We checked in with two experts, a Hollywood filmmaker who’s been shooting here in New Jersey and a videographer who produces film-style video, to get the scoop on this exciting, new approach.

At the high-end of the spectrum are the serious filmmakers who have recently entered the wedding market, shooting and producing Hollywood quality films that rival anything in the theaters. This, of course, comes with a pretty hefty price tag, but if you’ve always wanted to star in your own movie, what better time than your wedding day.

“From a filmmaker’s perspective there is no comparison between film and video,” says Paul Kover, founder of Fifty Foot Films (877-343-8938; fiftyfootfilms.com), a media coverage company with offices in New York City and Los Angeles that has shot weddings in New Jersey. Kover is a filmmaker booking a lot of wedding shoots, despite the $5,000-plus price tag, because he says something shot on film—what you see on the big screen—resonates more emotionally with our memories, versus a videotaped program like Access Hollywood or reality television shows, which create a flatter image that is less alive.

Kover and his professional camera and sound use a small camera that is about the size of a hand-held consumer video camera. They employ what he calls in-camera editing, shooting only “the best stuff” during the reception. That means the lights go on only when they are shooting, which is less intrusive. Wedding couples choose the style of their own film: from super 8mm stock, which results in a “retro” look—like grainy home movies from the seventies—or 16mm film stock, which looks like a modern-day feature film. You can also rent one of Fifty Foot Film’s cameras to take along on your honeymoon, with Kover and his team supplying the professional editing and background music. The delivery timeframe for your own feature film runs about three months, and Fifty Foot Films charges $15 for additional DVDs, with lower prices for large quantities.

For those whose budgets aren’t on par with Hollywood but are still interested in a feature-film look, there’s film-style video. “When we shoot a video using a movie approach, we include an introduction, usually shot at the church, as well as different effects, like slow motion, sepia toned, and/or black-and-white segments, and movie-type credits,” says Rob Villano, founder of Villanovisions in Colonia (732-388-5551; villanovisions.com).