Making memories: Filmmakers, agency and identity in the production of funerary films in the Netherlands

Abstract

In the Netherlands, filmmakers promote funerary films as an innovative contribution to death rituals. Two categories of funerary films may be distinguished: documentary films that depict funerals and filmed biographies that portray the dead. Filmmakers claim that both (recordings of funerals and posthumous biographies) are alike reflections of the deceased's identity. This article explores the way in which filmmakers present and produce funeral film documentaries and filmed biographies of dead people. What choices do they make in producing these films? How do they reconcile their intention of ‘improving’ funerary culture with their clients' demands for a satisfying personal memorial? The analysis of funerary films, adverts, websites and interviews with filmmakers suggests that the use of these films does indeed generate new rituals, not only by the employment of modern techniques but also by the way in which funerary films allow people to reshape and redefine traditional ceremonies.