Skip to content

How to make a celebration of life video

How we wrote this

Short answer

Collect photos and short clips from the family into one shared folder, choose a shape for the story (by decade, by theme, or by the people they loved), pick one or two songs that sound like them, and keep it to 6–10 minutes if everyone will watch together. Make a longer loop for the background and a link for people who cannot come.

A celebration of life is now the most common way people in the UK describe the funerals they organise: 58% in SunLife's 2026 Cost of Dying report, up from 51% the year before. Half of those organisers shared a web link or video so that people could watch online. A video is often the centrepiece, the moment the room laughs and cries together.

Unlike a short tribute in a crematorium slot, a celebration of life usually has more time and a lighter tone. That gives you room for the funny photos, the holiday clips and the stories.

1. Gather photos from everyone, fast

  • Create one shared folder or album and send the link to the family group chat with a clear deadline (“by Thursday evening”).
  • Ask for variety: childhood, work, hobbies, friends, pets, places, and a few recent photos.
  • Ask for short phone videos too — a laugh, a dance at a wedding, a voice. Ten seconds of someone's voice can mean more than ten photos.
  • Photograph old prints flat in daylight, or scan them. Pictures of pictures are fine if they are square and sharp.

2. Choose a shape for the story

Decide early what you want people to feel. Funeral homes suggest a few simple structures (Scanlan Funeral Home):

  • Chronological: birth to now, decade by decade. The easiest to follow, and the best fit when many generations are watching.
  • Thematic: family, friends, work, hobbies, travel. Good when dates are uncertain.
  • Legacy: built around the people they influenced, with quotes or short messages between photos.

3. Pick music that sounds like them

A celebration of life is the place for the songs they actually played — Motown in the kitchen, the band they saw five times, the musical they knew by heart. Two contrasting tracks work well: one reflective, one that makes people smile. Our song lists by decade and genre can help jog memories.

If the video will be shared online, use music you have the right to use — see music rules.

4. Keep the main film to 6–10 minutes

That is about 70–120 photos at 5 seconds each, or fewer if you include clips. Anything you cut can go into a longer background loop. More detail: how long should a memorial video be.

5. Add a few words, not many

  • An opening card with their name and years.
  • Optional short captions for chapters (“Growing up in Leeds”, “The garage years”).
  • A closing line or a favourite saying of theirs.
  • Keep text on screen long enough to read twice, and large enough to read from the back of the room.

6. Share it with the people who cannot come

Upload the film privately (an unlisted link) and send it to those who could not travel. Put a QR code on the memorial card or order of service so guests can watch again later.

Questions people ask

What should be in a celebration of life video?

Photos from every stage of life, a few short video clips with their voice or laugh, one or two songs they loved, their name and years at the start, and a warm closing image.

How long should a celebration of life video be?

6–10 minutes if everyone watches together; a longer 10–20 minute loop if it plays in the background.

Is a celebration of life different from a funeral?

It can replace the funeral service or follow it. It is usually more personal and lighter in tone, and often held after a direct cremation.

Sources

  1. Cost of Dying Report 2026, SunLife, 2026 (read 5 October 2026)
  2. How to create a celebration of life video that tells your loved one's story, Scanlan Funeral Home, 2026-02-10 (read 5 October 2026)
  3. How many photos should a funeral slideshow have?, UK Funeral Video Services, 2026-06-07 (read 5 October 2026)

How we wrote this

Written by the In Memoriam Film team with AI assistance for research and drafting, then checked against the sources above. Figures come only from those sources; where a number is our own rule of thumb we say so. We make memorial films, so where a guide mentions our product, that is why.