Artifcts \ Articles \ CONVERSATION \ Capturing Family Stories, One Video Biography at a Time

Capturing Family Stories, One Video Biography at a Time

Heather Nickerson, Artifcts

March 16, 2022

I’ve had the pleasure of knowing Lori Roux, founder of Whole Story Productions (WSP), for many years. In fact, Lori was one of our earliest sounding boards as we contemplated building a community around all things “stuff” and “stories.”

Aside from being a die-hard skier and former New Englander, Lori was an Emmy-award winning team member of ESPN’s X Games and the creative genius behind WSP. Lori and the WSP team help families bring to light the stories, memories, and histories that make them who they are today through beautifully directed family videographies.

Ellen and I saw an immediate fit between Artifcts and WSP—we couldn’t help but think about all that family “stuff” as we listened to Lori talk about the families she has worked with and the stories she has helped them tell over the years.

Sure enough, families, “stuff,” and stories go hand in hand. Whether it is a collection of old photos from the turn of the century or Grandma’s china or an assortment of antique silver. Those objects all represent lives lived, adventures had, and the very essence of what it is to be us, to be alive.

I sat down with Lori for a virtual conversation last month and wanted to share with you some of our key takeaways.

Heather Nickerson: Tell us a bit about your typical client.

Lori Roux: Usually I’m working with a family, but once in a while there may be more of a corporate lean, where the story is more business oriented. Many clients have had successful family businesses and are telling the story of how it started, where, and when. Then we progress through family evolution, historical aspects, philanthropy, and legacy.

I also had a project for a museum exhibition – that creates challenges around length, how long can you keep people’s attention while standing at a kiosk of some sort.

Nickerson: How do clients typically find you?

Roux: Clients usually find me by word of mouth, so somebody knows somebody who knows somebody who I’ve worked with. I’ve also met clients through their other service providers – attorneys, accountants, financial advisors. I am listed as a service provider with large and small financial institutions.

Nickerson: You’ve said that people often tell you that they are not interesting enough to do a video. How do you convince people that they are?

Roux: Almost to a tee people will say, “Oh, there’s not much to tell.” Or, “We’re not really that interesting.” But I try to explain that to their audience, their family and friends, it’s incredibly interesting. It’s a story for the rising generations. A story of who they are, their successes and failures, and what their message is for those that they may never meet.

As one client said to their hesitant father/patriarch, “It’s not about you Dad. It’s about us. It’s FOR us.”

It’s not about you Dad. It’s about us. It’s FOR us

Nickerson: Can you share a story or two that stands out from the families you’ve worked with?

Roux: There are a number of stories, so I’ll pick one of my favorites.

I had a family that I worked with in Australia with eight adult children. The family tells a story debating whether they were “free settlers or convicts” when their ancestors came from the Isle of Skye. There were multiple versions of the story depending on who in the family you asked. I don’t usually do the research, but I was searching for an image of a ship from the 1800s to include to help the visuals of the story. I happened to come upon the original manifest of the ship’s passengers. It listed a number of the family names with a $ fee next to it, which means they paid for passage! Not sure it put to rest the argument, however, as they genuinely like the mystery and family lore!

Nickerson: Getting people to talk about their most intimate family details has to be challenging. How do you get people to trust you?

Roux: You know, that’s something that I work really hard at. It all starts at that first meeting – trying to talk about the project while also expressing your own humanity and sharing a story of your own that might apply. Even offering a comparison – like, my own family immigrated from Eastern Europe and though they thought they really didn’t know much about their history, it turned out, the more questions they asked each other, the more they discovered they knew collectively!

I also talk about their privacy, and how they will end up including other family members, and how we keep their final product secure.

It’s all about them… and I try and express that it’s not a “gotcha moment” when we do an interview. It’s all preplanned and preapproved so the final film is what they envisioned.

Nickerson: Explain how you incorporate other keepsakes in a video (e.g., photos, letters, music).

Roux: Some of the most important parts of a project are the photos, videos, letters, and other family records. You know the saying, “A picture is worth a thousand words.” Well, that’s so true! We can tell so much of someone’s story with a few photographs and some music, without even a word being said. We try and include whatever is meaningful and significant to each family – whether it’s a business contract or a love letter.

Nickerson: You know the story of Artifcts. How do you think Artifcts could help you in your work with your clients?

Roux: With all the photos and keepsakes that people share, that we include, Artifcts is a great place for them to find a home. When the project is complete, all the photos can be archived on Artifcts so family members can then go and peruse them at their leisure. When it’s in the film, you might only see something for five seconds. All the people in the photo might be recognizable, but in the film, the images fly by so quickly. Having organized, archived access for everyone who the family wants to share with will be invaluable. It’s like a secure online photo album shared with the entire family, accessible any time, only the family can then add documents, stories, and all the details that you typically don’t get with a photo album.

< End of interview >

We know that when it comes to our personal lives and histories “someday” often turns into never or maybe simply too late. We hope you will think about those pieces of you that should be Artifcted and archived to pass to friends and family and future generations before it’s too late. Take it one object at a time. If you get stuck, see if some of our partners and membership organizations can help you!

Interested in creating a family video biography? You can reach out to Lori at Whole Story Productions to start the conversation.

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What's New at Artifcts

New Feature: “In Remembrance” of Whom We’ve Lost

Artifcts in lieu of flowers is a concept born from the Arti Community. We are each the keepers of unique moments in one another’s lives. No one person can possibly be our own personal keeper of all of our memories and stories. No device for that matter either! Today we’re proud to announce the launch of what we have lovingly named “In Remembrance.”

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It has always been possible to create and share Artifcts privately. Now with Artifcts “In Remembrance” anyone can create an Artifct and share it with someone who is grieving a loss. It's a meaningful gift for someone who is greiving, whether the loss was yesterday, a year ago, or many decades in the past.

Choosing to share an Artifct “In Remembrance” sends a non-editable copy of the Artifct, marked with a black ribbon, to the Special Artifcts Collections of the individuals, circles, or sharing lists you select. Recipients need only a free account to access these Artifcts.

They will be able to view and download any photos or video and audio snippets you include in the Artifct, too. Maybe they will frame your photo! No need for messy storage and sharing here, there, and everywhere, email, text messages, share drives, chat groups, or temporary memorial sites.

How Can "In Remembrance" Help You?

If you have experienced grief, you know that the waves of pain and near paralysis that wash over you as the minutes, hours, and days go by can be all encompassing. With the best of intentions, people may gift you mementos, photos, stories and memories, and more. But it can be hard to recall them when you need them most. And you are only one person! So many people grieve the loss of a single person. What about all of them?

Through In Remembrance, the objects, photos, video clips and more of our loved ones and the stories behind them can be shared with us so they are accessible from anywhere and at any time we need them. Grief has no timetable. Neither do Artifcts.

Beyond Grief: Artifcts are About Life

The reason traditional estate planning is dead is that it has nothing to do with happiness or helping you live a fulfilled life. [...] What about planning to build the life you will ultimately leave behind when you die? - Daniel Scott, Forbes

Daniel got it right. What is life about if not the moments that make it up? Legacy planning is what estate planners now look to to help people be prepared in life and thoughtfully build that life.

Artifcts supports preparedness in life, too. We capture together the categorically valuable items we collect – the art, jewelry, collectibles, and more – and equally important the items that mean something to us because of the stories, personality, and life lessons and wisdom they impart today and long after we’re gone.

For every Artifct you create, we’ve included a small prompt “In the Future” - what are your wishes? What do you want to become of this object? Is it a family treasure to keep always? Will you donate it or bequeath it to a loved one? Consider that to ensure pieces of your legacy live on as you’d wish.

Bonus: You can also now let us know what we should do if your account is inactive for more than a year after your membership lapses and, ultimately, if you'd like to contribute to research via Artifcts! Check it out in your Account Profile under Security & Longevity> Preserve Your Artifcts.

The entirety of your Artifcts collection is a piece of your legacy, too. Make sure you preserve your Artifcts by naming your Legacy Contacts so we can ensure your digital Artifcts live on as you’d like them to as well.

For more tips and how-tos, download the Artifcts Guide, "Helping You Be Better Prepared in Life and Providing After-Loss Support."

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March 25, 2023

PRODUCT UPDATES, LEGACY, PLANNING & MORE

Calling All Family History Buffs!

Love family history? Love bonding over family lore, stories, and other funny quips, quotes, and oh-so memorable moments? You’re in good company with us here at Artifcts!

What we’ve discovered over the past two years is that family history may sometimes be fickler than we think. It’s easy to lull ourselves into believing that Grandma’s always going to be here to make her famous biscuits. Grandpa’s always going to be here to tell us the story of his steel pennies. But we know this is not true.

Although we have yet to find a way to stop (or even stall!) time, we have discovered we can capture those moments, stories, and histories straight from the source. Thousands of photos and documents locked in your hard drive, or difficult or expensive software, will not do justice to your family history. You know the dots you want to connect, so start connecting them where you can easily share them with others with more permanence than memories alone allow!

We’ve put together tips to make sure your family history will be remembered.

No need to reinvent the wheel. Use the photos and videos you already have and attach the documentation that is already lurking in your digital or physical file cabinets. Founder’s tip: Add a link to digital files in the ‘Location’ field if you have a digital folder with other related items.
Sharing is caring. Remember to share privately or publicly with your family (cousins included!) or other interested parties. Create a circle, invite your family into it, and you can all swap Artifcts like a big group chat!
Ask others to contribute. If you don’t know all the details, ask other family members (who have paid Artifcts memberships) to help fill in the blanks by giving them 'Edit’ access when you share. Our co-founder Heather recently asked her aunts for help in trying to track down the details of this old photo.
Families love using (name) tags. Tag your Artifcts with a family last name, first name, or initials to capture pieces of family history that are easily searchable, findable, and shareable. Got a big family? Encourage others to use the same tags, such as #GrandmaDot or #NickersonFamily2023, to build the family's Artifcts collection.
Include citation links. Are you the family keeper or the family genealogist? Include citation links to your research or even family tree details in the ‘Description;' as you would elsewhere, leave out details of living family members if you intend to broadly share or make the Artifct public.

Ready for More?

Curious how others are Artifcting their family histories?

Check out our Family History Month Your Way piece for additional tips and tricks, along with our Gift Your Loved Ones a Why for an important reminder of why all that history is so important.

If you especially love history and want to see some unique Artifcts, check out the Nickerson Family Association’s Artifcts collection. They’ve Artifcted pieces of their family history from the 1660s! You never know what you’ll discover.

Happy (Family History) Artifcting!

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March 22, 2023

TIPS & TRICKS, LEGACY, PLANNING & MORE

Using the Artifcts App to Create Artifcts

“ANY of my photos I took on my phone?”
“Can you help with all these voice messages? Are they ‘stuff?’”
“Oh, I can do that walking around my house! My son thinks it’s all junk.”
“I have a three-hour layover in Denver. I’ll start Artifcting then!”
{What will you say?}

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We took notes as our newest Artifcts Community members tried out our app last week at the RootsTech conference in Salt Lake City. We must have chatted with more than 500 people who stopped by our booth. Some were conference attendees. Others are themselves respected builders of the premiere brands in genealogy services today. The awe factor of our modest app centered around how much you could do with a single, easy to use application. We’re declaring that a win!

On Monday we offered a free webinar to walk through some of the ins and outs of creating an Artifct from the Artifcts app. You can watch the recording, blooper moments and all, on our YouTube channel ->

Your Turn! Try a Few of the Artifcts App Features

The more feedback from all of you, the better and better the app will be. Download the app to your iOS or Android device, give it a try, and write to us at Hello@Artifcts.com. We review every message!

CREATE A NEW ARTIFCT
Use what you’ve got!

On your phone, that is. Go for it, scroll 1000s of photos back in your gallery to that ONE photo you’re thinking of. Or pop into your voicemail and rescue that message you’ve saved for months or even years.

- 1. Open the voice message.
  2. Click the share icon
  3. Choose the Artifcts app!

Select a voice message on your mobile phone

Choose to add the voice message to a new or existing Artifct

Images are from an iOS phone. Android will have slight differences.

Start fresh. Work with the latest.
From the Artifcts app, click '+ Artifct.'

How to create a new Artifct on the app

Now choose to take a new photo, use an existing photo, video, or audio file, and off you go! Remember, you can choose up to five media files per Artifct and rearrange them to flow with your story.

SHARE AN ARTIFCT
Mobile Style

You can always share an Artifct with someone based on their Artifcts screen name or email address. You can even post public Artifcts to social media. But did you know that the Artifcts app offers a special sharing option?

1. 1. Click the share icon on your Artifct.
  2. Choose ‘Share link’ to send the Artifct via text message. You don’t even have to enter the email, phone number, or know if they are already an Artifcts member. Simply type to find the contact on your phone and send the Artifct in a text.
  3. If the Artifct is private, and you haven’t already given the person permission, they will be able to “request access” when they click to view the Artifct link you sent them. Don’t' worry, they will be encouraged to sign in (or create a free Artifcts account) first to see if they already have access.

Bonus! If you have notifications for the Artifcts app enabled on your mobile device, you’ll learn instantly when they request access.

FIND OUT: WHAT'S IT WORTH?
When you supect real market value or historical relevance

You can find out if your treasures are authentic and potentially valuable!

1. 1. Click to view one of your Artifcts
  2. Scroll to the end of the Artifct and click "What's it worth?" to ask Heritage Auctions.
  3. After expert review, Heritage Auctions will attach directly to your Artifct a free valuation within two to three weeks. Be sure to provide helpful details. We offer tips in our FAQs for valuations.

Happy Artifcting!

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March 15, 2023

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