Reva and Mark - Carneros Inn - Napa

When Reva and Mark contacted me last year for their wedding, I was really excited. First they were getting married at Carneros Inn, it was a really intimate wedding, they were working with a great coordinator, and for them it was a destination wedding since they live in Chicago.
As soon as I met them, I knew it was a match made in heaven. Reva was bubbly and definitely excited about having a beautiful film. Mark was very candid and had sparkles in his eyes when he was telling me about their engagement story. Just taking to them I was giddy with excitement filming their special day.
And the day came. The sun took a while to decide to show up but it made their wedding even more special and even better than what i had anticipated. Great friends, great stories with some of the most touching speeches I have yet to hear at weddings, and some good dancing with an amazing DJ
This is their full feature and I hope I will be able to keep you entertained for 20 minutes.
Off course, and as usual your comments are welcome so don't hesitate.
Merci et bonne journee a tous et toutes.

coordinator: Kelly McLeskey-Dolata
Photographer: Alicia Todd
Location: Carneros Inn
Entertainment: Dj Sam Isaac
officiant: Rev. Bill Hutchinson
florist: Julie Stevens Design
cake artist: Inticing Creations 

Regina and Don - Decathlon Club - Santa Clara, CA

There are weddings that just leave an indelible mark on you. For me Regina and Don's wedding is the one. This warm couple, who was really enthusiastic at the idea of having me filming their wedding, has given me such joy working on their film. From their fun and entertaining bridal prep to the heartfelt ceremony, and a beautiful speech from Regina's dad, this wedding was just a roller coaster of emotion. So putting their film together was for me a good way to express their personality and the many different aspect of their event. My favorite part definitely is the closing of the film, where their first dance took center stage, not because it was choreographed but because this is the moment where you can see this couple completely into each other, and it just gave me goose bumps, while shooting and editing. i couldn't imagine a more perfect couple for each other, and I'm honored I was there to witness their happiness, and blissful union.
Thanks again to you guys for having me, and many many years of health, happiness and wealth for you both and your families.
Matthieu

A really nice letter

I love my job, and when I say I love my job I really mean it. But I love it even more when one of my client is really appreciative of the extra touches I put to make sure that their experience with CINEMATT is complete. So this is the letter Stephanie and Marcello just sent me, and it really warmed my heart. And with this cold San Francisco weather, I just thought i'll share it with you.
Thank you Stephanie and Marcello for such a nice letter and i look forward to keeping in touch with you guys!



Hi Matthieu,

We got the package on Saturday and we are both completely thrilled with the final product!! Thank you so much :)
We showed our parents eveything as well and they are very happy with it too!

You did an excellent job of capturing the wedding and the reception for us - it's great to see it sort of recapped, especially since it went by so quickly for Marcello and me.  The music that you put in and how you were able to splice everything together so seamlessly is really amazing.
Having the full ceremony and the other "Special Features" was a great surprise also- Thank you for doing that too! 

We also really appreciated the extra touches in the packaging - the very nice cover for the blu-ray dvd, the popcorn, and the kleenex were just awesome!

Thank you again so much :)

Best regards,
Stephanie & Marcello

Thank you Stephanie and Marcello for such a nice letter and i look forward to keeping in touch with you guys!

Here is their film

Christina and Winfield - Lake Merritt Hotel - Oakland, Ca

A few months back, I posted Christina and Winfield wedding highlight which you can see here. Well today I would like to introduce you to their full feature. I think it captured their personality and corkiness really well. You will noticed that all along the edit, the Kuma Bears are central to the film. Well the reason they are so present into this film is because when Winfield met Christina, the first thing he ever bought her was a Kuma Bear, a little stuffed animal. This became a collection for Christina and off course since Christina and Winfield were getting married, it was logical that the little guys were getting married too.
Thank you again Christina and Winfield to allow me to be part of your special day. I had so much fun, and thank you to Dennis Maxwell for helping me shooting this one. It's always great to work with you.
As usual, you are more than welcome to comment, like or share with your friend on Facebook and other social network media. I'd love to get some feedback.
Merci et bon weekend.
Matthieu

Natalie and JD - Monte Verde Inn - Forresthill, CA

Where does time go?
I can't believe it has been a month already since my last blog. Usually February is rather quiet and it is always time for me to catch up on editing and do some really fun stuffs. However, this year, February has been nothing short of a hurricane sweeping through CINEMATT. From back to back to back editorial shoots in Sacramento, and Las Vegas to WPPI, (which conveniently was held in Las Vegas, hence the shoot there) to settling in into my new studio in Belmont, February roared out and March kicked in.
So for those of you who follows me I'm sure you noticed that nothing new has come up on this page. Nothing new until today and Natalie and JD wedding film. This was a special film to me because when Natalie and JD hired me, they were only interested in getting raw footage. But after seeing those, Cindy, Natalie's mom, was quick to contact me and asked me to make a film for her daughter and son in law. I was ecstatic because this wedding was for me a cornerstone.
So many elements made this wedding so unique, from the vintage photo booth, to the great little placards everywhere, and a fun and friendly bridal party. Plus Nat and JD were an awesome couple, whose motto was: "Let's have fun".  Hopefully the feature will show that. Thanks to Kerry and Kenneth for referring me to Nat and JD, and thank you for all of you who will watch all 22 minutes of the feature film. As always your comments are welcome.
I would also like to give a special thanks to Elley, from Elley photography, who was my second on that day, and was a real trooper. Thank you for your help!
For better viewing experience, just press the play button and let the whole film download, before pressing play again.





The location:
Monte Verde Inn

The crew:
photographer: Christine Taylor
Coordinator: Erin Taylor
DJ: SJ's Disc Jockey

Westin St. Francis Hotel - San Francisco - Mona and Brian

2010 started with a bang for CINEMATT with the rebranding and excited weddings throughout the whole year. In celebration of an insane, crazy, and extremely rewarding year, I would like to introduce you to Mona and Brian. This couple of talented lawyers had their beautiful Persian inspired wedding at the Westin St. Francis Hotel, downtown San Francisco. Atop the city with gazing views of Coit Tower and San Francisco Bay, the Imperial Floor was the perfect venue for both ceremony and reception. There is definitely a sense of grandeur when you enter the room. The architecture and the refinement of the place were well fitted for this lovely couples and their 150 guests.
For this full feature edit, I axed my story around the very poignant speeches that Mona's sister and dad, and Brian' brother and dad gave throughout the evening. It was definitely emotional, and fun, and a great way to find out more about them, and their story. I hope you will enjoy it.
As usual please do not hesitate to leave comments or to simply hit the like button if you like their film.
For better viewing, press play then pause immediately, and wait for the whole film to download, before sitting back and enjoying it.
Merci et bonne fin de soiree*.
Matthieu



*Thank you, and have a great evening.

I would like to give special thanks to Andy Hirsch from Blue Moon Productions, and Elley Ho from Elley Photography, who were my second and third shooter on that day. Thank you for your hard work, and talent. This wedding would have not been the same without you.

Have you considered wedding videos? The art of story telling

Ever since I started working in the wedding industry a mere ten years ago, I always strive to improve my work to give you the best possible wedding video. At first, it was just about shooting, and more shooting, getting some creative shots, and piecing them together in order to have a wedding video. But in the long run, it became apparent to me that shooting, editing and putting a video together was more than just some pretty shots, or some cool music.

You see, I want my films to have a meaning, a story... your story. You may notice I said “your story”, and the reason I use the possessive pronoun, is because I really want to have an attachment to you. I don't want you to feel like you are just hiring a videographer. Instead, you are making a new friend. It seems stupid to say but for the longest time I didn't get that concept; I was too wrapped up in doing "video" work. I was more focused on the technical aspect of making the video rather than the human aspect of it. Then, one day in 2004, my dad visited from France, and he watched my work. All the sudden he told me: "Your work is good but I can't seem to connect with your couples." It hit me like a ton of bricks.

Coming from a man who spent 25 years on the airwaves in France connecting with strangers night after night, I took to heart what he was telling me and realized the importance of his message. You see, I grew up listening to my dad's soothing voice on the radio every night. And even though I would only get to see my dad on precious weekends, I had a deep connection with him through the air waves. My dad had a radio show that started as a half hour program, in which truckers will call to report any road blocks or any other situation. Then the 30 minutes stint became a four and a half hour daily fixture, where total strangers, night after night called to get help, some passing a message to their family and some to solve their most personal problems. There was no internet or cell phone at that time, so my dad was it. No matter who was calling him, he was able to connect with them on a personal and emotional level in the span of few seconds. And Dad did that for 25 meaningful years.

The realization that I wasn't connecting to my couples struck me hard. I needed to do what my Dad did in my video work. Within a few weeks I completely revamped my idea of wedding video. Now enters the term “wedding film”. I started to think of what was the best way of telling your story. The best way, and there is no substitute to this for me, is to meet with you on a deeper level to establish that easy feeling you should have with any of your handpicked wedding vendors. It goes beyond just shooting your wedding day, the most important day of your life. So when you meet me or when we talk on the phone, be ready to tell me everything about you! Anything that would be of interest in order to tell your story the best way possible and don't leave the details out. Even little things that you don't think matters are little nuggets of gold. I really want you to give me a better and brighter picture of who you are, what you want, and what you are looking for. I just don't want a simple sketch, I want a canvas! A canvas I can refine, and  use to reflect your story in the wedding film that I will personally create for you.

And that's why I consider my videos to be wedding films.

I'm fortunate to have great couples who feed and respect my imagination and creativity, and I look forward to documenting your day with the same passion and same creativity that continues to burn inside of me.

With all this, I present to you a full feature length wedding film: "Serendipity".
why Serendipity? Well if Jane had taken a trip to Buenos Aires she might have not met the man of her dream aka David. You see Jane had planned to go to Buenos Aires for a Christmas trip, but the trip was cancelled last minute due to work. So she needed an out, and the out was San Anton, Austria. And although when she got there she thought she had ended up in a retirement house, she couldn't imagine she would meet her future husband the very next day, the very British and distinguish David.
Fast forward 3 years later, and here we are at Hans Fahden Winery, in Napa Valley in Calistoga. Off course as you can imagine the Ski theme was very present in this beautiful wedding, where Jane and David brought their friends and Family from all around the world to gather to celebrate their union.
From the ski tag for sitting cards, to the cutest ring holder representing a man and a woman in hot tub after a long day of skiing, everything was around that theme. Even their signing book was in fact a pair of skis.I hope you will enjoy it, and be sure to watch it until the end of their magical story.
Congratulations again to Jane and David.

Merci et bonne journee,

Matthieu

Linda & Joe. City Hall, San Francisco, California

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I meant to blog about Linda and Joe's wedding for a long time now and today is the day. They are such a sweet couple and I just wanted to make sure that their wedding film tells their story as accurately as possible. There was a lot of emotion, laughter, and tender moments during this two-day event. And off course lot of love from their freinds and family. I hope you will enjoy it.

Take care,

Matthieu

Suzanne and Conan Ricon Center, San Francisco California Part 2: 15:34

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here is the second part. Enjoy

Charlene & Tony. Ritz Carlton Halfmoon Bay, California

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Charlene and Tony were married at beautiful Ritz Carlton Hal Moon Bay. This place is just drop dead gorgeous, and the settings was perfect for these Stanford Alumni, who sow their love for their alma Mater by naming each and every table with the names of the Institution's building. Tony White from The Ritz Carlton had orchestrated a beautiful wedding for them, and Marlin with Jay Kelly Photography was capturing all the beautiful shots.

Here is their full edit. I hope you enjoy it.

For better viewing experience, press the play button and then pause it until it fully downloads.

Thanks for stopping by and have a great day.

A Bientot.

Lauren & Rob. Full edit. Private Estate, Saratoga California

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Beautiful surroundings for a beautiful wedding, that's exactly what Rob and Lauren had going on their wedding day. This couple who lives in Florida decided to tie the know at Lauren's brother beautiful house, which overlook the South Peninsula. The weather was amazing, and a small gathering of family members and close friends made for a perfect day. Here is their full edit. i hope you will enjoy it. As usual, please do not hesitate to comment.

Please do not forget to leave the video download completely for better viewing experience.