Jessica + Cody: The Highlight

What a gorgeous evening for a wedding, and even better that it was New Years Eve. Jessica and Cody joined their lives in front of their closest friends and family at the amazing Drees Pavilion. I remember meeting Jessica and her mom, Susan in our studio and how excited they were to have us film their day. That energy certainly carried over to the wedding day when Josh and I walked into the room to start filming the preparations. They chose the stunning Wiedemann Hill Mansion for their photos and what an incredible place that is. Geri, Josh and myself were like kids in a candy store, the possibilities are endless! There wasn’t a single dry eye when they exchanged their personal vows to one another and I’m very honored to have been there for it all.

The Team:

Planner: Viva Bella Events
Photography: Ciulla Photography
Makeup: Molly with Brideface
Hair: Sam Hills (Salon Cherry Bomb)

Megan + Jeff: Same Day Edit

I remember meeting Megan and Jeff several months ago to talk about their wedding at the Hall of Mirrors and bringing up the Same Day Edit and at the time, they weren’t sure it was something they wanted to do. I’m SO glad they changed their minds and from their emails, they’re equally glad! This is what Megan wrote in an email after the wedding, “Everyone was freaking out and telling me it was like an episode trailer for “The Hills” on MTV. You and Josh did such an amazing job. You are so talented and basically made the wedding night with the same day edit. Do you remember when we were considering not having it? I’m so glad we did!” As if that wasn’t sweet enough, Jeff sends this email, “I know Megan already thanked you but I wanted to personally let you know how much I appreciated everything you did for us this past weekend. The “Same Day Edit” blew my mind and was a very special moment for me at our wedding. You are a true artist when it comes to your work and I can tell you truly love what you do. The “SDE” was the talk of the party…” Emails like that make a bad day good and a good day even better!  I wanted to try something different here and really focus on the vows they had personally written to each other. I really hope you enjoy Megan and Jeff’s Same Day Edit which played during dinner at their reception!  Many thanks to Mr. Steve Lyons for the awesome reactions shots!

Planner: i-do weddings & events
Photography: Steve Lyons
Hair: Sam Hills
Make up: Nancy with Brideface
Florist: Kevin Ford

Featured Speaker at WEVA Expo ‘09!

Wow! What a HUGE honor it is to be invited to give a presentation on concept films at WEVA Expo 2009! Honored is an understatement. WEVA is the Wedding and Event Videographers Association International. It is the largest organization for wedding filmmakers and to be chosen to speak to several hundred of my peers is incredible to say the least. Every year, wedding filmmakers from all over the globe convene in one location to learn, discover, and be inspired. My presentation will focus on the concept film, how to produce, market, and present it. From my Trash the Same Day Edit where I combined the Trash the Dress and the Same Day Edit to my recent production, I’m looking forward to sharing my experiences and inspiring others to think and create in ways that aren’t typically thought of in wedding films.  Reagan will be going with me and I’m really looking forward to sharing this experience with her!

Anne + Tim: The Same Day Edit

Anne + Tim had an AMAZING wedding.  Despite the hurricane force winds that blew through Ault Park during their ceremony, everything was beautiful! It was a gorgeous setting as they saw each other for the first time on the pavilion. The energy between them is inspiring, I learned this firsthand when producing their love story that was actually part of this Same Day Edit.  The Same Day Edit is a highlight of the day’s events that is produced the same day as the wedding and is shown on a large screen during the dinner at the reception. Its always a huge hit and combining it with their love story was such an amazing way to give their guests a little insight into their story.  Anne + Tim had their reception at the elegant Savannah Center where Robbin made sure everything was perfect!  Brad Smith was there documenting the day and it was a pleasure working with him as usual.  Congratulations Anne + Tim and thank you so much for allowing me to be a part of your day and tell your story.

Daphne + Jason: The surprise wedding concept film

So Daphne calls me several months ago and explains how she is having a surprise wedding and wanted me to produce a film to show at the wedding as entertainment for her guests. At first we were thinking a Bridal Spotlight film or possibly a Trash the Dress, but then I said, ‘Lets do something different, something that is going to take your guests on a ride and really play into this surprise wedding’. That sentence set the wheels in motion for what would be something incredible, an amazing experience for the guests and something I’m incredibly honored to have been a part of.

After explaining my idea to Daphne, I sat down with photog extraordinaire, Cindy Wagner and Mr. Josh Emerson to plan this amazing shoot and really fine tune this concept and bring it to life.

What’s this all about you ask? Ok, Daphne and Jason told their guests they were having a destination wedding in Florida on July 4th, but were having an at home celebration in the Pavillion Room inside the Hilton downtown on June 27th.  For the first hour of the event, Daphne and Jason were greeting their guests and telling them how excited they were to be getting married next week. The guests truly had no idea. In fact, the only people that knew of this production were myself, Josh, Cindy and Daphne and Jason’s families. After mingling with the guests for an hour, Daphne and Jason disappear and change into their wedding attire and take a back hallway to stand behind the huge movie screen. The film was introduced by Daphne’s father and when the film was finished, the screen raised, revealing them standing on stage actually getting married. Needless to say, the guests were blown away and completely stunned. The reaction was incredible and this film actually played a couple more times that evening!

I really hope you enjoy it, and please leave a comment!  Check out Cindy’s blog for some exciting behind the scenes photos!

Welcome to Studio+Z Films!

I cannot begin to tell you what a monumental moment this is for me. Reagan and I began thinking of changing the name a couple years ago, but could never settle on anything that really hit us. Looking back we had some really ridiculous ideas that at the time, seemed like good ones. Once we had a name we loved we began working with one of the best designers in town to create a logo and design this site. More on her later.

There are a couple reasons as to why the name change, but the main reason is it was time to leave ‘video’ behind as our work has progressed over the last couple of years to more film like in nature. We’re also have been incorporating newer tools and techniques to achieve a much fresher approach to wedding films.

Yeah, I’m going to miss Glass Eye Video, it is after all the beginning of where the studio is today, but I’m really looking forward to the future of Studio+Z Films. We have some incredible new features coming up and some exciting new films to share in the upcoming weeks.

There are a few people I really need to thank for helping me with this massive transformation. My super friends Kortnee and Ted of Kortnee Kate Photography for taking some really amazing promo shots of me. We had a blast that day playing in an abandoned house and I couldn’t be happier with the pictures!

HUGE thanks to Stephanie of Steph Carson Photography and Tine Hofmann of TM Photography for the pictures that you see on the site.

Finally, the biggest thanks to the one that had to deal with my endless questions and changes, the one that made this all possible….ladies and gentlemen, Ms. Renee Rist of Ribbons of Red. I had a vision and she ran with it. From the various logo concepts, to the minor tweaks to perfect the new one, she built this awesome custom site and blog that really blows me away. 

There it is, my first post under my new name. I really appreciate you taking the time to check it out. Please leave a comment and let me know what you think!

Kristin + Lucas: Coming Attraction

One word. Stunning. This was an incredibly beautiful wedding with two amazing people. Kristin and Lucas shared their vows at St. Louis downtown, then the festivities began at the Millennium in the Grand Ballroom. Cecilia Rose and her awesome team at Eventurous really did an awesome job of keeping everything in order and designing a gorgeous event. Jasmine Parker of Brideface was a master artist with the makeup that day. The always rad Katie Elfers created some of the best floral eye candy I’ve ever seen, while Mr. Phil Francis of DJ Toad spun the night away. For the second week in a row I had the pleasure of working with Chad Moon and his wife Chandra, I really hope to work with them again in the future. Kristin & Lucas, thank you so much for allowing me to be a part of such a special event, I hope you enjoy this teaser as much as I do.

Sarah + Brian: Same Day Edit

Sarah and Brian had a PERFECT day for their wedding, despite the weather forecasts, the sky was blue and the sun was happy! I started the day at the Millenium Hotel where Kelly Ledford of Cinci Makeup was making everyone look their best. Event planner extraordinaire, Dora Manuel of Viva Bella Events made sure the day was well orchestrated, and it was. Chad Moon and I had a great time working side by side throughout the day to make sure every moment was captured in stellar fashion. Greg Lee and his band played at The Cincinnati Club reception and had everyone on the floor singing along and dancing the night away! It was a beautiful wedding and I’m honored to have been a part of it. This was my third wedding and second Same Day Edit of the year. I wanted to share with you the short film that played on the big screen at their reception and I hope you enjoy!

Lauren + Adam: Same Day Edit

Wow! What a way to kick off the wedding season! An endless guest list, 44 people in the bridal party, a Same Day Edit, and getting to work with some really great friends for a really amazing wedding. Lauren and Adam got married this past Saturday at The Princeton Pike Church of God, then danced the night away at the Oscar Event Center. Kortnee and Ted of Simply Timeless Photography were along for the ride and so were my friends John and Jen Moon of Northernlight Filmworks out of Indianapolis. I asked them to be a part of this event and it was so nice to work alongside them, they are incredible friends and produce some amazing wedding films. Penny from Brideface was also there to make sure everyone had their brideface on! Lauren and Adam wanted a Same Day Edit, this is where I produce a highlight of the day’s events and share it with the the guests on a large projection screen at the reception. Its always an incredible experience for everyone, its truly a great way to make your wedding unique! I wanted to share it with you and I hope you enjoy it as much as everyone did that night.

Sweet Studio Party

April 9, 2009 will go down in history as the night one of the SWEETEST studio parties in Cincinnati happened. Our place was filled with close to a hundred people sipping wine, drinking beer and having a blast on a Thursday night. It was so awesome to see so many people in the Cincinnati wedding industry in one place. We had live music, a candy bar, yummy catered food, lots o’ beer and wine, and great people having a great time. Goodwin Lighting lit the place up like only they can, Maribelle Cakery hooked us up with some of the best looking cupcakes I’ve ever seen. I heard they were mighty tasty too, unfortunately I didn’t get one :( , and Ala Carte Catering made sure nobody had an empty stomach. It was awesome to see so many of my friends in one place and also meeting so many new people. Check out a couple pics that were taken that fun night!

Here we are; me, Dawn, Tine, & Tim

A candy bar that would make anyone want to be a kid again…

Those RAD cupcakes I just told you about…

This is the first thing our couples see when they walk in…

My space. This is where the experience begins…

My awesome friend Kortnee, or K-Mill as I’ve just decided to call her…

My beautiful and amazing wife Reagan, and Mr. Josh Emerson cinematographer extraordinaire…

So there you have it my friend. It was an insanely awesome night and I’m really looking forward to the next time I’m able to be a part of something so amazing!