Become an investigator and filmmaker of your elder's life. Document it with RISE Social — for connection and legacy.
🔍
You're the Investigator
Ask powerful questions and uncover stories never told before.
🎬
You're the Filmmaker
Record, produce, and narrate a 2–3 minute legacy film.
🎁
A Gift to the Future
Your family will carry this story forward for generations.
⏱ What to expect
This project takes about 1–2 hours total: an interview session with your elder, then a short production session to build the film. Your parent or guardian can help set things up.
Step 2 of 10
Mission Briefing
Tell us a little about who you are and who you'll be interviewing. This personalizes your experience.
💡 Tip for parents
Help your teen check that the elder knows about the project and is ready to participate. Give them the Questions for Your Elder PDF a few days before so they can reflect.
Step 3 of 10
Get Ready to Film
Before you hit record — choose your filming setup and download your guides.
Download these before your interview. Share the Questions PDF with your elder a day or two in advance so they have time to think.
This affects how your final film will look. Think about where you'll share it.
📺
Horizontal
Landscape / widescreen — best for YouTube, TV, family screenings
16:9
📱
Vertical
Portrait — best for Instagram Reels, TikTok, YouTube Shorts
9:16
💡 Orientation tip
Same room: use your phone in landscape (horizontal) for the best quality. Online via Zoom or Meet: the screen recording will naturally be horizontal. Social media sharing: choose vertical and record on your phone in portrait mode.
📱
Phone Camera
Best audio + video quality. Use native Camera app. Keep steady with a surface or stand.
💻
Zoom
Free for 40 min sessions. Records to MP4. Elder doesn't need an account — just a link.
🎥
Google Meet
Free with a Google account. Great when elder is in another city. Browser-friendly — no app needed.
💬
FaceTime
iPhone/Mac users only. Very familiar for elders. Use QuickTime to screen record on Mac.
Step 4 of 10
Interview Notes
During or after your interview, jot down key notes for each question. These help you identify the key stories to pull from your interview footage.
No API key? No problem — you can still use the smart local summary tool or open your notes in Claude.ai. Get a free API key →
Step 5 of 10
Upload Your Footage
Add photos and video clips from your interview. These will become the visual backbone of your legacy film.
🎞
Drop photos & videos here
or click to browse — JPG, PNG, MP4, MOV
💡 What to include
Video clips of the elder speaking, old family photos, photos of meaningful places or objects mentioned in the interview. 5–12 items work well for a 2–3 minute film.
Step 6 of 10
Build Your Storyboard
Arrange your photos and clips in the order they'll appear in your film. Drag the arrows to reorder, and set how long each photo appears.
Upload media in Step 5 first — your clips will appear here to arrange.
Step 7 of 10
Choose Your Film's Mood
The music sets the emotional tone of your legacy film. Choose what feels right for your elder's story.
🌊
Reflective
Thoughtful, quiet, memories
🌻
Warm
Loving, nostalgic, home
🌅
Hopeful
Uplifting, forward-looking
🎉
Celebratory
Joyful, proud, spirited
🕊
Gentle
Soft, intimate, close
Upload an MP3 or WAV file. The music will play under your narration. Make sure you have rights to use it (royalty-free sites: Free Music Archive, Pixabay Music).
30%
Step 8 of 10
Your Voice, Your Story
Record a short narration to weave the film together. Your voice is the thread that connects past and future.
0:00
Ready to record
🎙 Narration prompts — pick what works for you
Opening
"My [relation] [Name] was born in [year] in [place]. Growing up, I never really knew [their] full story — until now."
Middle — something that surprised you
"When I sat down to interview them, I learned something I had never known before — [a moment from the interview]."
Closing
"I made this film so that whoever watches it — my family, our future — knows exactly where we came from. And knows [their] name."
Step 9 of 10
Generate Your Legacy Film
⚠ Advanced video assembly requires a hosted deployment.
Your browser is missing the SharedArrayBuffer support needed for in-browser video processing. You can still download a Project Package with editing instructions, or deploy the app to Netlify (free) to enable video assembly.
Readiness Checklist
Assembling Your Legacy Film
Processing your story...
Waiting to start...
🎬
Your Legacy Film Is Ready
You've just done something remarkable — you've preserved a piece of history that would have otherwise been lost. 's story will live on.
Help More Families Tell Their Stories
RISE Social is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit. A $20 donation helps us bring this project to more teenagers and families in underserved communities.
Know a teenager who should do this project? Share RISE Social Legacy Project with your community.
Share Your Success Story
RISE Social Legacy Project is growing. We want more families to explore and share their family legacy—how they connect, talk, and pass on their culture.
If you’d like to share your story, bring it to your community, volunteer, or support this work, please fill out the form below. We review every submission and will respond as soon as we can.
Together we can help parents guide their kids through social media and influencer culture in healthier ways.
