Melbourne · Est. 2024
Feature № 003 - Now Filming
Limited Films Per Season
Your Legacy Films
A family tree, told by the person who lived it.
Cinematic legacy films · Melbourne, Australia

Some stories are
too precious to lose.

Photos fade into albums. Stories get half-remembered. But a film keeps the voice, the mannerisms, the laugh mid-sentence - the things you can't get back. We sit your storyteller in their favourite chair and turn one afternoon's conversation into a cinematic family heirloom.

- made for the family you have now, and the family not born yet
From real filming days

The moments we've saved.

Fragments from Your Legacy Films interviews · shared with our families' blessing
00:00:06:22

"…arriving on an Italian boat to Australia. And my grandfather was at the gate waiting for us with a lantern, as there was no electricity at that time."

A daughter of Florina, Greece → Melbourne
00:03:33:04

"Because my grandfather was kind, he fed a little of the meal to his dog first. And the dog died. So he knew. That little dog saved his life."

A family secret, kept 70 years
00:14:07:24

"My in-laws and my parents wanted to invite everybody - so we ended up having 430 guests at the wedding. And what a day we had."

Married 11 March, 1967
00:16:20:19

"The bottle tops in the hubcaps, the shaving cream on the car… every time I needed something on the honeymoon, it was stitched together. It just made me laugh."

On friends who made a wedding beautiful
00:25:40:18

"We've made a lot of choices. Some were wrong, some were amazing. But don't rush into things. Take your time and think about what you have to do."

Advice for the great-grandchildren
00:27:22:20

"John - I don't know what I would have done without you. It's been a great combination, actually. Thank you."

The last words of her film
◂ drag to explore ▸
The keeper of the stories

One person holds the
whole family's story.

Your mum, your dad, your nan - they're the last living link to the generations before them. The grandparents you never met. The village, the voyage out, the war years, why the family names matter.

When we film the eldest storyteller, we're not capturing one life. We're capturing every story only they can still tell - in the freshest version left. When that memory goes, four generations go with it.

That's the race we're running.
Generation I · born 1890s

Known only by name

A photograph. A headstone. A rumour of a farm.

Generation II · born 1920s

Known only through stories

The voyage, the war, the courtship - remembered by one person alive today.

Generation III · the storyteller

Still here. Still sharp.

The last living link - and the voice of your legacy film.

Generations IV, V & VI

The audience

Including the ones who haven't been born yet.

Why we exist

The film I
never made.

"The moment hit somewhere over the desert, flying home. I was in the middle seat, booked ten hours before takeoff. For years I'd promised: next time I'm home, I'll bring the gear. I'll sit Nan down and record our family history - her words, her voice, her stories.

But this time, there was no next time. I was flying home to say goodbye."

"I had the skills, the gear and the intention - and I still missed the most important story I'll ever come across. My own Nan's."

"Twenty years behind the camera for Seven, the Australian Open and national documentaries taught me how to make anything look like cinema. That flight taught me what's actually worth pointing a camera at. Your Legacy Films exists so no family carries that regret home in the middle seat.

Every time I hit record, I'm thinking of Nan. I know she'd be proud."

- Tim Downie, Founder
Who you'll work with

Two broadcast careers.
One chair that matters.

Sam Doran - co-founder and lead interviewer

Sam Doran

Lead Interviewer · Storyteller

More than 20 years sharing Australian stories. Known for creating compelling content that captures narratives and engages audiences.

Racing.com · 10 yrs live hostProducerPresenterWriter
"Everybody has a story to tell."
Tim Downie - founder, director and editor

Tim Downie

Cinematographer · Editor

Two decades of cinematography and editing for Australian television - news, live sport, documentaries. Tim shoots every film and personally crafts every edit, photo restoration and score until it feels like cinema.

Seven NetworkAustralian OpenThe ProjectNational documentaries
"Keep it simple. Make it impactful."
A real legacy film

Meet Ian.

Ian Raymond of Avondale Heights spent years travelling between Tasmania and the mainland. His film weaves cheeky tales from his youth, his health battles, his woodworking hands, and a lifelong marriage to his wife Desma.

"It was something I'd always wanted to do. I wanted to leave something behind for the grandkids."
- Ian Raymond · Legacy Film, 2025
Play Ian's teaser · 90 seconds
How it works

Five chapters.
We carry all of them.

I

The Conversation

A free 15-minute chat with Sam about the person, the stories and the timing. Then a gentle questionnaire and a pre-production plan for your approval - you'll know exactly what to expect before we ever arrive.

II

Filming Day

Your home, a comfortable chair, two cups of tea. Sam guides the conversation while Tim quietly films - plus the hands, the garden, the photo albums, the details that make it theirs. No studio. No performance.

III

The Craft

Broadcast-grade editing, historical research on the places of their past, restored photographs brought subtly to life, sound design and score. This is where a conversation becomes cinema.

IV

Your Review

You see the film first and request refinements. Every edition includes a revision round - we're not finished until the family says it's right.

V

The Premiere

The teaser goes out as the invitation. The family gathers - Sunday lunch, a milestone birthday - the lights go down, and your storyteller steals the show. It's our favourite chapter, every time.

What your family receives

Not a video file.
A family archive.

Every film is delivered on a keepsake USB and a private online link - unlisted, shareable only by your family, watchable on any TV, phone or laptop, anywhere in the world.

And because the stories that don't make the final cut still matter, you keep the complete interview. Every question. Every answer. Forever yours.

Nothing is ever published without your permission.
On your keepsake USB
  • The Feature Film - a 20-30 minute cinematic documentary
  • The Short Trailer - a 1-2 minute highlights reel for sharing (Legacy Film editions and up)
  • The Complete Interview - the full conversation, cleaned and preserved
  • The Restored Archive - your family photographs, scanned and revived
  • Private Online Link - unlisted, family-only, plays anywhere
Films & pricing

Honest pricing.
Heirloom results.

Every film is interviewed by Sam and personally crafted by Tim - so we take on a limited number each season. Fifty per cent reserves your filming date; the balance on delivery. Gift vouchers available for every edition.

Edition 01

The Story Session

$1,500
The full interview, edited to flow
  • One storyteller, filmed at home
  • One relaxed session (~2 hours)
  • Your conversation, cleaned & tidied into a flowing cut
  • USB keepsake + private link
The simple, priceless version - upgradeable to a full Legacy Film later, using the same footage.
Begin here
Edition 02 · Our signature film

The Legacy Film

$3,900
20-30 minute feature
  • Pre-production & interview with Sam
  • Filmed, directed & edited by Tim
  • 20 restored family photos
  • Trailer + revision round
  • Complete interview included
  • USB keepsake + private link
The full story, told properly.
Begin here
Edition 03

The Legacy Portrait

$7,500
20-30 minute cinematic feature
  • Two-camera cinematic interview
  • Filming at the places that matter
  • Archival & historical research
  • 40 restored photos, brought to life
  • Licensed score + revision round
Told like a feature documentary.
Begin here
Edition 04

The Shared Journey

$12,000
30-40 minutes · two storytellers
  • A couple's story, told together
  • Everything in the Portrait
  • Two filming sessions
  • 60 restored family photos
  • Two revision rounds · family USBs
For golden anniversaries and whole-family stories.
Begin here
Private commissions

The Heritage Commission

Multi-generation family documentaries with full archival research, filmed across the locations of a family's history, concluding with a private premiere. By referral and consultation.

Enquire privately
The free Legacy Kit

25 questions to ask
someone you love.

4What's your earliest memory? 5What was your childhood home like? 9How did you meet your spouse? 16What's the best advice you ever received? 4What's your earliest memory? 5What was your childhood home like? 9How did you meet your spouse? 16What's the best advice you ever received?
19What do you want your grandchildren to know about your life? 21How would you like to be remembered? 25What advice would you give your younger self? 19What do you want your grandchildren to know about your life? 21How would you like to be remembered? 25What advice would you give your younger self?
Not ready for a film? Start here.

Send me the Legacy Kit

The exact 25 questions we use on real filming days - the ones that open people up. Sit down with a cuppa, press record on your phone, and capture something priceless this Sunday.

40+ yrsCombined broadcast experience
3× backed upYour footage, protected
100% yoursYour family owns every frame

Don't file it under
"one day."

One afternoon. That's all it takes.
Book a free 15-minute chat Give a legacy film
or email info@yourlegacyfilms.com.au · Melbourne & regional Victoria