What sets a birthday video apart from a wedding video is that the person usually doesn't know, so everything happens quietly. A father's seventieth, a mother's sixtieth, a partner turning thirty, a friend's last birthday before moving abroad: these are the usual occasions. How good the video is depends mostly on whether enough material was gathered, and whether it feels like that person.
Decide where it will be played
- A restaurant or the TV at home: landscape, three to five minutes, watched together.
- Sent straight to the person: either orientation, one to two minutes, watched on a phone.
- Projected at an event: ask about the equipment and screen ratio, and test in advance.
The setting affects the length and the size of the text, so settle this first.
A structure that rarely goes wrong
- Opening: one photo that sums the person up, and a title.
- Then to now: photos in order: childhood, school, work, family. In a video for an older relative, this is the part the whole family watches in silence.
- Greetings: about ten seconds per person, one after another.
- Ending: a family or group photo, and one line you want to say.
For choosing photos and how long each should stay on screen, see making a photo video that doesn't look like a slideshow.
Gathering material without being found out
- Start a separate group chat without the birthday person, and give it a dull name; notifications show on lock screens.
- Ask family for old photos. The albums are usually with siblings or a spouse. To copy a print with a phone: daylight, straight from above, no flash.
- Give clear instructions for greeting clips: sideways, ten seconds, say who you are first. The full method is the same as for weddings; see collecting greetings from friends and family.
- Collect through a cloud folder, not a chat app, which compresses the files.
Small things that make it feel like them
- Their catchphrases as title cards.
- Music from their era. For a private screening the choice is freer; if the video goes online, copyrighted songs may be muted by the platform.
- The grandchildren's greetings last.
Before you hand it over
Rename the photos in order, attach a list for the greeting clips, and tell us the date and the occasion through the form or LINE. A birthday can't be postponed, so try to deliver everything two to three weeks ahead; if time is short, read rush video editing first. Examples are on the birthday video portfolio page.
FAQ
The old photos are creased and yellowed. Can they be used?
Yes, as they are; the age often adds character. Restoration is a separate job and is assessed through our repair page.
There are a lot of contributors. Will it run too long?
Each can be trimmed to five or six seconds, or several people can share a frame. It depends on the total length you want.
Can I add narration?
Yes. A few words in your own voice at the start or end carries the most feeling. See recording clear audio without a microphone.
