Creative filmmakers Spain | Beautiful wedding stories told through the photographer’s lens

Love stories beautifully captured on the Costa del Sol by creative filmmakers YES AND TONIC.

Let’s find out more about this artistic duo and the story behind the original name.

We are Pablo and Ana, sunset catchers, adventure wonders and lovers. We also are both creative filmmakers with over 11 years experience in the advertisement industry.

In 2019 we were in NY on vacation and both of us were saying how wonderful it would be to quit our jobs and start something new and ours, that kind of “I WANNA BE MY OWN BOSS”… train of thought. During that trip, walking the streets of NY, we coined the name YES AND TONIC, (so in reality it’s a New Yorker name) and without really knowing where our dreams were going to take us, we created an email account and instagram account, just in case another person, somewhere, coincidentally coined the name too and took it.

And why YES AND TONIC? Because we knew we wanted something in English, easy to spell and pronounce in both Spanish and English, because we both live in Spain and 60% of our clients are from the Mediterranean area. On the other hand, we didn’t want to have a name solely based on the wedding industry, but something catchy and something that reflected us and what we believe, which is to actively seek “discomfort” by stepping out of our comfort zone. The “YES” being what moves us. The feeling of saying YES to the new and unknown adventures and experiences, a YES to live life to the fullest we can. And also that big and magical “YES” people say to each other at the altar.

For us “TONIC” is the vigour or well-being side of things, something that invigorates you… And also music related: denoting the first degree of a scale.

So when you say YES to the unknown and to new things, you get a buzz of excitement, that good sensation that gives you power. We all should say YES more often and say NO to being scared.

We currently live in Malaga (Spain), but we feel we are citizens of the world. Travel could be our middle name and we especially love travelling to cover a wedding or event. So far we have covered weddings at Mykonos, Morocco, Mexico, and all over Spain.

We love to go wherever life, or a couple, takes us!

Where does your passion to become a Videographer come from?

Videography is an art of storytelling and storytelling is our passion, especially love stories. Our passion to become a videographer is telling stories, but mainly the best stories possible: THE LOVE ONES.

I [ Ana ] always wanted to become a storyteller and a copywriter, I believe I’m a naturally creative person. Pablo on the other hand is super technical, he has the eye to transform any clip into something unique. Having a camera in hand and taking the best shot is second nature to him, because it’s what he has always done, since he was 13, in his old skater days.

Videography is something that allows us to get close and bring out the best in people and their stories. Our goal is to express that story in as cool, enjoyable and stylish a version as possible.

We don’t transform anything we UPGRADE to its better version and make things look as close to a cool music video clip as possible.

How would you describe your videograph style? Do you script scenarios or is it more a documentary style?

It’s super easy to talk about our style, because we are a mix of different ones. We script when we think we should and we document when it’s necessary. But basically we work like ninjas (in an efficient and largely undetected way) recording everything, even the most nonsense act, there we are, catching it up on our cameras.

Our work is a collage, we like to have flow and we love to surprise everyone with our end results when watching our films. The definition of our work is alternative, innovative and experimental—somewhere between a music video clip style to a fashion film. We love to bring in a cinematic look to the final version, with creative shots and bring the storytelling together fluidly, thanks to many years in the advertising field.

What do you most love about your job when working at weddings?

PEOPLE.

We love how we can create big and deep connections with people in such a short time. It’s something we are still trying to understand because in the advertising field it doesn’t exist, but at weddings we often become “family” with lots of strangers, and sometimes they stay in our lives forever. It’s something that even scares us, because we get super attached to the couples and their loved ones, and when the wedding finishes and we deliver the final video, it’s kind of breaking up a beautiful relationship that somehow came to its end.

So we go over lot’s of “breaking up moments” during the year and it has that bittersweet taste at the end. But it’s undeniably MAGICAL at the same time.

How long does it take you to prepare the wedding video for the bridal couple?

It depends. Weddings are, by far, totally different from other projects, and we don’t work on a deadline… As other big and successful filmmakers on the field we try to deliver in between 6 to 12 months time. Some people think it is TOO MUCH. But if we rush, the end piece just wouldn’t be the same. We don’t like to use excuses, so it’s just easier to say it will be a while, but it will be worth it.

For those couples that CAN’T HANDLE THE WAIT we have a service where we can produce a video in the space of approximately two weeks, depending on the demand for this fast turnaround service.

But please remember WE ARE NOT ROBOTS, we have to eat, sleep and have fun too, so when offering this kind of service, it often means a huge sacrifice for us, where we have to cut back on our fun and more often than not sleep too!

Enjoy the process and worry less. Just as you have waited and been patient for your big day, and it was worth the wait, we say the same: “Take a seat because the wait will bring you the most amazing result of the best day in your life.”

On behalf of Sunshine Weddings Spain, a huge thanks to sunset catchers Pablo and Ana, a forward-thinking and professional couple whose vision is dynamic and fun, for sharing your insight into what it takes to be a great film and photo wedding art team. We wish you all the best and look forward to seeing more of your outstanding photos and videos this wedding season.