Nicola Malak & Salim (Sam) Touma · Saturday, 5 September 2026
You found your way to us through Connie — and the pre-wedding film of hers you loved. From our first conversation, this felt less like a list of moments to capture and more like a Coptic and Lebanese celebration built on faith, family and the people beside you.
From the two mornings across Sylvania and Punchbowl to the firework exit at Miramare, our role is to hold all of it — so what remains is not only what happened, but how it felt.
The Shape of the Day
Your day has a clear rhythm — two mornings unfolding apart, a full Coptic ceremony at its centre, then the portraits and celebration that carry into the night. Reading that shape early is how we make sure the coverage moves with the day, rather than interrupting it.
Two Mornings
Your morning unfolds in two places at once — Nicola in Sylvania, and Salim in Punchbowl as the Lebanese tradition brings his family to the door and the music builds. A cinematographer on each side means neither morning is traded for the other.
The Ceremony
At Arncliffe, the full Coptic ceremony carries real weight — the crowning, the blessings, the moments that ask to be anticipated rather than simply recorded. We know this ceremony intimately, and position quietly so each one is held from more than a single angle.
Straight to the Celebration
Rather than chase locations across the city, you've chosen to head straight to Miramare — time to breathe, outdoor portraits in the gardens, and the cellar and cigar room to fold in if the moment's right. An unhurried afternoon, exactly as you wanted it.
The Reception
By half past five the cocktail hour begins, and the night builds from there — the entrances, the speeches, your father-daughter and mother-daughter dances, and the floor opening up — carried through to your firework exit at the close of the night.
What Matters Most
Beyond the timeline and the logistics are the culture, the people and the feeling that make this wedding yours. These are the things we hold onto most — and the reason the coverage is built the way it is.
01 · Culture & Faith
This is a full Coptic ceremony, joined with the Lebanese traditions that open the morning. We're not learning this as we go — we know the rhythm, the cultural beats, where to stand and when to step back. It's why the day will feel held, not managed.
02 · Keeping It Real
You were clear about what you love: candid, natural, in-the-moment — the feeling of the day, not a performance for the camera. That's exactly how we work. We let the day lead, find the real moments as they happen, and guide only when it helps. The result feels like you, because it is.
03 · The Story, Preserved
The film you'll watch in your first year of marriage isn't always the one that matters most in twenty. One day these recordings become a way to hear familiar voices again, to revisit everyone gathered around you, and to show your own children where it all began. That's why we preserve the full day, not only the highlights.
Our Approach
The right coverage protects the feeling of the day, not just the record of it. Here's how we'll shape ours around yours.
Coverage
Your morning happens in two homes at once, and the ceremony deserves more than a single angle. Two cinematographers cover both sides of the morning, then hold the ceremony and your reception entrance from two perspectives — the moments where a second camera genuinely changes the result.
Balance
Two angles matter most through the morning, the ceremony and the entrance. Once the night finds its rhythm, coverage can streamline without losing a thing — which is exactly how the collections below are built, so the second cinematographer is there for the moments that need it.
Presence
Most couples aren't models, and you don't need to be. We guide gently when it helps, step back when it doesn't, and spend most of the day watching for the real moments at the edges — the ones you'll treasure later.
Process
What looks effortless on the day is built well before it: a detailed questionnaire a month out, then a creative session with our studio manager, Kristy, to shape music, editing and what matters most to you. By the time we arrive, nothing is left to chance.
Planning the Day
Here's the flow as it stands today — a starting point, not a fixed script. We'll refine every timing together closer to the day, once the questionnaire fills in the finer details.
9:30am – approx. 12:00pm
Punchbowl
9:30am – approx. 12:15pm
Sylvania
1:00pm – 3:00pm
St Mark Coptic Orthodox Church, Arncliffe
3:00pm – 4:00pm
4:00pm – 5:30pm
Miramare Gardens
5:30pm – 11:00pm
Miramare Gardens, Terrey Hills
Final timings and locations will be refined together closer to the day.
Every couple connects with their wedding memories differently. Some want something short, cinematic and instantly shareable. Others want a deeper, more immersive way to step back into the atmosphere, emotion and natural flow of the day. Which films you receive, and at what length, depends on the collection you choose below.
A short, emotionally driven snapshot of the atmosphere, energy and anticipation of your wedding day.
Best for sharing shortly after the wedding.
A cinematic retelling of your day, crafted with music, movement, natural audio and emotional pacing.
Best for reliving the essence of the day.
A deeper, more immersive film that preserves more interaction, atmosphere, dialogue and natural flow.
Best for couples wanting a more complete cinematic story.
Longer-form coverage preserving full ceremonies, speeches, live audio and important moments as they unfolded. The one film you may watch only once — but will always be grateful exists.
Best for preserving the day in its fullest form.
Many couples choose a combination of film experiences, allowing different parts of the day to be preserved in different ways — exactly how the collections below are built.
A short film cut together from earlier in your day — getting ready, the ceremony, your first portraits — and shown to your guests live during the reception, before speeches.
Best for couples who want a moment of surprise and emotion shared with everyone in the room, on the day itself.
Coptic Weddings · St Mark's, Arncliffe
The crowning. The curtains parting. The blessings and the deacons and the rhythm of a ceremony that asks to be felt as much as filmed. We've been here many times — and we know exactly where to be and when.
Teaser Film
Highlight Film
Teaser Film
Miramare Gardens · Terrey Hills
The gardens for the portraits, the room that fills as the night builds — we know how the light moves through Miramare and how the energy of the space translates on camera.
Teaser Film
Teaser Film
Choose How You'll Relive It
Every collection captures the whole day — the difference is how much of the story you keep around it, and how it's preserved for the years ahead.
01
$6,600$5,940
10% incentive discount
The essential story of your day, told in full where it matters most — both homes part of the story, the teaser, the cinematic highlight, and a documentary preserving the ceremony and key formalities. Everything that matters, with the freedom to add more whenever you're ready.
Includes
Add to this collection
02
$7,700$6,930
10% incentive discount
The full story of your day, preserved in documentary form — two cinematographers across both mornings, the teaser, the cinematic highlight, and the full documentary holding the ceremony, formalities and celebration as they unfolded. The complete record of your day.
Includes
Add to this collection
03
$9,800$8,820
10% incentive discount
Our most complete collection — your day captured in full and preserved in every form. Every film is included, from the teaser to the full documentary, so nothing of the day is left behind.
Includes
Add to this collection
Included with every collection — your films refined in a creative session with our studio manager Kristy, delivery to your hard drive plus a private online gallery with full download, and the full planning process behind the day.
Your Journey With Us
Before
You imagine it.
In every choice of the year before.
Where we started — getting to know your day, your vision, and what matters most to you both.
This page — your tailored collections, and everything each one includes.
Approve your collection and secure your date with a $2,000 booking deposit.
Regular emails from Kristy, our Creative Manager, on what's included and what to expect along the way.
Your Itinerary Questionnaire arrives — capturing every detail of the day — along with your invitation to a Creative Session with Kristy.
We summarise everything into your run sheet and finalise it together, and your Creative Session with Kristy shapes music, editing style and what makes the cut.
The Day
You live it.
The day itself, gone in a breath.
Two cinematographers, both mornings, the full celebration through to your firework exit — and you, simply present in it.
For Life
You return to it.
For the rest of your life.
A warm follow-up to confirm your editing style and music — with an optional second Creative Session with Kristy if you'd like one.
Your cinematic teaser, delivered within 1–2 weeks of the wedding.
Regular progress updates as each edit is crafted, through to final delivery.
Your finished films arrive for online viewing, approval and download. Once you've approved them, all edited films and your RAW footage are copied to the hard drive you've supplied, and we post the drive out to you — safe and sound.
Your films stay online for three months after approval — plenty of time to download, share, and relive it all whenever you like.
When the time comes — and we suspect it will — we'd love to film your little one's christening too. But let's get you down the aisle first.
We plan the first so you can be present for the second — and so the third is always worth coming home to.
Looking Ahead
Thank you for the time you spent with us, and for the trust that brought you here through Connie. From the two mornings to the firework exit at Miramare, this is clearly a day built on faith, family and the people who matter most — and we'd be honoured to be the ones who hold it.
Take a little time with everything, talk it over together, and let us know which direction feels right. With the date coming up, we're ready to move as soon as you are — and we'll take care of the rest.
Our hope is simple: that years from now, these films help you remember not just what happened on the fifth of September, but exactly what it felt like to be surrounded by everyone you love.
Any questions in the meantime, reach out any time — text, email or call.
With care, John & the CineMotive team