Seeing My Own Film on the Big Screen
A day at CODA, why I keep putting time and money back into the craft, and what that quietly gives the couples I film for.
I spent a day recently at CODA, a conference for wedding filmmakers held at The Mockingbird Cinema in Birmingham. It brings together some of the best people working in this field, from across the UK and further afield, to share how and why they make the films they make.
I came home tired, full of ideas, and reminded of something I believe in strongly. If I want to keep making films couples genuinely love, I can never afford to stand still. Here’s why I keep investing in myself, and why that matters just as much to the people I film for as it does to me.
Seeing my own work on a cinema screen
One of the more surreal moments of the day was watching wedding films up on a proper cinema screen, mine among them. I’m used to seeing my edits on a laptop or a phone, the way most people watch them. Sat in those big seats with the sound filling the room, the same footage hits completely differently.
It does two things at once, showing you honestly where your work stands next to filmmakers you admire, and giving you a fresh respect for the moments you already film well. You notice the small choices that land and the ones you’d push further next time. That kind of clear-eyed look at your own work is hard to get on your own at a desk.
I’ll be honest, on one of the hottest days of the year, I was also quietly grateful for the air conditioning. A dark, cool cinema on a sweltering afternoon, watching beautiful films back to back, is not a bad way to spend a day.
Sat in those big seats with the sound filling the room, the same footage hits completely differently.
Why standing still isn’t an option
I’ve been filming weddings for years now, and the temptation when you’re established is to settle into what works and leave it there. I understand the pull of that, but it isn’t how I want to run things. The day I stop learning is the day my films start to look like everyone else’s.
Investing in myself takes a few forms. Conferences like CODA, yes, but also new kit, courses, time spent testing ideas between weddings, and conversations with people whose work I rate. None of it is free, in money or in time, and that’s rather the point. Choosing to spend both on getting better is a decision I make on purpose.
This isn’t about being taught the basics in a room full of beginners. It’s about working filmmakers, all at different stages, pushing each other to be sharper. You don’t reach a point in this craft where there’s nothing left to learn, and the ones who pretend otherwise are usually the ones standing still.
The day I stop learning is the day my films start to look like everyone else’s.
Spotting where things are heading
A big part of the value of a day like this is reading where film and the wedding industry as a whole are going. Styles shift, the way couples want to watch their films changes, and the tools we use move quickly. Sitting in a room with people right at the front of all that is the fastest way to feel which way the wind is blowing.
The trick is knowing what to bring home and what to leave behind. Some trends are worth weaving into how I work. Others are passing fashions that’ll look dated in a year, and a wedding film is something you should still love watching in twenty. My job is to take the genuinely good ideas and fold them into a style that lasts, rather than chase whatever’s loud this season.
That balance, staying current while keeping films timeless, is exactly what couples are really paying for. You want someone who knows what’s out there and has the judgement to use it well, not someone working the same way they did five years ago and not someone slapping every new gimmick onto your day.
A wedding film is something you should still love watching in twenty years.
The people in the room matter
The other half of a day like CODA is the people. Filming weddings can be a solitary job. It’s usually just me and my camera quietly working in the background, so getting in a room with others who do the same thing is genuinely valuable. You swap ideas, talk through problems, and pick up little things you’d never have found on your own.
Those connections matter in practical ways too. I’ve built relationships with filmmakers I trust and respect, and that network means a lot when it counts. If I’m ever fully booked for a couple’s date, I can point them toward someone good rather than leaving them stuck. If I ever needed a second shooter at short notice, I know exactly who I’d call. None of that exists if you keep your head down and never connect with your peers.
Being around people who care deeply about this craft also reminds me why I love it in the first place. You come away inspired, and that feeling finds its way into the next wedding I film. It’s hard to measure, but couples feel it when the person filming their day genuinely loves what they do.
Couples feel it when the person filming their day genuinely loves what they do.
What this actually gives my couples
All of this might sound like it’s about me, but the real reason I do it is for the films themselves. Every bit of learning, every new idea tested, every conversation with someone better than me at one part of the job, it all ends up in the work I hand back to couples.
When you book me, you’re not getting someone who learned this once and stopped. You’re getting someone who keeps turning up to days like CODA, keeps questioning his own work, and keeps caring about doing it better. That’s the difference between a film that’s fine and a film you can’t stop watching back.
So when I invest in myself, I’m really investing in your wedding film. That’s how I’ve always seen it, and a day in a cinema in Birmingham, watching brilliant work and talking craft with people I admire, only made me more sure of it.
If you’d like to see where all of this ends up, take a look at the wedding film packages, or read a bit more about who’d actually be filming your day.
When you’re ready to talk about your wedding, drop me a message with your date and venue, and I’ll let you know whether I’m free.
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Drop me a message with your date and venue, and let’s have a chat about your day.
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