Interview with Jo Foster, Project Manager at My Life Films

One of our filmmakers works closely with the person with dementia and their family, creating two films for each person, a long film and a short film. 

The long film, ‘The Life Story Film’, tells the life story of the person with dementia in 30 minutes. It provides the person with a way to reminisce positively about their life on a regular basis, boosting their mood and self-esteem, and improving their mental health and wellbeing. The film calms people down when they feel anxious, gives them joy when they feel sad, and helps them to recover from low moods quicker. 

 

The short film, ‘The Profile Film’, is a shortened version, telling the life story of the person in 5 minutes. It provides a quick and engaging visual introduction to the person’s life for care workers, helping them to see the person beyond the illness, and communicate better with them. It improves the relationship between patient and care worker, and increases the quality of care given. 

 

We’ve grown so much over the last year alone. Our funder base has grown dramatically, allowing us to work across London and now in Brighton. The NHS is conducting a clinical trial evaluating the impact of our work, which is going very well.  We are continuing to build relationships with care organisations and professionals across London and Brighton, and are very excited to be working here, thanks to the generous support of the Dementia Action Alliance and Brighton & Hove Bus Company. 

 

For us, the most special part of what we achieve is helping people with dementia to tell their unique life stories. Through the process of making the film, we help individuals to see themselves as the life they’ve lead, and not the illness they have now. As one of our recent beneficiaries put it, “It is so difficult to watch a loved one living with Alzheimer's and how it affects them and the immediate family, so anything we can do to see my dad smile is a blessing.” We celebrate people’s lives, and give them hope, at a time when they feel they are losing everything. That’s the joy in our job.