At the risk of sounding macabre, I have to say that some of my best work can be seen at funerals. I consider it a privilege and an honor to produce a memorial video to commemorate the life of a loved one who has passed.  When handled with care, compassion, and respect, a memorial video can help the grieving process by reminding us that even though a life has ended, our memories of that life don’t have to.

The first memorial video I produced was for my older sister Allison (pictured above) who died far too young after a long battle with cancer. This occurred before I opened my studio so the resources I had available to me at that time were limited and yet the rudimentary video I produced was still able to capture her essence and remind us all of the wonderful life that was hers.

Since then, I’ve been able to perfect my techniques and streamline the workflow so the process can be done quickly and cost-effectively without affecting the quality of the work produced. A few things to remember if you find yourself in a position to need this service:

• You’re grieving so there is no need to feel pressure or undue stress to deliver to me a polished, scripted video idea. I will work with you at your comfort level. And I will do the work needed to give you a video that you will treasure.
• All I need is whatever photos you are able to collect and some songs that have a connection to the one being honored.
• You can figure that 100 photos will result in a 10 minute video but many memorial videos that I do are “looped” so they play continuously as people come and go during the service. There is no right or wrong as to the number of photos to be included.
• I keep the “bells and whistles” to a minimum. The video is not intended to showcase my abilities, but to give tribute to the life of the loved one. I try to keep the editor’s hand out of sight.
• There is no limit to what is available. I have included audio tape, video tape, film footage, slides, photos, negatives and more to build the proper tribute.

Because I know first hand the healing properties contained within a memorial video, I always assign priority to these projects. I  am not usually given a lot of time to produce the finished product, so when an order is placed it goes immediately to the top of my queue. I have never missed a deadline and to my knowledge, have never disappointed my clients.

And recently, a new phenomenon has begun; more and more clients are coming to me with the request that I work on their own memorial video so their family isn’t burdened to handle that task when the time comes. I am happy to work with you so that when the time comes, you can be remembered the way you wish to be remembered.

Whatever your need or request, know that we are able and willing to deliver to you something that will not only give a proper sendoff to the one we’ve lost, but also deliver a timeless keepsake to the ones left behind. 

Michael Ondrasik and Home Video Studio specialize in the preservation of family memories. For more information, call 352-735-8550 or visit http://www.homevideostudio.com/mtd.