Your Life Story
Save your memories and anecdotes in a relaxed filmed interview, edited into the film of your life. A life story film becomes an heirloom to be treasured for more than a lifetime.
What is a Life Story Film?
A life story film is a personal documentary created from your memories, experiences and stories. Through a relaxed interview, I gently prompt you to recall the people, places and moments that have shaped your life — from childhood and family to work, relationships, adventures, challenges, hopes and fears.
Told in your own words, your life story film captures something a written memoir never can: your voice, personality, humour and emotion.
Photographs, home movies, letters, scrapbooks and other family archive can be woven into the film, bringing the stories behind the pictures to life and creating a lasting family history to share with future generations.
How is Your Life Story Film Is Made?
The interview is carefully edited to tell your unique story in a natural and engaging way. I select the moments, memories and anecdotes that best bring your life to the screen, and combine them with photographs, video, graphics and music to reflect the emotion of the story.
Every film is bespoke. Some films may focus on a particular period or aspect of your life, while others follow a lifetime of memories. The aim is always to create a film that feels personal, authentic and true to you.
How Long Is a Life Story Film?
A finished life story film is usually around 45–60 minutes long and is delivered within 6–8 weeks of filming. This allows time to carefully edit the interviews and select the best archive, graphics and music to tell your story in the most effective way. Every film is bespoke so if you have a deadline or are looking for a different length film, please just ask.
Your stories. Your memories. Your voice.
Preserved in a film for generations to come.
Note, these clips are mute.
To find out more about the filming, interview and editing process, see How it works
If you're looking for a life story film told by others as a surprise,
or a legacy film, see
This is your life Story
Peter Kenyon: Life Story Film
Taster: Clip of family man and activism
Location: The City of London
Final film: 60 minutes
This is a classic "Life Story Film" told by the remarkable activist Peter Kenyon in his own words and guided by an experienced interviewer to draw out the stories, the anecdotes and emotions of life's highs and lows revolving around his family and activism.
He was interviewed and filmed over one morning at his home in the City of London. The interview was around 3 hours long and edited down to around 60 mins. Customers sometime asks about the footage that ends up on the digital cutting room floor. Well, it's generally rubbish- chit chat, repeats, checking the microphone, changing batteries and, of course, the questions themselves. Selecting the best quotes takes time and they can usually be condensed to tell the story more efficiently but I often keep little mannerism or moments that could go, to keep a little bit more of what makes the person who they are.
Peter knew exactly what he wanted to tell me for most of his interview - especially about his proudest achievement which was successfully chairing the Save the Reservoirs campaign – preventing both east and west reservoirs in Hackney from being built over by Thames Water. When he described the moment he finally got to go out onto the water in a boat, it really was exceptionally moving.
This film is especially poignant as I was aware that Peter was very poorly when we did the filming - despite his clear zest for life during it - and he sadly died a couple of weeks later.
The full 60 minute documentary film was turned around at high speed, and I know it must be very treasured by his family. Preserving memories and saving stories for now and future generations is what we do best.
Graham: Life Story Film
Taster: The Coffin Story
Location: The Cotswolds
Final film: 90 minutes
This is a classic "Life Story Film" told by Graham in his own words and guided by an experienced interviewer to draw out the stories, the anecdotes and emotions of life's highs and lows.
He was interviewed and filmed over two days at his home in the Cotswolds. The interview was around 5-6 hours long and edited down to around 90 mins. Graham's memory difficulties meant that some stories looped back to their beginnings. This required extra patience and careful prompting during the interview, followed by a more involved editing process to shape the material into a coherent story.
This snippet of the film is especially poignant as Graham died a couple of months after being filmed, and inspired by his stories of where his love of working with wood began, his family decided to make one of his stories come full circle and contacted the company he did his apprenticeship at, now run by the third generation.
The full 90 minute documentary film was supplied to him on a memory stick in a gift box. Not every film has such a long interview and editing process, but preserving memories and saving stories is what Life Camera Reaction do best so email to discuss your own life story film hello@lifecamerareaction.co.uk
Michael: Life Story Film
Taster: Memories of growing up
Location: Islington
Final film: 25 minutes
I have been interviewing and filming local neighbours for a few years to capture their memories and stories about growing up or living in the area of East Canonbury in North London.
This is an on-going project exploring how not only life has changed but the streets and buildings surrounding us.
Please email here to find out more
or if you'd like to take part.