A Modern Destination Wedding with Hollywood Inspired Details
Tiffany and Roy's love story began in the most romantic location imaginable: the Astro Motel in Los Angeles, California. (Yes, they met in a motel.) It was their first semester at USC’s School of Cinematic Arts, and they were in the midst of planning their first films. After venting about her concerns for her upcoming first shoot, Tiffany's classmate recommended she reach out to one of their peers, Roy, who was incredibly savvy around a film set. Within a few days, Tiffany sent Roy a friend request on Facebook and reached out to him. Little did she know, he had been trying to add her multiple times for the past six months. Still, he generously agreed to meet her at the now infamous motel set.
“I thought he was nice, and made very interesting jokes to say the least,” Tiffany reflects. “Although I asked him to come help me, I only trusted him to help me with one shot. Boy, do I regret that one! That shot he set up was the best one! He’s so, so talented.”
“Life is a better writer than we'll ever be.”
“From the moment I met Tiffany, her genuine kindness and care for others almost seemed unreal,” Roy shares. “But that same day we met, when I witnessed her directing an actor, I realized I was in deep trouble. She is not only an incredibly talented director – she is also an incredible friend and person. I count myself as the luckiest man alive to have her by my side.”
Tiffany and Roy quickly developed a friendship. They immediately signed up to help each other on every project, leaning on each other for creative support. Finally, after a long month of back-to-back shoots, under the bright stars of their friend's beautiful Rolling Hills home, they revealed their feelings for one another. The date was November 14, 2016 – the very date they would become husband and wife six years later.
A Paso Robles Proposal
Fast forward to graduation day when both of their families and their best friends got together for dinner. Roy shares, “At that dinner, our parents gave us a gift, and that was a trip to our favorite place in the world, Paso Robles, for us and our two best friends (who were our best man and maid of honor) who had come to visit us for our ‘graduation.’ The next morning, we drove to Paso, and went to this winery, where I had scheduled this private ‘tour.’ They took us around the property to distract Tiffany as our family made their way into the area they needed to be in to surprise her.”
The tour guide then led them to the bell tower. As they took in the view, a guitar began to play, setting the perfect tone for a Paso Robles proposal.
“My brother and his girlfriend were walking up the stairs singing ‘Bless The Broken Road,’ Tiff’s favorite love song,” Roy describes. “Our families followed them, and surprised Tiffany. Surrounded by family and our two best friends, while listening to Tiff’s favorite song in our favorite place, I got down on one knee. She said yes, and we then spent the most beautiful day out in Paso Robles, tasting wine, dining, and celebrating our love and the union of our families.”
A Destination Wedding at Bella Collina in Central Florida
When it came time to plan their special day, Tiffany and Roy always knew it would be a destination wedding since their friends and family were scattered all over the world. After three years of searching for the perfect spot that was easy for everyone to get to, they stumbled across Bella Collina and couldn’t believe that it was in Central Florida. It was the perfect midpoint for all their guests.
As filmmakers, the couple had extremely high expectations for two roles: their wedding planner and their wedding photographer/videographer.
“Luckily, they were our two best decisions,” the couple says. “Our wedding planner, Brandee Gaar, was an absolute dream to work with. She really understood us, and somehow managed to bring every little detail we envisioned to life. I could cry so many happy tears talking about Nate Puhr, our wedding photographer and videographer. As filmmakers, I didn’t know how we were going to be at ease with this portion of our planning, and I think this was the area we felt the most comfortable with. Nate's personality, his talent, his incredible eye, allowed us to forget about getting ‘the shot’ for once in our lives. We were in the most incredible hands – hands much more talented than ours, for sure.”
“Overall our wedding planning process was a labor of love,” Tiffany continues. “We poured our heart and soul into making this wedding an experience for our guests who did so much to be with us on this day. Weeks leading up to the wedding, I think I slept an average of 45 minutes a night, which I don’t recommend. We traveled from Miami, where we live, to Orlando back and forth, quite a bit too. But seeing so many wonderful artists and professionals, along with my family and friends, coming together to make this day a reality was truly such a memorable experience. It really does take a village.”
A Modern Wedding with Hollywood Inspired Details
Tiffany and Roy wanted their wedding to feel modern, dreamlike, and most importantly, like a movie. As filmmakers, they incorporated a touch of Hollywood inspired details throughout the décor. They even told guests to go all out and dress as if they were going to the Oscars. A step and repeat was set up with a white carpet, and the couple had “paparazzi” that took photos and conducted interviews.
Every table was named after one of their favorite film or TV couples (i.e. Ross and Rachel, Noah and Allie, Lucy and Ricky). One of the most fun things they did was a little challenge at the beginning of the reception where the DJ gave them one song to take a picture with each table. Guests loved it, and because of this, they got a picture with every guest.
The bride walked down the aisle to a rendition of “Bless the Broken Road.” The song is about the road to love and how although imperfect and broken, it is worth every step. A few months into dating Roy, it quickly became their song and they knew this was the song she would walk down the aisle to.
Tiffany shares, “In my wedding vows, I spoke about how life is a better writer than we'll ever be. Our wedding was truly that. It was better than any vision or daydream I had. Life truly wrote the most spectacular wedding day for us.”
The couple’s reception was a beautiful fusion between their cultures. They had Latin, Israeli, Greek and American music all throughout the night. They kicked hora loca off with a New Year’s Eve style countdown with confetti and did the hora as well. Finally, they kicked off late night bites with “Empire State of Mind” playing as hot dogs and French fries were being passed around as a nod to New York.
Another special touch included the invitation suite. Tiffany explains, “My mother, who was diagnosed with breast cancer when she was pregnant with me, said she would become an artist, finally start her company and name it after the baby if we survived. Having my mother not only stand by my side through every single part of the process, while also being the one to do our wedding stationery, truly meant so much.”
“Our wedding day exceeded my wildest dreams, especially thanks to Tiffany's extraordinary vision,” says Roy. “The presence of our loved ones while getting to marry my best friend, was everything I could have hoped for and more. It truly was the best day of my life.”
WEDDING TALENT
Location: The Club at Bella Collina, Monteverde, FL; Planning & Event Design: Brandee Gaar, Orlando, FL; Floral Design: Rodri Studio, Inc., Miami, FL; Rentals: Gala Rental, Event Effects, Orlando, FL; Linen: Over The Top Rental Linens, Orlando, FL; Lighting: FyerFly Productions; Stationery: Tiffy New York, Miami, FL; Photography: Nate Puhr, Orlando, FL