creating video biographies is always fulfilling for me. But occasionally I'm able to provide a special service that really gives me the warm fuzzies. Here's what I'm talking about:
Just before Christmas of 2004 I completed a Family Legacy Video for a wonderful couple, Mary-Lou and Dick, here in Tucson. It turns out that Mary-Lou's dad was a college track star in the 1910s, held the record for the mile for a number of years and placed fourth in the 1500m run in the 1912 Olympic Games in Stockholm, Sweden.
After I finished the video, Dick asked me if I thought film footage of the race might exist. I told him I'd check around. I contacted a few film archives with no success, then managed to find my way to the Web site of the International Olympic Committee. I submitted a query through the site, and then went on to other things.
After about a month, I received an e-mail from an archivist at the IOC. Believe it or not there was a film clip, thirty seconds long, of the race I was looking for!
Long story short, the IOC sent me the clip. The quality of the film was surprisingly good and gave views of the starting line, the mid point of the race and the finish. I added a title screen and created two versions of the clip, one running at normal speed and one in slow motion, adding a freeze frame of Mary-Lou's father crossing the finish line. Then I put it all on DVD.
A few days ago, Mary-Lou wrote me, saying, "You can't imagine what a thrill it was to see Dad running. That was an amazing thing you did for us but it meant the most to me. Thank you again and again."
I feel great knowing I helped make a very special and unique addition to a family's archive.
Wednesday, May 11, 2005
Family Legacy Video: My Passion & Mission
Lord knows she tried, but great-great-grandma just couldn't cook. Take peas, for example. She'd buy peas in the pod, shell 'em - and burn 'em. Then she'd toss out the burnt peas and serve canned ones instead. When great-great-grandpa complained that his peas didn't taste fresh, she'd storm into the kitchen, return with handfuls of empty pea pods and declare, "See! Here are the pods from the fresh peas!" Fooled him every time.
As a young girl at my great-great-grandparents' table, my grandmother witnessed many "burnt peas" episodes. Gram was a party animal who danced the Irish jig into her seventies. She never left a restaurant without stocking up on Sweet'N Low packets and leftover rolls. She was also a living link to my family's past. Her supply of family stories was endless.
One day in 1995 I decided to put my professional video expertise to work preserving my Gram's stories. I sat Gram in front of a video camera, pressed "record" and asked her questions about her life. I combined her interview with family photos, videos and music. The result: my first Family Legacy Video. It became an instant family treasure. I still bask in the warmth of my family's gratitude.
I began Family Legacy Video in 2003 in order to help individuals and families preserve their precious stories on video. Family Legacy Video offers products and services for both do-it-yourselfers and for those who just want to hire someone to create a video legacy for them. With each passing day, I meet more and more people who share my passion about saving family history on video. That's why I created this blog. It's a place where we can all meet and share our ideas, observations and passions for family legacy videos.
I invite you to visit Family Legacy Video. In addition to learning about Family Legacy Video's products and services, you can sign up for a free monthly e-newsletter, get a valuable free article, view video clips and hear Gram tell the burnt peas story. I hope Family Legacy Video can inspire you and help you to preserve your family stories on video.
As a young girl at my great-great-grandparents' table, my grandmother witnessed many "burnt peas" episodes. Gram was a party animal who danced the Irish jig into her seventies. She never left a restaurant without stocking up on Sweet'N Low packets and leftover rolls. She was also a living link to my family's past. Her supply of family stories was endless.
One day in 1995 I decided to put my professional video expertise to work preserving my Gram's stories. I sat Gram in front of a video camera, pressed "record" and asked her questions about her life. I combined her interview with family photos, videos and music. The result: my first Family Legacy Video. It became an instant family treasure. I still bask in the warmth of my family's gratitude.
I began Family Legacy Video in 2003 in order to help individuals and families preserve their precious stories on video. Family Legacy Video offers products and services for both do-it-yourselfers and for those who just want to hire someone to create a video legacy for them. With each passing day, I meet more and more people who share my passion about saving family history on video. That's why I created this blog. It's a place where we can all meet and share our ideas, observations and passions for family legacy videos.
I invite you to visit Family Legacy Video. In addition to learning about Family Legacy Video's products and services, you can sign up for a free monthly e-newsletter, get a valuable free article, view video clips and hear Gram tell the burnt peas story. I hope Family Legacy Video can inspire you and help you to preserve your family stories on video.
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