Erica Tanamachi of Fairfax has been making documentaries — primarily within the nonprofit sector — for more than 10 years. But this year, Tanamachi decided to take her passion for capturing and sharing life to a different arena with what she terms wedding documentaries. “I’m hooked,” says the filmmaker of her new venture. “The love, the life, the human connection — a wedding is truly a magnificent story to tell.” Here are Tanamachi’s top five tips for creating a meaningful wedding video. ericajanefilms.com
1. INTERVIEW THE COUPLE TOGETHER These sound bites are the highlights of the film. Without the interviews, you may feel you are simply making an ethnographic film about a wedding.
2. CAPTURE FAMILY STORIES In the end, a wedding video should transcend the wedding and truly showcase the love of the family surrounding the couple.
3. BE PRESENT FOR INTIMATE MOMENTS BETWEEN THE COUPLE, FRIENDS AND FAMILY Try to be a fly on the wall and grab moments of the couple hugging, dancing, kissing, loving and just being with each other and with family and friends.
4. CAPTURE THE CEREMONY The ceremony speaks volumes about the couple and is truly the backbone of the film.
5. KNOW YOUR AUDIENCE It is important to know and understand the client before engaging in any deep conversation of the film. This is the power of film — and in my opinion, the world cannot have enough powerful films about love.
