Positive Emissions

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Positive Emissions Documentary films about your parents + grandparents and the stories/experiences that make them who they are. Based in Iowa, but I travel anywhere in the U.S.

to film the people you love -Britt Capturing real life moments and spreading positivity through photographs. (Family-Newborn Lifestyle-Seniors-Weddings)

10/28/2026

Two things I don’t enjoy thinking about:

1. I’m getting older (how was this commercial over 40 years old?!)

2. My parents are also getting older, and won’t be here forever. Someday I’ll have to navigate life without the ability to call my parents or ask for their advice. 😩

None of us like to think about this, but we all know it’s a fact of life. If we want our kids (and someday grandkids) to really know our parents and their stories we need to start the conversations today.

I’ve filmed documentaries on end of life clients and also on perfectly healthy clients in their young 60’s. Let me tell you from experience, how much LIGHTER the process of capturing life stories is from a healthy vibrant parent or grandparent vs one with a diagnosis over their head.

Capture their stories while you can because you WANT to, not because you feel like your time is quickly running out.

-Britt

10/28/2026

Rockstar status: still pending.

One of my favorite things about filming people’s life stories is getting little moments like this.

We spend a lot of time talking about where they’ve been, but I love hearing about the things they still dream about doing- even if it’s a dream of being a rockstar 🤍

10/27/2026

I love getting to visit places that have played a part in my clients’ lives.

I had the chance to visit this old grocery store in Clearfield, Iowa, where my client first noticed his future wife decades ago. She was working there at the time, and apparently, she caught his eye!

I did a little digging into Clearfield’s history and found some interesting things.

Back in 1910, this small Iowa town had three general stores, a grocery store, two hotels, two drugstores, and several other businesses. Clearfield was once a busy little railroad town, and its downtown was an important part of everyday life.

It’s interesting to think about how much has changed.

Today, the grocery store where these two met is boarded up. But getting to visit it with them and hear about what it was like all those years ago was such a neat part of filming.

I think that’s something I appreciate more and more about making these documentaries. So much of people’s personal history is tied to places that might not mean much to anyone else.

I wonder how many people drive past this building without knowing that, decades ago, a young man walked through its doors and met the woman he would eventually marry 🥹

10/22/2026

Normalize conversations with our elders about the hard times too.

Through their stories we gain such a deeper respect for our loved ones and learn how to overcome challenges. Life isn’t always happy, but we can learn wisdom from those who have been through hard moments.

Ask more questions. Listen a little longer. 🥹-Britt
10/16/2026

Ask more questions. Listen a little longer. 🥹

-Britt

10/15/2026

We'll never know when that last trip will be.

We'll never know when we're having our last conversation.

Make your visits with each other count. Put your phones away. Stay engaged in what is being said. Look into their eyes for a few seconds longer than normal. Ask questions about their life.

I started filming documentaries about parents and grandparents' lives because I have realized how quickly time goes by and how awful it is to know the stories have faded away.

If your grandparents are still living - capture their stories. And if you can't afford a professional like myself to do it, just grab your cellphone. Dont' overthink it, anything is better than nothing at all 🤍

-Britt

10/14/2026

Most people don't realize you can have a documentary made about someone in your own family. I don't want you to just hear their stories, I want you to FEEL them too.

The expressions, the photos on the walls, the way they sit in a chair - it's all important and helps tell the story of who they are.

-Britt

Okay, this was one of the most HILARIOUS things one of my clients have found to date! Before I film someone about their...
07/17/2026

Okay, this was one of the most HILARIOUS things one of my clients have found to date!

Before I film someone about their life stories, I encourage them to get all their old photos, albums, etc out to start reminiscing about the past. Most of the time my clients also find other treasures along the way. I've had people find old yearbooks, napkins from prom, wedding dinner menus, locks of hair, competition ribbons, etc but this jar of HAIR GEL takes the cake!

Back in the day Paul was VERY particular about his hair and was known to always have extra hair gel for hair emergencies 😆 When he stumbled across this, we ALL had a good laugh! This jar of hair gel is easily over 50 years old!!

I encourage you all to sit down with your grandparents or your parents and dig out the box of photos. You may just find some extra treasures along the way - either way, it's one of the BEST ways get them to start talking about the past 🤍

What strange things have you found in your family's memory boxes??

If you've ever wondered what your parents were like before they became parents, you're exactly why I do this.Your mom, d...
07/15/2026

If you've ever wondered what your parents were like before they became parents, you're exactly why I do this.

Your mom, dad, grandma or grandpa were also once kids with big dreams, first jobs, heartbreaks, adventures, and friendships that formed who they became today. Why wouldn't you want to save those stories?

07/14/2026

It's always interesting to ask my clients what they remember about their grandparets. A hundred years ago, being a coal miner was a very common occupation.

From the late 1800s through the early 1900s, thousands of men worked underground in communities like Boone, Madrid, Monroe, and the coal camps around Des Moines. At its peak in 1917, Iowa produced more than 9 MILLION tons of coal, fueling homes, railroads, and industries across the Midwest. As cleaner energy sources and imported coal became more common, Iowa's mines gradually closed. Today, commercial coal mining has disappeared from the state, leaving behind only the stories of the families who lived it.

It's funny how much the world changes in just a few generations without most of us even realizing it. It's important to capture these stories before they can no longer be told.

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Des Moines, IA

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+13194300201

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