Pride, from everyone who got them here
Every voice that got them here, on film
Grandparents, aunts, the teacher who pushed them: they scan a QR code to record a message, send photos or write a note from wherever they are. Within 24 hours after the collection closes you receive a first graduation film, from the people in the hall and the ones who never got a ticket, then a personalized film with the photos and notes.
Try it like a guest: see the demo →
What is a graduation video guest book?
A graduation video guest book is a QR code that lets family and friends leave a message for the graduate instead of signing a card. They scan it with a phone and, in their browser with no app and no account, record up to 3 videos of up to one minute, send photos and write a note. Video Message runs it as a digital QR code you receive instantly by email and print yourself, so the relatives who could not get a seat at the ceremony take part from home, before, during or after the party, and appear in the same film as the people who were there. Photos can play as a live slideshow at the party. Within 24 hours after the collection closes you receive a first film of the video messages, then you build a personalized film with the photos and notes and download every file.
Picture it
The grandparents who couldn’t travel
Ceremonies hand out two or four tickets, and grandparents are usually the ones who give theirs up or find the flight too much to attempt. They record from their own living room and land in the same film as the family who sat in the hall.
The teacher, the coach, the tutor
Nobody outside the family is ever asked to say anything at a graduation, and they are often the reason it happened. One link forwarded to a school address gets you a message no relative could have given.
A degree that took longer than four years
Nursing school at forty, a law degree finished at night, an apprenticeship completed around a job. The people who covered shifts and watched the kids know exactly what it cost, and they never get an occasion to say so.
The last week before everyone scatters
Graduation is usually the final time this particular group is in one place. Roommates, school friends, cousins: a film made that week is a record of who they all were before the jobs and the moves.
How it works
Place the QR code
On the party tables, the dessert station, or the graduation announcement you are already sending.
Guests scan & record
No app to install. They record a message, send photos or write a note straight from their phone.
Receive your films
Within 24 hours after the collection closes you receive your first graduation film, plus each individual video. Then you build a personalized film with the photos and notes.
School photos, a party slideshow, two films
A graduation film is better when it shows the whole road, not only the gown. Photos and notes do that.
From the first day of school to the gown
Ask relatives to send one photo from each stage: kindergarten, the braces years, the dorm move-in. Guests add the ones from the party, several at a time, and the album covers the whole road.
A slideshow at the graduation party
Open the slideshow link on a TV in the backyard or the restaurant screen, with a browser and internet. Photos from the ceremony appear as guests send them, automatically or after you approve each one.
Two films: the messages, then the whole story
The video messages become a first film within 24 hours after the collection closes. Then you build a personalized film with the old photos and the notes, choosing the order, the music, the color look, the transitions and the opening and closing text.
Sent to the relatives without a ticket
Share the films by link with everyone who watched the livestream. Download every photo and video as ZIP files and the notes as a PDF message book. Files are kept for 3 months after your first film, with an email reminder before deletion.
Getting a graduation film worth watching twice
The ceremony has a guest limit. The film does not.
Most schools cap tickets at two or four. Families work out who goes, and it is almost always the grandparents, the aunt with small children and the relatives abroad who end up watching a livestream instead.
They can still be in the film. Because the recording page is a link, they record from home in the week before, and the finished film does not mark out who was in the hall and who was not. For a lot of families that is the whole reason to do it.
Ask the people who are not family
A graduation film made only of relatives says roughly the same thing forty times. The teacher who kept them in the subject, the coach, the tutor, the manager who moved shifts around exams: none of them are ever invited to say anything, and none of them will mind being asked.
Forward the link to five of them by name. They tend to record longer messages than the family does, because they have something specific to say and no chance to say it at the party.
What to ask people to say
With no prompt, guests say congratulations and how proud they are. It is warm, it is true, and it is identical from everyone.
Write one question on the sign and put it in the message when you send the link. “What was he like at fourteen?” “Tell her about the year she nearly quit.” “What do you think she will be doing in ten years?” People answer the question they are asked, and a question turns an eight-second clip into a minute.
High school and college are not the same job
A high school graduation is a family event, and the graduate is about to leave home. The messages worth collecting are the ones addressed to the person they are becoming rather than the one in the gown.
A college graduation is friend-heavy, and the group scatters within weeks. There the value is in the roommates and the people from the course, who will not be together again and know it.
The audience is not the graduate today
Twenty-two-year-olds watch this once and move on, and that is fine. The film is for them at thirty, when the teacher has retired and the grandparent is gone and nobody remembers who said what at the party.
Download the films, the photos and the individual clips to your own storage within the 3 months your files are kept, as you would with anything else you intend to keep for that long.
When to set up & how to share
When to activate your space
Set up your space a couple of weeks before the ceremony: add the graduate’s name, pick the music, and print your QR code in time to send the link out with the announcements.
Spread the QR code as widely as you can
- ✓Put the QR code on the party tables and wherever people queue for food.
- ✓Send the link with your graduation announcements, so relatives who cannot get a seat record before the day.
- ✓Send the QR code and link through WhatsApp, SMS, or the family group chat so grandparents and relatives abroad can take part from home.
- ✓Forward it to the teachers, coaches and tutors who are not on the family list.
Put it on your signage and send the guest link privately to your guest list (WhatsApp, group chats, SMS), before, during and after the event, so even the people who can’t be there in person add a video, photos or a note.
What you receive
Made for your event
Simple pricing
Digital QR code
One event, delivered instantly, everything included
$49
or 3 for $99, for 3 separate events
- ✓ Videos, photos and written notes
- ✓ Live photo slideshow
- ✓ Two films, the album and the message book
- ✓ No app and no limit on guests
Organizing graduations for a school or for clients? See pro pricing →
Questions
How many people can record?
There is no limit on the number of guests. Each person can record up to 3 videos of up to one minute, send photos and write a note. The first film is made from the video messages; the photos and notes go into your personalized film if you choose.
Can grandparents and relatives who could not attend record?
Yes, and it is the main reason families use it. Ceremonies cap tickets at two or four, so share the link and anyone who could not get a seat records from home. Their message sits in the film alongside the people who were in the hall.
Does this work if it is just a family dinner?
Yes. Ten people who each answer a proper question make a better film than forty who say congratulations. Small groups tend to record longer, more specific messages because nobody is queuing behind them.
Do guests need to download an app?
No. They scan the code, the recording page opens in their browser, and they record. No app, no account, no sign-up.
When do we receive the films?
Your first film arrives within 24 hours after your event’s collection closes, with every individual video to download and keep. Then you build your personalized film with the photos and notes. You choose when the collection closes, a few days after the event if you like.
What should we ask people to say?
Give one specific question rather than an open invitation. “What was he like at fourteen?” or “tell her about the year she nearly quit” gets a story, where “say a few words” gets forty versions of congratulations.
Can we include teachers, coaches and tutors?
Yes. Forward them the link directly. They are not on the family list and they are rarely asked, and their messages are often the ones the graduate replays.
How long can each message be?
Each person can record up to 3 videos of up to one minute, which is enough for one story told properly. They can also send photos and write a note.
Can we show photos at the graduation party?
Yes. Open your slideshow link on a TV, screen or projector with a web browser and an internet connection, and photos appear as guests send them, automatically or once you approve them. The slideshow shows photos only.
Can relatives send photos from school years?
Yes. Guests send photos from their phone, several at a time, including scans of old prints. They join the album and can go into your personalized film next to the messages.
How far ahead should we set it up?
A couple of weeks before the ceremony. That gives you time to name the graduate, choose the music, print your sign, and send the link with the announcements.
Does it work for a college graduation as well as high school?
Yes, and for nursing school, law school, a master’s, an apprenticeship or a degree finished at fifty. Anything where people spent years getting somewhere and the day is marked with a dinner and a photograph.
Does this work outside the United States?
Yes, anywhere in the world. Nothing ships to you: your QR code and guest link arrive by email the moment you pay, and your guests take part in their phone’s browser. It works the same in the United Kingdom, Canada, Australia, across Europe and anywhere else. This page shows US dollars; we also have pricing pages in pounds, Canadian dollars, Australian dollars, Swiss francs and euros, and you pay in the currency of the page you buy from.
What language is it in?
Each event runs in the language you choose: English, French, Spanish, Italian, German or Portuguese. The guest page, your dashboard and the wording in your films follow that language. Your guests can speak or write in whatever language they like; nothing is transcribed or translated, so each message stays exactly as they recorded it.
Can we collect for longer?
Yes. Guests take part before, during and after your event, from the moment you share the link. You set the closing date, a few days after the event if you like, and can move it from your dashboard.