I try to dig deep into who the couple is so that I can share the gift they have to offer the viewer. For me a story can sometimes be a source of energy and inspiration for a time when I need it. In the great depression people went to the movies to escape everything crappy going on in their life, to get a laugh or be inspired. I love doing weddings for couples that have a big desire not only for each other, but for their own outside lives. I believe that the greatness of ones desire is best measured when we see what roadblocks their desire has pushed them though. Learning about how they got what they desired or how they are pursuing what they desire is medicine for the soul or a gift to others. It could be counterintuitive, but between something I read somewhere and a best friend I know, I realized how much of a service it can be to the world around you to work for and find what you really want in life (I have a few friends in mind that are doing just that for me). Especially if your starting point is not as good as most others, how much more of a service is it to others? How much more of a message are you saying that "it" can be possible if you are arriving or have arrived to where you wanted? This is one of the things that story does for me.
When I first talked with Matt and Shannon before their wedding to get to know more about them and how they met, something stood out to me that I needed to highlight when putting together their wedding story. When watching a film, the audience is always looking for a "character" to relate to in some small way, wether they are conscious of it or not. It could be just that the viewer may share a common human desire that they share with the character that makes them connect to him/her. Then they will have to keep watching to see if they will get what they are reaching for. I connected to Matthew and Shannon's story, because they told me that it was a love a first sight. The concept sounds fluffy and awesome, but does that really happen? Well they say it happened for them and their friends would vouch for them because, they saw it with their own eyes down in Cabo. Also that Matthew (until about 32) had given up looking for the girl of his dreams, was told that she doesn't exist and then she falls in his lap "literally". Wether Matthew is aware of it or not he has given me a gift from his story and I'd imagine for others as well. And then for me to be in a position where I can be the facilitator of other peoples stories, is also a cool thing for me. So if a couple comes to me to ask for a wedding video with the initial intent of me "capturing" their wedding day for remembrance, I'd encourage them to think rather in terms of the gift that their film will be for others to see. What that will exactly look like in a wedding story will be different every time because no two couples are the same.
