Wedding Films – Should You Exchange Letters or do an interview?
More on interviews below
Exchanging letters with your fiancé before the ceremony is a great way to add something extra special to your wedding day and wedding film. Here are 3 reasons to do it:
- Uniqueness. Many parts of a wedding are the same for every couple. Everyone gets ready. Most people have a similar ceremony where they walk down the aisle, stand in front of some people, repeat some vows, exchange a kiss, ect. It’s the same way with regards to a reception… food, dancing, cake cutting, ect. But, nobody’s letters are the same. This adds something special and unique to your wedding film that no one else has.
- It adds to the length of your wedding film. Filmmakers need content. The more content we have, the more we have to work with and the longer your wedding film will be. It also helps us tell your story.
- It adds emotion. Who doesn’t love some emotion in a wedding film? Your wedding day is the pinnacle of your love story after all. Check out the beginning of this wedding film as the groom reads his letter. (psssst… you may want to grab a tissue)
Interviews – Our New Favorite!
Doing a quick interview on camera has the same benefits as doing letters but even more so. We list them below.
- An interview can sound more natural. Many times reading a letter in your wedding film can sound a bit like you are… well… reading. Don’t get me wrong, many people can pull off the reading so that it sounds natural. But when you are doing an interview with us, we are just having a conversation, and anyone can do that naturally. After all, we do it everyday!
- An interview takes less preparation on your part. With letters you do have to take the time to write them. With an interview, you just have to show up and chat with us.
- Doing an interview is a bit more spontaneous. So if you like spontaneity, an interview could be more fun. And it will be a surprise! You won’t know what your future spouse said until you watch your wedding film!
- Check out the wedding film below for an example of doing interviews.
Tips to having a great letter reading or interview on film
- Schedule time for it. Exchanging letters or doing an interview on film needs to be planned for and scheduled into the timeline. Wedding timelines can be tight and if you don’t schedule time for it, it may not happen properly or even at all. So get with your photographer and coordinator and let them know that the bride and the groom need 10 mins each in the timeline to exchange letters or do an interview on film.
- You need a quiet place. Depending of the venue, sometimes this can be tricky to find and that’s why you need to plan ahead. You may need to kick out (politely of course) your bridesmaids out of your bridal prep room for a few minutes. You may need to find another quiet room (hopefully with some great window light) somewhere in the venue. Or you may need to find a place outside and away from the hubbub. Having some peace and quiet is essential to getting great audio for your voices. We can help with the location as well!
- For letters, have two copies of each letter. We like to have the bride read aloud the letter that she wrote and the groom read aloud the letter that he wrote. That way, when the bride is reading her letter from her groom on film, you will hear the groom’s voice in the voice over and vice versa. Having two copies allows you to physically exchange letters at any point during prep but still be able to read a copy of the one you wrote. This is especially important if the bride and groom are getting ready at different locations.
- For interviews, the key is to repeat the question before you answer it. Otherwise the viewer won’t know what you are talking about. For example, if we ask you “What are you most looking forward to today?” Don’t just say, “Seeing his face when I walk down the aisle.” To make it clear to the viewer what your talking about, state the question back and then answer it like, “I’m most looking forward to seeing his face when I walk down the aisle.” If you can do that, you’re golden!
