GUIDE

We interview our kids on video every New Year's Day. How do we keep the clips together and keep the tradition going?

By the seenow! teamLast updated:

Keep the questions on one card, record in the same spot each year, and save each video with the year in its name. Then follow the Library of Congress tip to check your saved videos at least once a year: New Year's Day, right after you record the new one, is the natural time.

WHY

Why this happens

The idea is simple: every January 1, sit each child down and ask the same handful of questions. What is your favorite food? What do you want to be when you grow up? Who is your best friend? Watched side by side years later, the answers show a child growing up in a way photos cannot.

The trouble is that a once-a-year tradition has no muscle memory. By the next New Year's Day, no one remembers where the question list went, the first video is buried in a camera roll among thousands of others, and the second one is on a different phone. After a couple of years the clips are in three places and nobody is sure the oldest one still plays. That is usually when families quietly let it drop.

The fix is less about the interview and more about the filing. Archivists at the Library of Congress give the same basic advice for family video that they give for any collection: know where it lives, give it a clear name, keep more than one copy and look at it regularly. A yearly tradition fits that last part neatly.

HOW TO

What you can do starting today

  1. Put the questions on one card that lives with the holiday thingsNo app needed

    Write a short list of questions on an index card and keep it in the box with your New Year's decorations, not on a phone. Keep the wording identical each year, so the answers can be compared. Young kids tire fast, so a short list they finish is better than a long one they abandon. You can add one new question a year as they get older.

  2. Film in the same spot with the year in the shotNo app needed

    Pick a spot you are likely to have for years, such as the same armchair or the front steps, and have each child hold a sign with the year. Shoot in the same orientation every time. When the clips are lined up later, the matching backdrop makes the change in the child stand out.

  3. Save the original and name it the same way every yearNo app needed

    The Library of Congress suggests saving the highest quality version of each video and giving it a descriptive file name. Copy the original from your phone to a computer or drive in one folder, and name each file the same way, for example "2027-01-01 interview Maya age 5." If you share a smaller copy with relatives, keep the original as the one you file. On iPhone, Apple notes that the default HEVC format saves space, while the Most Compatible setting under Settings > Camera > Formats records in the more widely playable H.264 format.

    Source: Library of Congress Digital Preservation: Keeping Personal Digital Video / Apple Support: Using HEIF or HEVC media on Apple devices

  4. Make the yearly check part of the traditionNo app needed

    The same guide recommends at least two copies stored in different places, a check at least once a year that the files still open, and new copies every five years or when needed. Right after you file this year's interview, open last year's and the oldest one. If they play, you are done. If one does not, you will catch it while another copy still exists. Watching the oldest clip together also gives the kids a reason to look forward to next year.

    Source: Library of Congress Digital Preservation: Keeping Personal Digital Video

WITH SEENOW!

Doing it with seenow!

seenow! is a family app built around very short videos, about 2 seconds a day, shared in a private group. It does not fit the interview itself, but it can fill in the year between interviews.

  • Through the year, take a 2-second clip now and then with the seenow! camera: the lost tooth, the new bike, the first day of school. When you watch the New Year's interview, you will have small pieces of the year that the answers talk about.
  • seenow! makes a recap video each week from the clips on its own, and only the people you invite to the group can see them, so grandparents can follow along between interviews.

What seenow! can’t do

  • A 2-second clip cannot hold an interview. Record the interview with your phone's regular camera and file it as described above.
  • Videos you have already recorded cannot be posted to seenow!. Only photos and videos taken with the seenow! camera can be posted, so past interviews stay in your own files.

POINT

Things to watch for in this situation

Let a child skip a question

Some years a child will be shy, silly or simply not in the mood. Let them pass on a question or answer with a shrug. An honest "I don't know" at four is part of the record too, and pushing can turn the tradition into a chore they dread.

Decide early who keeps the files

If both parents film on their own phones, the videos split up quickly. Agree on one person and one folder now, before the clips are spread across several devices.

FAQ

Frequently asked questions

Should we ask exactly the same questions every year?

Keeping a core set the same is what makes the answers comparable. You can add a question as your child gets older, but try not to drop the original ones.

Is it too late to start if our kids are already in school?

No. The first interview is the baseline whenever you start. A child who begins at seven will still have a decade of answers to watch by the time they leave home.