Bride Interview with Life Productions

 

Please take a moment to read this before hiring Shane and his filmmaker team:

 

1. How long have you been making wedding films and how how did you become a wedding filmmaker?

I’ve been producing wedding films since 2004.  I grew up in Texas and starting filming weddings on VHS tapes back in the early 90s but when digital became mainstream, I was intrigued about producing weddings once again using digital cameras and digital editing systems, it was a good fit. Marrying sights and sounds together in a romantic and emotional way is a passion, I can’t imagine doing anything else.

2. We love your wedding packages and your wedding films… everything sounds fantastic.. so can you tell me what sets you apart from all other wedding filmmakers/videographers out there?

The experience of losing someone very close to me has helped me to realize the importance of family and friends and the importance of the moments we share with each other. My experience has helped to to see those moments on a wedding day and capture them on film. Weddings are what I do and its all I do. It is my full time job. This means I will answer the phone when you call. If I can’t answer immediately, I will you back within the hour. I am also constantly connected to email, Facebook, Twitter, Skype and other social media via my phone.. I am available!
Even though all weddings are similar, I try to find what is different about your day that makes your day stand out from the weddings I’ve done before. Every wedding has a personality, it’s up to me to find it. I do not limit the number of hours that I spend on a wedding day.
I have always been technical and this has helped me to understand the intricacies of photography, which in turn, helps me to understand the intricacies of understand film work. I know how fragile love is and how love should be cared for and cultivated, in the end, love is the only thing that is important in this world. It is the passion for love and the desire to make wedding films for couples that reflect the love that they have that mostly sets me apart from all the others.

3. This all sounds so wonderful, but it also seems expensive. Are we going to be able to afford this?

I have had dozens of brides who decided that we were too expensive to work with or could not find it in their budget to even have a wedding film. But they have come back after the wedding and have either said that the money they spent on a lesser quality wedding videographer was not worth the few hundred dollars they saved or they totally regret not having a wedding film at all. They either ended up with a video that was no where near what they wanted or they regretted that they did not work it into the budget somehow. Some have even told me they have family members who had passed after the wedding and the wedding film was the last time they  had a chance to actually see and hear that family member or friend. Sadly, this happens a lot just because some couples do not realize the impact that a great wedding film will have on their lives. I don’t want that to happen to you too.
So really think about what your dream wedding is going to look like and what that means to you, seriously. And call or visit with me to setup your complimentary consultation so that we can really talk about your dreams and how we can create the perfect wedding film together.

It doesn’t sound that expensive now, does it?

 

4. I have checked out your packages, but did not find any prices. Why are your prices not listed?

Our wedding films start at $1,600. The reason why we do not post prices on our website is because we know that all weddings, while similar in a lot of ways, are all still unique. We have learned that not all brides want or need the same things. So we need to spend time with our couples over the phone to determine what is the best fit for them and we then customize a package to fit their personal needs and wants. And the best way to arrive at that decision is to spend time with them either over the phone or in person in a consultation. There we will learn the details of the wedding day, the personalities of the couple and what their idea of a dream wedding film is.

 

5. Who do you work best with?

I work with couples who place a high value on their wedding film and know the importance of it. I enjoy couples who are down to earth and just want to be themselves during the day. I enjoy working with couples who like to play and have fun and laugh on their wedding day. The happier the better because I know the wedding film is going to reflect that. My couples tend to be educated and professional and are normally working with other wedding professionals who produce quality work. A lot of my couples enjoy traveling, enjoy the outdoors, are passionate about their college teams and have romantic hearts. They know what they want, but when it comes to a wedding film, they are not quite sure how to get it. The couples I work best with are truly in love, in every sense of the word. They enjoy being with each other and are comfortable alone or with a group of people. They have great friends and are close to their family. Most of my grooms end up choking up a little during the vows!

6. Who is not going to benefit from my help when producing their wedding film?

Please know that I absolutely love creating  dream wedding films for couples. But we absolutely have to be a good match for one another if we are going to create the most amazing wedding film that you always wanted. So if you are a couple who do not place a high value on a great wedding film and are perhaps only having a your wedding filmed because someone said you should or you have trouble seeing that you deserve the most amazing wedding film possible, this is not going to be a good fit. It’s absolutely OK if you think you are in this category but you need to do some soul searching and thinking before we get started. Otherwise, I will not be able to help you in the way that you need.

You absolutely must know that you are deserving of the gifts there for you before you can receive them.  Benjamin Franklin once said, ” The bitterness of low quality remains long after the sweetness of the low price is gone” I believe that is so true.

7. Can I save money by only 1 cinematographer? Why is it important to have 2?

I have packages and shoot a really nice high quality wedding with just 1 cinematographer and yes you can save money having just 1 cinematographer. If you are only interested in capturing the important events of the day and documenting them but want to be sure it is done by a professional, you can do that by hiring Life Productions and save money. 1 Cinematographer, however, cannot be in two places at the same time so if the bride is getting ready and the groom is getting ready at the same time at two different locations, it can be very difficult and sometimes impossible to capture both on film. Another reason to use 2 is that while one may be capturing the essences of venue and the decor that makes your wedding film so unique, the other may be setting up the sound so that the audio is perfect.. there are many reasons why it is important to have 2, even 3 cinematographers and I will be happy to go over those in more detail when we meet.

8. At the last wedding I went to, the videographer was very obtrusive. Will we have that problem with your company?

I’m glad you asked that question. Sadly it is a reputation that the wedding videographer has had to overcome over the years. Years ago the only video cameras that were used were large and required massive amounts of lights to get good quality video. Even if the camera man was very sincere in trying to stay low key, it was impossible not to see him/her. Today our equipment is basically the same as the photographers equipment  and we can stealth. We come into the wedding day knowing, from years of experience, where we need to be to capture the shots that we need to make your wedding film the best it can be. We move very little during the ceremony because we understand the sanctity of the service and we respect it. We normally have a little more leeway in outdoor ceremonies but it is not our intention to be a part of the show. Most couples comment on how they hardly knew we were there. Our intentions is for you to enjoy your day and for us to capture it without you being so aware what we are doing. We will be working hard to get the angles and the closeup shots that are so important for things like the first dance, but it is not important that you be aware of what we are doing, just that we are doing it.

9. What do you and your filmmaker team wear when you work a wedding event?

I and my team will be wearing black. It is amazing how much black blends in and you don’t notice it. You will never see us shoot a wedding wearing bright colored clothes or clothing that is not appropriate to the event. We will come looking our best in clean pressed business friendly attire. Oh, and we won’t be wearing flip flops either, no matter how hot it is!!!

10. I have heard that photographers and videographers do not get along well, is that true?

Some of my best friends are photographers!! And that is actually true. Because I also am a photographer, I respect the photography industry. Like other wedding professionals that you hire, we all have a job to do and our job is to produce for you the best product we can.. its what we all do when we are hired. I always introduce myself to the photographer if I have never worked with them in the past and let them know what they can expect. I always tell them where my cameras are going to be and ask them if that works for them. I am acutely aware that they also need to get their shots and am very respectful of that. I play well with others!

11. Do you have backup equipment in case something fails?

I always have backup equipment in case something fails and this has worked great for me in past events. When I am using my recorders to capture the vows, for instance, I always have a backup audio source in case the first source fails. Hey, its’ electronic equipment and we all know what that means.. so yes, backup equipment is important.

12. Do you take credit cards and can we have payment plan?

I do take all credit cards. When you book with me, it will all be done online electronically. You will be sent the proposal for you to approve and once you approve it, you can then make your payments at that same time online with your credit card. It is very simple. And YES, we can setup payment plans that will work for your budget. We can set it up to automatically charge your card each month that your payment plan is due or we can set it up to where my system sends you a reminder via email. Either way you choose, we try to make it easy for you.

13. Do you take more than 1 wedding per day?

I never take on more than 1 Feature Film per day. All Feature Film work require me and at least 1 other filmmaker. However, I will take on a smaller documentary wedding if I already have a Feature Film booked and will assign that wedding to another trained filmmaker that is a part of my team. But I personally do not shoot more than 1 wedding per day, NO.

This sounds like everything we’ve been looking for. What happens next to start the process?

The next step is to call me at (423) 432-2471 or you can email me at szerangue@lifeproductions.netto setup your get acquainted complimentary consultation. I want to hear about your needs and see if we are a good match and what package fits your style, personality and budget best.

14. May we contact some of your former clients to find out what it was like to work with you?

YES, just shoot me an email and ask for a referral list and I will be glad to send that to you. Also, please check out the testimonials we have posted on our website from some of our past couples who we fell in love with.

15. We have a couple more question before we can get started, can I call you to discuss further?

YES, in fact we highly encourage all of our clients to schedule a complimentary consultation so that we can get all of your questions answered and make sure we are a great fit for one another. Again, please feel free to call me with any questions you may have at (423) 432-2471 or you can email me at szerangue@lifeproductions.netto discuss your desires.