Family stories, told firsthand.

Create a cinematic, feature-length documentary that turns life stories into lasting family legacies.

Watch a Feature Film

Family history almost always
reaches the next generation
secondhand, retold and
slowly lost. We capture yours
at the source. Prima Persona
produces bespoke heirloom
documentaries, told firsthand
for the generations that follow.

01 / 04Consultation

We begin with a relaxed discussion about your hopes for the film and the person at the center of it.

A hand-tinted 1950s portrait of a smiling woman in a folding frame, standing on an open family album

Step 01

Consultation

The first conversationWe learn about your family, and offer guidance on what your project can look like.We get to know your family.
Creative planningWe write a creative proposal, framed around your family’s unique stories and mission.Shaped around your family’s stories.
Setting a dateWe schedule a convenient day to film. If there’s a special occasion like an anniversary or milestone, we’ll build the entire timeline around it.Every detail, planned for you.
ConfirmationA deposit books your place, and your dedicated team is assigned to the project.Your place and your team, reserved.

02 / 04Filming

We come to you and quietly set up cinema cameras, lighting, and sound. The day plays out like a long, relaxed conversation.

Step 02

Filming

Before the day

The questionnaireWe send a questionnaire to better understand the people we’ll interview.About the people we’ll interview.
The mementosWe guide you through gathering photographs, home videos and keepsakes.Photographs, videos and keepsakes.
ResearchIn close consultation with your family, your producer researches your story, writes each person’s questions, and plans the interview day.Weeks of research shape the questions.

On the day of filming

Setup. Our team comes to you and discreetly builds a cinema set in the room of your choice.Quietly, wherever suits you.
Interview. Your producer leads a guided conversation around your family’s memories and stories.A relaxed, guided conversation.
Additional visuals. We compose cinematic scenes of their daily life, along with the people and places they treasure most.Their places and details.
Archival capture. We digitize your photographs and keepsakes on site at archival quality, so the originals never leave your home.Prints digitized on site.

03 / 04Editing

Our post-production team shapes hours of footage into a film with a true emotional arc.

Step 03

Editing

StoryOur editors craft a riveting story from your own voice and memories, so the film feels unmistakably like yours.Built from every word spoken.
ArchiveEvery archived photograph is restored, digitized, and incorporated into the film.Restored and animated by hand.
GraphicsCompelling graphics and animations are crafted to enhance the narrative flow of the film.Animated to carry the story.
MusicWe curate music for the film and cut it to the pulse of every scene.Chosen for the story.
ColorThe color is graded so every decade sits together.Every decade, graded as one.
SoundThe film is mixed in a professional sound studio for every viewing format, from the web to televisions and home theaters.Mixed in a professional studio.

04 / 04Custom Delivery

We deliver a finished documentary, packaged both as a physical and digital heirloom. The film is yours to keep for future generations!

An open family album with an old portrait, beside white lilies on a lace-covered table in afternoon light

Step 04

Custom Delivery

The feature filmYour documentary comes home as a physical and digital heirloom.A physical and digital heirloom.
A short filmWe produce a standalone short film to share with family and friends.Cut separately, to share with family.
A private archiveEvery photograph we scanned is kept in your name.Every photograph, kept in your name.
Portrait Photographs OptionalHeirloom portraits shot on set and printed to accompany the film.Portraits, made on the filming day.

All original footage and materials. Preserved for you, available on request.
A private premiere (optional). If you desire, we can arrange a screening for your family and friends.
Absolute discretion. Nothing is shown or shared without your word.

The whole process takes around three months, from confirmation to delivery.

Find your film

Our films are custom-crafted to celebrate the lives, achievements, and legacies of your families.

The Biopic

One life, explored in full. The film traces their life’s journey and the people, lessons, and values that shaped them. It is the most personal film we make.

The Couple’s Story

Two lives, and the story of how they became one: how they met, what they built, and the bond that still holds. This is where your family began.

The Family History

A family is more than the sum of its members. The film spans generations, telling the family’s history in the voices of the people who carry the line forward. This is who your family is.

The Family Gathering

Built around a reunion or a milestone, the film captures the family exactly as it is right now. We turn a single day into something everyone can return to long after.

A Film of Your Own

If none of these feel quite right, we will craft a story around your specific vision. Possibilities include films about family businesses, places of heritage, lifelong passions, philanthropic legacies, or special journeys. Tell us what you picture, and we will build it.

Our commissions

Whatever the story, you choose the scale of the film.

A biography, filmed in a day.

The Portrait

The essential commission. We film over a single day at home, centered on an easygoing, in-depth interview. We shape the interview into a complete, expertly edited feature-length documentary with your photographs woven throughout.

From $35,000

A broader story, over several days.

The Chronicle

The bigger picture. We film over multiple days and set up additional interviews with family and friends closest to the film’s subject. We shoot more extensive on-location footage of your family.

From $50,000

A major motion picture, across days and locations.

The Provenance

The epic. Our most elaborate production: a sweeping story shot over several days and locations, with deep archival research, full restoration of old film and photographs, and the opportunity for many passes of refinement.

Upon request