What is a Funeral / Memorial Service?

All you need to do is say the word “funeral” and within seconds one has an idea in their mind of what a funeral is or looks like. This mental image comes from many sources including culture, our faith(s), life experience, etc. Yet, despite the differences, funerals and or memorial services have much in common. 
 
No matter where they are held,  funerals as well as memorials are structured ceremonies with a beginning, middle and end.. each intended to engage the living participants in activities which will transform their status within the community, provide mourners with a collective grieving experience and celebrate a life lived. It is a socially-acceptable way for members of a community to re-affirm and express their social attachments. 
 
But the status of each of the survivors—the immediate family most especially—has also changed.
In fact, the funeral service can be the start of a defined period of mourning for bereaved family members, marking this transition in a uniquely identifiable way. 
 
It should be noted a memorial service, whilst it can be much like a funeral service, can be something quite different. Both ceremonies have structure; both are intended to bring a community together in support and remembrance. But one (a funeral) is generally more formal than the other; a memorial service (such as a 100 nights) is not lead by clergy, but guided by a celebrant or master-of-ceremonies. It provides all who attend the event an opportunity to participate on some level, not just to observe and reflect which is quite often the case with a funeral service.


“There is a sacredness in tears.
They are not the mark of weakness but of power."

— Washington Irving

Our Services

Fortunately or unfortunately depending on how they are viewed, funerals and memorial services are about the only time 
many families come together. These occasions create an amazing opportunity for services such as ours to help immortalise these key moments and treasure them for all time. At Scenic Memorials we provide;
 
1. LIVE-STREAMING
 
Livestreaming is the ability to capture and simultaneously project or distribute what is being captured to an online audience such as on Facebook, Youtube or other online platform in real-time. 

Livestreaming is not a new activity but in fact even before the COVID pandemic, it was already an important element 
for funerals and weddings. Primarily because not everyone would have the means to attend in person due to travel constraints, financial challenges or health reasons.

Our standard funeral livestream coverage begins at the Mortuary and follows the hearse or the cortege to the next location be it the residence of the deceased, or to a House of Worship for the formal proceedings. 
 
This is then followed by coverage of the procession to the Cemetery after which the livestream ends. The team captures the procession via a mobile camera or cameras with background music and creative content added to help compliment the footage. 
 
Depending on internet connectivity along the way, the team may opt to end a livestream coverage prematurely in consultation with the family. This however is an exception. Upon arrival at the destination and depending again on connectivity, the team may proceed to initiate another stream or in the unfortunate event they are unable to do so, the proceedings are captured in their entirety and prepped for replay usually within 24 hours of the event. This is often the case for funerals held in rural areas where network connectivity is not favourable. 
 
2. UNLIMITED PHOTOGRAPHY
 
Photography has recently become an integral part of our funeral coverage and a much sought after service by the community. This wasn’t always the case, with our initial coverage focussing mainly on the immediate family and the proceedings. We have since gone on to offer a much more comprehensive coverage in terms of photography capturing as much of the happenings as possible on the day, giving families endless memoirs with which to remember the final days of their loved one.
 
The photos once captured go through a process of editing, cropping, colour correction, etc. Once this is done, they are then disseminated with the family on our main platform (Facebook page) within 3 – 7 working days. In cases where the family prefer a private viewing, we do make provisions for this by providing a download link or a direct transfer to their provided storage.

"We watched the livestream from Wellington, the quality of the stream and work was excellent. Your services is highly recommended! Vinaka!"

— Manasa Malani

How to make a Booking?

Booking with us is straight forward and can be done at any time up to 24 hours prior to the event. Once you have decided on the date, location(s) and timing of your event, you can either;
 
 1. Email us via memorials@scenicfiji.com,
2. Message us via our Facebook page scenicmemorials or lastly.
3. You can get in touch with us via cell no. +679 9444 543 or +679 7373368.
 
Should we have a prior engagement for the date(s) that you are after, we may or may not be able to assist with your event.
 
To confirm booking we will require a 50% deposit of the total amount. The outstanding balance needs to be cleared immediately after the proceedings of the event, unless agreed otherwise. Payments can be done via the following methods; MPaisa, MyCash, Western Union, 
Money gram, Cash or Bank Transfer.
 
Thank you for choosing to work with us.

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

“How much notice time do you need to confirm booking?”
Up to 24 hours prior to the event.
 
“How many camera angles will you provide?”
The procession from the mortuary to the residence or place of worship is usually a single camera. Once the formalities have commenced, the team may proceed to setup up to additional four camera angles.
 
“How long do you take to edit the photos?”
It normally takes us 2 – 3 working days to edit and upload the photos but no more than 7 working days. This will depend on the 
volume of projects we have at that time.”
 
“Do you provide DVD’s”
For an additional charge, we can be provide this. The extra charge includes the cost of reediting the footage plus the cost of the DVD(s) and overall postproduction. An alternative to DVD’s which we encourage our customers to take advantage of is having a downloadable link of the livestream video which can be provided FOC. Unlike DVD’s they also last longer and are much easier to disseminate to family and friends.
 
“Which livestream platform do you use?”
We commonly stream on Facebook as the majority of the community tend to use this online platform, but we are also able to stream to many other online platforms including Youtube, Twitch, etc. 
 
“I reside overseas. How can i deliver my video tribute / eulogy on the day?”
Family members who are unable to attend the proceedings for one reason or the other are able to forward us their pre-recorded video tributes or eulogies. These can be produced from their phones, cameras or other sources. They are then processed or edited, and later featured in the livestream on the day, as per the family’s instruction. We do however require that this arrangement to be finalised and all deliverables forwarded at least 24 hours before the event.
 
“Can we choose our own background music for the stream?”
Families are welcome to supply or recommend their preferred music material to be included in the livestream. In doing so, they however need to bear in mind about copyright issues related with a number of popular music which can affect the stream.
 
“How can we add photos of our loved one to the livestream?”
Our standard package includes a slideshow created from images provided (no more than 50) send to us free of charge. In addition to acting as a filler during the coverage, slideshows are a nice way to enable the viewers to remember their loved one.

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