How to Find the Best Wedding Filmmaker for your Needs: 7 Tips
Stressed about trusting a stranger to create a film for you on the best day of your life? Here are some simple and effective tips to narrow down your options and vet them to make sure you’re choosing the very best option for you.
1: Breathe
Yes, it’s super important to find the perfect filmmaker. Yes, it can be a pain in the ass. Yes, you can get burned if you’re not careful enough.
But you aren’t going to make a good decision if you’re not in the right headspace.
Take a second, slow down. Take some deep breaths. Your wedding day is going to be amazing. I promise.
2: Ask yourself the right questions
There’s a ton of filmmakers out there, and they all have different styles. You need to have a good idea of what you want before you start looking, otherwise you’ll be overwhelmed or you’ll make a snap decision.
And yes, this should be a two-person decision. Talk about it with your partner.
Some good questions to ask yourselves:
Why do we want a wedding film?
What do we want to feel when we watch it?
What do we want to see?
Do we just want to see what happened, or do we want to experience a story?
What is our budget?
3: Use your resources
Have you seen some great films on Instagram? Did you love the filmmaker at your friends’ wedding last year?
Do some research. Ask around. Look up wedding films on Instagram and YouTube. This can help you find specific filmmakers, but it can also help you figure out what you like/don’t like. Look at multiple filmmakers and considering inquiring to multiple.
4: Do your research
If you stumble upon a filmmaker that looks like they may check all the boxes, do some looking around on their social media/website before submitting an inquiry.
Try to figure out:
Is this a national chain or a small company? Small companies provide better service and spend more time on each film. You’ll have a better experience 9/10 times.
Do they have a solid online presence? If they have a solid presence on at least two platforms (Website and Instagram are the top two), they’re more likely to be legit and be able to provide a great experience. If they have 7 followers on Instagram, that means their couples aren’t even interested in their work. If their website is broken and empty, that means they don’t care very much about your experience. That doesn’t inspire any confidence, does it? Bonus points if they regularly make social media content featuring their couples.
Do their films look professional? Watch at least two films. Do they tell a story? Do colors look natural and consistent? Does it sound good? Are they using licensed music or are they ripping a top 40 country song?
5: Ask them the right questions
Are they passing all the tests so far? Submit an inquiry! Pay attention to how quickly they respond, and how personalized the response is (does it look like AI wrote it, or an automatic reply that’s sent to everyone?)
Never, and I mean NEVER, sign a contract or pay any deposit without doing a consultation or discovery call. If a filmmaker is unwilling to do this, that’s a huge red flag.
On your call, here are some essential questions to ask:
Do you (personally) film and edit your weddings? Some outsourcing is okay, but if they’re totally pawning off creative control of your film, it’s going to be very generic and cookie-cutter, I guarantee it.
How would you describe your style? Listen carefully, and see if their description lines up with your vision.
How do you back up your footage? Cards get corrupted, hard drives fail, computers crash. How do they ensure your memories aren’t lost? Redundancy should be their answer. Shooting on 2 SD cards on the wedding day, immediately backing up to two separate hard drives, and storing your footage (at least for a few months) after delivering your film.
How do you capture good audio? This should be a similar answer: redundancy. Especially during the ceremony and speeches, there should be at least 3 sources of audio. A mic on the officiant, tapping into the DJ’s system, on-camera microphones, etc. Bad audio is really, really hard to fix, and can ruin the immersion of a good film.
Do you carry liability insurance? A great way to gauge their professionalism.
Do we both sign a contract? A good contract will protect you from a filmmaker being unable or unwilling to perform their duties. Nobody can guarantee you’ll have a perfect experience, but at least you’ll get your money back if something goes horribly wrong.
This isn’t every good question, but it’s a great start, and will help you easily sort this filmmaker into the junk bin or into your list of top picks.
6: Pay attention to their level of investment
This has nothing to do with price - are they emotionally invested in their work? Is it obvious that they care about your story, and about doing a great job? Do they actively take time to learn about you, or are they passive, quick to talk numbers, dollars, and contracts?
Do you genuinely like them?
7: Trust your gut
Take red flags seriously. The market is flooded with incredibly talented filmmakers itching to tell a beautiful love story. Don’t get locked in if you’re not 100% confident.
Take red flags seriously, and don’t be afraid to bring concerns up.
Bonus: The sooner you book, the better
Most filmmakers are constantly assessing and reassessing their pricing, and by booking 1-2 years ahead of time, you can often get good rates before they raise them.
Additionally, most filmmakers like to take on fewer weddings so they can take more time and do a better job. This means they book up quickly.
