Alzheimer and dementia reminiscence film therapy
Our fascinating heritage, dementia and alzheimer's therapy journey
We are the producers of a new validated digital reminiscence film therapy for alzheimer's and dementia care accessible 24/7
Carney Heritage Productions
Our fascinating heritage, dementia and alzheimer's therapy journey started in 1989
Project started
I was motivated to capture the backstory of my own rural Aberdeenshire ancestors on film. Today the story of my Scottish ancestors has world appeal and is used by diverse interest groups in today’s societies. It all started because I was culturally proud of my ancestors and I wanted to find out more about them by allowing them to tell their story their way.
1989
The story of the ordinary person
After we had recorded about 100 hours of footage we realised that what we had recorded was an account of the ordinary persons story. Told by them without any scripted materials. We did not feature actors but featured the ordinary people. The camera did not dominate. From 1989 to 1994 I had delivered talks about what we were doing to thousands of people through guest speaking. This still continues today.
1992
Better editing and recording systems
Because of demand for our first video we updated our reel to reel editing facilities and bought our own VHS camera in 1996. It has always been our policy to invest in the latest technologies and archive management systems. This has allowed our archive to be accessible to so many users today.
1996
Technology update and step change
A state of the art digital camera was bought, and we had produced other videos for world distribution. This was all done on a part time basis. During the day I was a lecturer in hospitality management at the Robert Gordon University in Aberdeen. By this time I had presented many academic papers at conferences nationally and internationally about my ancestors cultural identity. I also had been playing guitar in a band since the 1970s. Today in 2025 I am still playing and entertaining folk.
1999
Dr doric a world first
In 2003 I was awarded a PhD by public output for the work I was doing in recording our Scottish culture. I was the first academic to feature the Doric dialect within a PhD. As we say in Aberdeenshire "that's nae bad" . Doric was my first language while being brought up on our Aberdeenshire farm. Today I am still proud of being a Doric speaker. I have spoken the Doric all over the world. I have proved that any English speaker can understand it. So cherish your dialect and use it with pride.
2003
National and international trading was normal for us
We had by now produced and released 6 topic films now all in DVD format. By this time through business sponsorship we had been supplying Historic Environment Scotland with validated educational resources which they made available to every Scottish school through their educational portal. We continued to do this for twenty years. So the cultural identity of my Scottish ancestors, the ordinary rural people by this time enjoyed world exposure from diverse audiences.
2005
Full time work within the archive
The archive kept growing each year and following my retirement in 2008 I worked full time on the project. Trying to secure sponsorship but this was very difficult to do. We are currently looking for new sponsors for both our Scottish heritage work and our dementia and alzheimer's therapy. We started to develop our offer to local businesses to record their story on film. This proved successful and was an income generator for the company. Local Aberdeenshire companies do not realise what a fantastic story they have. It is a story worth recording and being told.
2008
Change yet again caught up with us
DVDs by 2018 were no longer an acceptable or profitable concept and we stopped producing and selling our titles. Like any business the pandemic in 2020 had serious implications for us. We stopped filming during this time and I perfected our clip data base and had time to sort out all my files. It also gave me time to consider the future of Carney Heritage Productions and how our heritage footage could be further developed.
2019
My dementia story
Over the years from 1989 to 2021 we had received many letters and emails from users of our Scottish heritage film clips. They told us how our footage took them back to their past allowing them to rekindle their cherished memories. We also had emails from carers of people living with dementia and alzheimer's. They told us that our Scottish heritage clips acted as therapy for their loved ones and took them out of their condition for valuable periods of time. At this point our fantastic dementia journey began. During this time I also researched what reminiscence therapy was and what people with dementia and alzheimer's required from such a therapy. We also worked with professionals in the field of dementia and their carers to create the format for our therapy.
2021
Digital downloads for people living with dementia and alzheimer's and their carers
Today in 2025 we have just launched our customised digital downloads called “A picture house of MY past memories” for people living with dementia and alzheimer's and their carers. Our reminiscence clips have received many diverse endorsements from different professionals and people living with dementia and alzheimer's. These therapy clips will provide you with assurances that our therapy has been assessed by many people before reaching this stage. We have also launched a collection of digital download clips for our Scottish heritage customers to enjoy.
2025
See the endorsed result of our journey into reminiscence film dementia care
Through the camera lens we have created a world first in reminiscence, customised, non drug, non invasive therapy accessible 24/7 for dementia and alzheimer’s care.
Through the camera lens we have created a world first in reminiscence, customised, non drug, non invasive therapy accessible 24/7 for dementia and alzheimer’s care.We have produced 14 clips representing over five hours of footage which is contained within our validated digital ” A picture house of MY past memories” dementia and alzheimer’s reminiscence therapy. They can be used over and over again 24/7 for as long as necessary. See what we offer at our shop.