1. First, we contact you to discuss your unique needs.
2. We create a proposal for your video, and if you decide to go ahead, we sign a contract detailing all aspects of the production, the final package and the delivery date. At the time of signing, 50% of the fee is due.
3. We schedule the interview(s) and you provide us with all the photographs, home movies or videos and documents you want to include. (You can scan photographs yourself or we can have it professionally done for you).
4. We shoot the interview(s) and begin the editing process.
5. We begin editing and show you a “rough cut” version of the video, before music, titles or special effects are added. You can request minor changes, and then sign off your approval. There are no structural changes or additions after this point.
6. We complete the editing process, adding music, transitions, special effects and titles. We show you this stage, and you sign off your approval. The third 25% is due at this stage
7. We prepare your final package, including the video on DVD, USB, or an upload to your own private Vimeo channel. The final 25% of the fee is due on delivery.
Every project is unique! It will depend on the number and variety of media (photos, documents, types of home movies, interviews, locations) and how busy we are with other projects, but here is a typical timeline for each package, from the date all materials are received and interviews have been filmed:
- Bronze: 3-4 weeks
- Silver: 4-5 weeks
- Gold: 6-7 weeks
- Platinum: 8-10 weeks
Everyone feels a little shy at first, but our job is to make you look great! Here’s how:
The camera will be positioned in front and slightly off to one side of you, and we will have a friendly conversation. You can just ignore the camera! Remember, it’s not “live”, so you can stop and re-start a sentence at any point if you need to. In the editing process, we will only use footage that makes you look and sound your best!
We can provide you with some “thinking points” before the interview to help you start remembering the things you want to talk about – earliest memories, family life, school, work, travel, etc. There’s no need to memorize anything – we’ll just let the conversation flow naturally!
We will give you some suggestions on what to wear before the “shoot”.
We understand how precious your family photographs are, and we take great care with them. Here’s how we handle them:
“Loose” photographs or documents can be scanned by you (at minimum 1200 DPI) or we can have them professionally scanned on a flatbed scanner. We use a professional lab for all scanning and digital conversion.
Photographs in albums can be scanned “in album”, at high resolution.
Old home movies and videos will be converted to digital files by a professional lab. Film reels are cleaned, repaired, scanned frame by frame direct to digital, and then contrast- and colour-corrected before we use them.
All original photographs, albums, documents, videos and film reels are returned to you at the end of the project, as well as the “raw” scanned footage and images on a separate USB.
The best special effects are the ones you don’t see. We avoid “gimmicky” effects and splashy transitions (such as spinning or sliding frames) and prefer good clean edits.
We do use some subtle dissolves and the “Ken Burns” effect of slowly zooming in to still photos to make them more dynamic. Your video will look like the professionally produced documentary that it is.
We don’t do Wedding day or Bar/Bat Mitzvah party videos, but our Bronze package is a perfect addition to your special day!
A “montage” of your photos and previously recorded home videos can be professionally edited to music with added titles and played at the event, to celebrate the life of the Bar/Bat Mitzvah, or the happy couple, from birth until now.
Our Video Biographies make a memorable gift for Anniversaries, Milestone Birthdays, Retirements and many other occasions. Our Gold and Platinum packages include two or more interviews and are the best choice for a gift.
You can choose family members, friends and/or co-workers to be interviewed and we will “shoot” them all on one or two days in a studio. You would also provide us with other media (photos, home videos, etc.) to include.
All packages include travel within the GTA. For travel outside the GTA, please contact us.