Dear Tim and Nicole,
Oh my gosh! Where do we begin?!? We absolutely LOVED the wedding video you created for us! Of course, we loved the highlights video, and hope that you are considering adding it to your online portfolio. Call us biased, but after watching it a few times, and then watching a few of the others you have posted online, we think ours is one of your best yet! "Beautiful Day" by U2 turned out to be an AWESOME choice, and you really did a fantastic job of editing all the shots together, playing with slow motion, fast forward, and jump cuts to keep everything in sync. As fans of the show 24, we also loved the dual-cuts, where the footage from the two cameras ran side-by-side, simultaneously to show both of our perspectives. So modern and cool! In addition to having good eyes for fine camera work (you both had some really classy shots in there, and Tim worked hard to find 'em all!), the editing is really what gives the movie it's vibe and edge. You guys nailed it in both departments!
Other things we loved? The opening credits sequence was PERFECT. I don't know where you found that song (Enya, perhaps?) but it totally struck just the right chord to both pull at the heart strings and build anticipation. We loved how you cut in some of the more light-hearted and humorous sound bites and a few teaser clips to give it that uniquely "Ben & Ali" touch. We showed it to one of our friends and she said not only was she engrossed in the "plot" after the just the first few minutes of the opening montage, but that she felt nervous as she continued watching it right up til the ceremony, like she was right there, and it was happening, and she was with us. (And she didn't even make it to the wedding.) That's a pretty good sign when people ENJOY watching your wedding video because it has elements of comedy and suspense, right? Kudos, again, to you!
We pretty much think everything right up until the first photo montage is freaking hilarious! We laughed and cried watching ourselves in the moments before the ceremony... You did a great job of playing up the whole forgotten Ketubah fiasco... There must have been at least five shots of Ben saying, "Well, we're about to sign the Ketubah" and then bam! "Wait, where's the Ketubah?" We were cracking up! The nervous jitters of the morning leading up to the ceremony were evident, and it felt like our own little HBO dramedy, or reality TV show, or something. Very nicely played. Very entertaining.
We also loved your attention to the little details. Ben was thrilled when he saw that you caught his best man Jeff trying to pull the old "what's that on your tie?" joke on him, and fail, but then later get duped himself when Ben did it right back to him... CLASSIC! And we have it on tape, so we can point it out to embarrass him as many times as we want! The attention to detail that you must have put into this to catch something like that, and so many other great little moments just like it, just one of many reasons we know we made the right choice in hiring you guys.
The first photo montage, the one set to "Everyday," turned out so cute, too! Again, because it's music we love, it really hits the mark at defining the general feel of the day.The ceremony section does run a little long, so we understand your cutting the full versions of some of the speeches to a separate chapter at the end of the DVD. Nice alternative route.
For that matter, good job on breaking up the chapter cuts in general. It's super easy to navigate through the entire DVD to the exact scene we want to see.
As for the reception, Ben just wants to say, "Thanks for making it look like it was a raging party, even when people bailed out early." Seriously, he's right. You must have found every single scene of people dancing, because we felt like there would be hardly anything to work with. And yet, it looked like people were partying late into the day.
To that, I would like to add, "Great job getting footage of all the kiddies." They really add to the sentimental value because they are so darn adorable. Again, well done you guys.
And lastly, thank you for the inclusion of First Dance: Take 2. We don't know if you do that for everyone, or if you just thought it was as funny as we did, but it was truly a pleasant surprise to find that little nugget waiting for us at the end of everything. Like bloopers, you know.... "I think I'm over the dip... no one's even watching us, anyway.... except for Tim." Hahahaha! Good stuff.
By now, there should be no doubt in your minds that we were thrilled with the final product. Put another way, neither one of us had ever felt more like celebrities in our whole lives than on that day. Now, a few months after the fact, to see ourselves in not just a wedding video, but our own personal "movie" of the day, complete with opening and closing credits and a rockin' soundtrack, is just the coolest thing! You've really helped us complete our memory of the wedding by filling in some of the gaps, highlighting some of the specific laughs, and capturing the emotion and the experience of getting married. While watching it, we've noticed so many little things that would have otherwise just faded into the blur... For that reason, and so many more, we think will always think of the video as a treasure beyond value in terms of price.
Let it be known that your techniques are spot on, cutting edge, classy, hip, and modern. The finished DVD looks totally professional, with a title page full of scrolling short scenes from the film, and links to bonus features and chapter selection pages. And the cover, featuring some of the best still shots from the day, is designed like it's ready to hit the shelves at the local video store. We have no doubt that our parents will find them to be wonderful holiday gifts (not cheesy at all), and appreciate you getting them done for us in time!
In short, you guys rock. Thank you so much for all your hard work and effort on our project. We will surely refer you to anyone who expresses an interest in having a movie made about themselves. Even though we moved to Oregon, we still know a lot of people down your way.
Ok, you two. Be well, and thanks again for everything.
Alison & Ben Weinberg
