I met Jess and Matt through wedding planner Samantha Talora, as she was instrumental in helping the California couple plan this destination wedding of sorts in the Berkshires of Massachusetts. Jess, who moved from Boston to California in 2010, was the sweetest of brides and it was evident that her and Matt were going to be a fun couple to be with on their very coveted 9/10/11 wedding date.
The day could not have been any more gorgeous with blues skies surrounding the Cranwell Resort, Spa & Golf Club. The highlight film touches on the importance of Jess’s Mom, who had passed away before her daughter got married. Matt really found the special touch to make his bride’s day extra special. Also, make sure not to blink during the sand ceremony for a comical moment between the two.
We got to work with some great professionals as we paired with Jane from Iris Photography for the during the 2011 wedding season. Mark from Hard at Play’s DJ Service did a great job of keeping the crowd on their dancing feet all night long, while Teresa Mango added the softer, more beautiful ceremony music via her harp. And, Ann Long Designs created the elegant floral pieces seen throughout the wedding.
Leave a Comment
For the month of May, it was time to feature a jeweler in our Vendor of the Month series. There are bigger jewelry stores and chains in the area, but I love supporting the family owned stores with fantastic personal service like you find Stevens Jewelers. Owner Eric Stevens is a third generation jeweler who has vast experience in both wholesale and retail jewelry. This experience has made his Riverdale St. store in West Springfield, Massachusetts a success for over 10 years now.
The staff at Stevens Jewelers is always very knowledgeable and extremely helpful in purchasing that perfect engagement ring, wedding band, or special wedding day gift for your soon to be husband or wife. They combine an honest approach with a vast selection of jewelry that has customers coming back year after year. Before I began filming weddings, I chose Stevens Jewelers for my wedding rings. And now, after seeing their work first hand each year, I still recommend Eric and his company time and time again. Every bride and groom that I cross paths with that uses Stevens Jewelers is thrilled with their experience. You can reach Steven Jewelers at their new and expanding website: stevensjewelers.com.
Leave a Comment
This is the week of the Family Film. When creating these family videos, our goal is capture families in their element. Doing what they do on a regular basis. For the Smiths, they are a sports-minded family and it was important to capture their children Summer and Colin on the field and in the pool.
Within the Family Film, it is our goal to hear the children speak, play, and be the kids that they are. In the Smith Film, we spent some time inside their playroom where Colin loves to hang out, and outside in their pool where Summer likes to hibernate. We were also able to capture some softball and baseball action to help round out their film. And to clarify, the Smith’s are diehard Red Sox fans, but Colin had some good fun teasing his Dad in Family Film. Thanks to Songfreedom for giving us a variety of good music to put behind these films.
Leave a Comment
At JPod Productions, we love to tell stories and those stories do not stop after the wedding day. Therefore, we have found another love in film-making and that is creating Family Films.
There is something precious about hearing a child’s voice, watching them play, and capturing a moment in time that will soon be lost. We often take pictures and video of our families, but we rarely piece them together into a treasured keepsake. The Family Film does just that! As time passes too fast and your children become young adults too quick, the Family Film captures your family as it is today.
Our first family video is what inspired it all – The Podworski Family Film. After getting some new equipment in the spring of last year, I shot a variety of video of my daughters at ages 5 and 2. Everyone who saw it wanted to have a family video done with their children. The Family Film below is the last half of the original version, as we had a little more footage than usual with the camera and children living in the same household. Nonetheless, it’s the first of a few films we will release this week showing how precious families can be on video.
Leave a Comment
We met Tarryn through a referral from another bride who mentioned us on the Knot forums. Tarryn was a sweetheart from the start and her wedding brought us to the Connecticut Shore, which is always a fun place to film a wedding. After Tarryn and I met for coffee in late June at It’s a Grind Coffee Shop in West Hartford, I knew this wedding was going to be awesome.
This Connecticut wedding video started with two awesome preparations with the boys having breakfast and playing bocce, while the girls just had a fun, energetic vibe throughout the morning of make-up and hair in Monroe, CT. The clip below starts at the end of the ceremony at St. Mary’s Church in Stamford, CT and takes us to the Surf Club in New Rochelle, NY for the next part of the wedding video. Although rain was around for much of the day, we caught a break for a quick photo shoot by the ocean in New Rochelle during cocktail hour. The ceremony section demonstrates how we overlap portions (homily and unity candle in this case) of the ceremony to make the film more entertaining to watch. The post-ceremony segment of the film captures the receiving line at St. Mary’s, and the cocktail hour, reception details and the photo session at the Surf Club in a fun, re-energizing style.
The day was a breeze, as we got to work with some great vendors including Image Photography and Top Notch Music Productions DJ Service.
Leave a Comment
At a recent wedding at the Four Seasons in Boston, I worked alongside my vendor of the month, who is also one of the top makeup artists in the city. Although you would never know it from her down to earth personality, Dani Wagener is making a significant impact on women all over the world through her talent. And, now brides in Boston are reaping the benefits.
The goal of any bride is to look her absolute best on her wedding day and Dani can provide that for Massachusetts and New England-based brides. What makes her different? Her mastery of airbrush makeup, skincare, and false eyelashes is what separates her from others. In February, I watched Dani take our beautiful bride Emily and make her look simply stunning. You can see the end result of Emily’s makeup in the movie trailer that we created for her, or on Boston photographer Lisa Rigby’s blog. The thing I love about Dani is that she believes in not only making women beautiful, but also giving them the knowledge and know-how so they can make themselves beautiful. This “effect and empowerment” philosophy was what makes Dani unique.
Dani’s work speaks for itself and it has been trusted by numerous high-end clients. Her impressive list of celebrity clients include Vogue Editor Anna Wintour, Niki Taylor, Jenny McCarthy, Anita Baker, Daisy Fuentes, Oscar-winning director Katherine Bigelow, and Steven Tyler. Her work has also been featured in numerous magazines including InStyle, Allure and Boston Weddings.
Leave a Comment
One of the things we always strive to do at JPod Productions is build great relationships with our couples. Our goal is to learn as much as we can about our couples whether they are from Boston, Vermont, Cape Cod or Southern Connecticut. And we are fortunate to learn a lot about their relationships, their families, their lives, and of coarse, their wedding day. Now it’s time to share 10 things about Jamie that you may not have known:
1. I proposed to my wife at sunset in Newport, RI with a chocolate lab puppy wearing a ring around its neck. If you want the longer version, just ask me the next time you see me.
2. I love my coffee. I usually drink a hot cup in the morning and a cup of iced in the afternoon.
3. I’ve played ice hockey since I was 4. I referee and still play on occasion.
4. I am dog-lover at heart. I have had two Labrador Retrievers since college, but am currently waiting for the right time to add another chocolate pup to our family. I do walk my neighbors two chocolates when I get the chance. So, if you are including your pooch in the wedding plans, we are a great fit for you.
5. My primary assistant, Anne, interned with me when I worked at WWLP-TV22 in 2001 and we have been friends ever since. She has been shooting weddings with me for over 6 years now.
6. My favorite foods are seafood and pizza. I have a wicked sweet tooth too. For dessert, I’ll take a chocolate molten cake with vanilla ice cream any day of the week.
7. I have skydived, parasailed and snorkeled. I have never jet-skied or gone down a zip line, but I want to.
8. I completed a Half-Ironman Triathlon (1.2 mi swim, 56 mile bike and 13.1 mile run) and two marathons. My training has slowed down since having children…
9. Girls. Girls, Girls. I grew up as a teenager in a house with two sisters and a Mom. Now I have a wife and two daughters.
10. I am the homemade pierogi-maker in my family. I have kept my grandmother’s amazing recipe alive…
Leave a Comment
One thing we have very little control over as filmmakers is the content of wedding toasts. The better they are, the better our feature films tend to be. Marco Louvitakis, father of bride Katie Mocciolo (Louvitakis), had to be coerced into making a speech at his daughter’s summer wedding at the Salem Cross Inn, but it was could have been one of the best decisions in the wedding planning process. Now, this Boston couple has a wedding film that incorporates an amazing speech reflecting on the past and providing guidance for the future.
Most people who deliver a 5-minute toast will have talked for 3-4 minutes too long. But, not this dad’s speech. Marco’s toast took 150 people on a roller coaster of laughs and tears, while doing the most important thing of all – telling the bride and groom’s story. Telling stories about the couple during the toasts is one of the top ten things that I recommend you try and suggest to improve your wedding film. His opening story of meeting his now son-in-law Shaun tells a lot about how these newlyweds didn’t appear to be the right match on paper. These types of stories help us as filmmakers create films that bring out the personality of a newly married couple. Parts of this speech were spread out over the complete cinematic wedding film, but this is the speech in its entirety…
Great vendors we worked with at this event were Jennifer Corridan Photography and Greg Bedard DJ Entertainment.
Leave a Comment
1 Comment so far
I met Emily and Andrew Cleary through a family connection and after our first conversation, I knew that they were the perfect fit for our company. It was the first of two weddings that we had during a busy weekend just after Valentine’s Day, and it was another mild winter day in downtown Boston. It was just warm enough to sneak outside for a photo session with the rest of the events taking place inside the Four Seasons Boston.
Emily and Andrew were married in the elegantly decorated Governor’s Room at the Four Seasons, with Lotus Designs Flowers giving the room every beautiful touch imaginable from flower petals down the aisle runner, to a variety of candles romanticizing the room, to breathtaking floral arrangements near the front of the aisle. Officiant Elly Jackson did a wonderful job telling the story of Emily and Andrew, which was the backbone of the ceremony and the movie trailer below.
After the cocktail hour, guests moved into the Four Seasons Ballroom for the reception, which was even more spectacular with Susan B. Lowell Lighting Design illuminating the room perfectly. Greg Hodges of 5 Star Events DJ led the couple in with an energy-building introduction that even included a surprise from the father of the groom. Greg’s music created a fabulous atmosphere for the guests all night long. We were so blessed to work with even more tremendous vendors all day and night, as Philip Deschamps and the catering staff at the Four Seasons Boston were great. Lisa Rigby of Lisa Rigby Photography (pictures attached to link) was just a pleasure to work alongside, and the cake from Icing on the Cake was beautiful and delicious (yep, I had to try the red velvet tier at the end of the night). Helping Emily look her best were Lindsey B. of Jorgo Salon (Hair) and Dani Wagener (make-up), while her dress was a design from Kenneth Pool.
Music provided and licensed through Songfreedom.
Leave a Comment
2 Comments so far
The vendor of the month for March is not only one of the top DJs in the Boston area, but in all of Massachusetts. Greg Hodges of 5 Star Events is a vendor that has the three must haves of a good disc jockey – great Master of Ceremony abilities, the ability to read a room, and a commitment to his clients.
I got the opportunity to work alongside Greg just a few weeks ago at the Four Seasons in Boston. He set the mood right away as he introduced the wedding party with an energy-building pace that got the reception rocking with the entrance of the bride and groom. Early in the evening, we had a conversation of what type of crowd was in the ballroom that night. His music choices got people right out of their seats after dinner, and now I have a great dance section for my wedding film. Finally, it was easy to see the care he put into the couple and their wedding reception as his 4-page information sheet was extremely detailed and organized.
Greg has also earned the respect of a few of my cinematography colleagues as well. We have had conversations about who the top vendors are to work with at weddings and Greg’s 5 Star Events is right at the top of the list. Greg was also voted Boston’s #1 Disc Jockey by Boston’s A-List in 2011. In addition to their DJ services, Five Star Events offers uplighting services.
Leave a Comment
1 Comment so far
Older Posts »
[...] Cufon('h1.home', { fontFamily: 'Yanone Kaffeesatz', color: 'white', fontSize: '58px' }); Cufon('h4.home', { fontFamily: 'Yanone Kaffeesatz', color: 'white', fontSize: '58px' }); Cufon('h1.homearts', { fontFamily: 'Yanone Kaffeesatz', color: 'black' }); Cufon('h1.article', { fontFamily: 'Yanone Kaffeesatz', color: 'black', fontSize: '24px' }); Cufon('h3.featured', { fontFamily: 'Yanone Kaffeesatz', color: 'black', fontSize: '24px' }); Cufon('#footer h4', { fontFamily: 'Lobster 1.4' });#split {}#single {}#splitalign {margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;}#singlealign {margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;}#splittitlebox {text-align: center;}#singletitlebox {text-align: center;}.linkboxtext {line-height: 1.4em;}.linkboxcontainer {padding: 7px 7px 7px 7px;background-color:#eeeeee;border-color:#000000;border-width:0px; border-style:solid;}.linkboxdisplay {padding: 7px 7px 7px 7px;}.linkboxdisplay td {text-align: center;}.linkboxdisplay a:link {text-decoration: none;}.linkboxdisplay a:hover {text-decoration: underline;} function opensingledropdown() { document.getElementById('singletablelinks').style.display = ''; document.getElementById('singlemouse').style.display = 'none'; } function closesingledropdown() { document.getElementById('singletablelinks').style.display = 'none'; document.getElementById('singlemouse').style.display = ''; } Fabulous Brides Speeches for Wedding Tipshilarious bohemian rhapsody best man speech!The King’s Speech — Film ReviewSpeeches for Father of the Bride – 10 Points to Include in Example Father of the Bride SpeechesSex and the Wedding Toast – Make LoveSpeeches at WeddingMassachuetts Wedding Films Blog, JPod Productions – Cinematic wedding video serving Boston, Hartford… [...]