Featured on Girl About Otown

Those based in Ottawa might already be familiar with the wonderful weekly blog called Girl About Otown. This local blog was created by Katharine Cornfield “to chronicle the people, ideas and things that impress and inspire me – here in Ottawa and out there in the world”. Love that.

Knowing Katharine’s blog mandate, I was honoured when she asked me if she could profile my work and business! Here’s what she had to say about why she wanted to feature { First Kiss Films }:

Last February, this girlaboutOtown was lucky to be invited to the launch of a lovely new business in Ottawa { First Kiss Films } which specializes in producing fine art wedding films on 16mm and Super 8mm film.   Not only was Bridget Redmond’s concept brilliant, her talent was downright impressive.  Since then, I’ve been following Bridget’s progress with curiosity, and watching her unique  filmmaking business flourish!

Imagine my delight when I read of her latest endeavour, a new service called the Family First Film.  It seems Bridget has decided to apply her gifted eye to everyday lives.  Building on her cinematic approach to weddings, this accomplished filmmaker will come to your home and create a custom film of your family.  Whether it’s a special celebration or an ordinary slice of your life, Bridget’s hope is to help her clients turn seemingly mundane moments into extraordinary memories that will last forever.  I watched in awe as “An evening with the Brooks Family” unfolded on film, and found myself desperately wanting one for me and my three!  I think if you view it too, you will see what I mean.

Anyway, when I asked Bridget if she would answer a few questions, she very kindly agreed.  Not surprisingly, there are some serious smarts behind this brave and creative cinematic eye!

Thank you SO much Katharine, for your kind words, support and for the interview!

A taste of Afternoon Tea

A few months back, I had the wonderful opportunity to collaborate with Amna Hakim Photography in the creation of a South Asian inspired High Tea. While the weather didn’t cooperate, everything else just fell into place and the final result was just stunning.

I invite you to watch the following trailer to experience some of the decadence that surrounded us that day. Want to see more? Be sure to check out Amna Hakim’s blog on Tuesday, September 28th (one week from today!) to experience all the beauty as it was captured through her lense.

NOTE: for better viewing quality, watch the film from the Vimeo website by clicking the title “{Afternoon Tea} trailer”  or the word “vimeo” in the image below.

~ Filmed on Kodak 16mm film ~

A big thank you to the following vendors:
Photography: Amna Hakim Photography
Flowers: Michelle VandenBosch
Cupcakes: The Flour Shoppe
Hair: Shaista
Make-up: Facades by Farhat
Clothing: Sobia Saleem Couture

Additional thanks to our wonderful models, to the Hakim family for their hospitality and to my mom for her many treasures!

This film was featured on marigolds & mithai and Maharani Weddings and Toronto Wedding Society!

Celebrating love, one year later

One year ago today, I had my first kiss.

Our wedding was perfect in our eyes, and thankfully we had asked a friend to film the big day. Almost one year has passed since we said “I do” and we still haven’t watched our film. Why? With {First Kiss Films} taking off faster than expected I’ve never had the time to edit my own footage!

So to celebrate our very first wedding anniversary, I decided to edit our film in secret and surprise my husband with a romantic outdoor screening for just the two of us.

(shhhhhhhh!)

Since I knew I wouldn’t be able to slip away the evening-of to set the scene to premiere our wedding film, I had asked our friends who live right next-door if they could help out.

Well, I couldn’t have lucked out more – not only was our neighbour entirely willing and very familiar with setting up projectors but she surprised us with delicious home-made mini-cupcakes and a bottle of champagne!

These extra additions were so absolutely thoughtful and in the end both my husband and I ended up being surprised by what we found in our backyard.

It was a perfect way to finish off a perfect day.

Family First Films

Weddings aren’t the only magical time in our lives. We often overlook the everyday beauty that surrounds us and don’t recognize how precious moments are until they’ve already passed us by.  With that in mind, I’m proud to introduce a new service called the “Family First” film.

I’m hoping, in my own little way, to reignite people’s excitement about home movies – the same way I want to create wedding films that can be appreciated by anyone, not just the bride and groom, over and over again. The lovely Brooks family asked me and my vintage cameras to hangout with them (and document the most incredible tree-house I have ever seen…hand-made by poppa Leo!) on a midsummer evening, and the result is something I hope they can enjoy as much today as they can in 10, 20 and 50 years.

There are endless possible themes for family films beyond just parties and celebrations. A custom film can be inspired by a season, a favorite activity, a holiday, a meaningful location…or as you’ll see in the sample below, just a regular day hanging out in your backyard. Now any day can be that special day you’ll remember forever.

I can’t wait to spend some time with you and your loved ones and help capture some of the amazing big and little moments life has to offer.
xo Bridget

~ Filmed on Kodak 16mm and super 8mm film ~

Presenting your film

Each { First Kiss Films } creation is so lovingly crafted that we felt it important that the final product be presented in a unique and elegant way. So, in keeping with the cinematic theme, each film is transferred to a lightscribed DVD and encased in a custom silver tin shaped like a vintage film reel. The tin is then beautifully boxed and finished off with a thick satin ribbon.

Clients often pre-order additional copies of their film knowing that the gift-wrapped presentation makes for a thoughtful but effortless gift that recipients are sure to treasure.