LAVCINEMA

Hi my name is Gleb.
My storytelling career started a long time ago when I became fascinated with languages. Soon I became a journalist and in mid 1990’s, I started writing for a few prestigious lifestyle magazines(Marie Claire Russia, OM, just to name a few) and magazines specialized in technology and science (Hard and Soft, Intelligent Enterprise, Data Communication, CK, Computer and Life). Once I became a Canadian citizen, I started looking for new opportunities in storytelling. It happened to be an interesting coincidence and I discovered a great opportunity in visual storytelling - in the film and photography industry.

I soon established my own video company. Since then, I have been doing wedding photos and videos, building up years of experience, and continuously evolving in my craft. It is something I am very passionate about until this day, being lucky to do what I love as a profession.

It is interesting to notice that when I started making wedding video and photo, it was a very different world altogether than what it is today. Learning about it was quite the challenge as the technology was not very user-friendly and the industry of sharing knowledge was very far from what it is today. Since I was already very passionate about the subject, I continued to learn about it as much as I could.

“When I first started to make wedding films, I put my whole heart into them as if it were my own wedding and I kept asking myself: “If I were to produce my own wedding movie, what would make it a great movie for me and my loved ones? What would give it this timeless feel that I saw many times in the works of great Hollywood producers and so dearly loved? What would make a timeless wedding film?
By that time I had a feeling I knew how to put together a good story, but what would make it a good wedding story?

I honestly felt like a walking blind person at the time and to find the answer, I decided to play it simple and simply start asking my couples about it and learn directly from them. I started to invite my couples to come to our studio and view their movies before their release. We called this event - “Screening sessions”. When the movie was done to the best of my understanding, we would get together and watch and have fun and I would get this invaluable feedback on what is good and what is wished and so on.

These screening sessions became a huge learning experience for me. I finally got to understand what couples really wanted. It took a couple of years - don’t get me wrong ;-)
I got to understand deeper than before what technical and storytelling aspects have to do in the context of the wedding film for different couples.

I realized that wedding films were a combination of a Love Story, Reality Show and documentary filmmaking in different proportions for different couples. So to perfect my craft I started learning all three. I took Digital Directing at the New York Film Academy, I flew to Los Angeles where I had a privilege to attend John Truby’s storytelling masterclasses. He was the best selling storytelling theorist for Hollywood at the time. From him at different time I took “Love Story Structure”, “Great ScreenWriting”, “The Anatomy of Story”, “Masterpiece” and I can honestly tell you - I would do it again. Even if you are not in film-making his mind is just so bright and clear about anything story-telling related. One of the most memorable times for me in the past decade! I also took Reality TV Scripting masterclass with Emmy- nominated producer Troy DeVolld (The Osbournes, Dancing with the Stars, The Bachelor, Flipping Out, She’s got the Look, Split Ends and Basketball Wives). It was super fun! Slowly but surely my own vision of wedding films started to come out. I can honestly tell you that I like what I produce today.

“There is no end to make things better and technology never stops unfolding new and new opportunities for wedding filmmaking literally every year but I do sincerely like what we produce today and I enjoy every moment of making these movies for my couples!”

Screening Nights​

Years later, screenings are still part of my process. Think of it as movie-night with my couples and their families. It is very touching for me to see how everyone is enjoying themselves during these screenings, and families are filled with emotion as they watch their love story pan itself on-screen. Wait until you get your own screening and you will experience the magic.

Let’s make your perfect day a beautiful story to tell.
Creating the perfect film for you will be an honor for me, as your friends and family will enjoy watching it for years to come.
Let’s meet and discuss your special day together and make it happen.
Gleb Galkin