Legacy video messages: how to record one for your family

Updated 2026-10-28 · Fond Farewell guides

A legacy video is a short recording of you, speaking to someone you love, for them to watch after you've died. It keeps what a letter can't: your voice, your face, the way you laugh. Two to five minutes per person, filmed on a phone, is plenty.

What to say

Talk to one person at a time, by name, as if they're sitting across from you. A loose plan helps:

1. Say hello and why you're recording.
2. Tell them what they mean to you.
3. Share a story or memory, the one you'd tell at dinner.
4. Give them something to carry: advice, a blessing, permission to be happy.
5. Say goodbye the way you normally would.

Don't script it word for word; read it once and then talk. Pauses, laughs and stumbles are the parts people treasure.

Prompts

• Tell the story of the day they were born, or the day you met.
• Read their favourite bedtime story or sing the song you always sang.
• Explain a family recipe while you make it.
• Answer the questions they might ask at their wedding, or when they become a parent.
• Tell a friend what they've meant to you over the years.

How long should it be?

Two to five minutes per person is a good length: long enough to say something real, short enough to rewatch. If you have more to say, record several short videos rather than one long one. (In Fond Farewell, each person can have one video of up to 5 minutes.)

Simple setup on a phone

• Light: sit facing a window in daylight. Avoid a bright window behind you, which turns you into a silhouette.
• Sound: a quiet, soft-furnished room. Turn off fans and TVs. Wired or wireless earbuds with a mic usually sound better than the phone at arm's length.
• Framing: prop the phone at eye level, about an arm's length away, with your head and shoulders in shot. Landscape or portrait both work.
• Camera: use the front camera so you can see yourself, and look at the lens when it matters.
• Do a 10-second test and play it back before the real take.

If you're unwell or tired

Record in short bursts when you have energy, and ask someone to hold the phone or help you get comfortable. Lying back on pillows is fine. A few sentences recorded today are worth more than a perfect video planned for later. Our guide to letters and videos for hospice patients has more on this.

Making sure it reaches them

Videos are easy to lose in a phone's camera roll. Decide now how each one will be delivered:

• Save copies to a shared family drive and tell someone where they are.
• Leave a USB stick with your will or a trusted person (formats and ports change, so keep a cloud copy too).
• Use an app that delivers each video to the right person. In Fond Farewell, each recipient gets an email with your note and a private link to watch their video in a browser, only after a trusted contact reports your death and you haven't cancelled within 48 hours.

Pair the video with a short written note. A letter is easy to keep in a wallet; see what to write in a farewell letter.