An Adventurous Love Story

A New Path

 
 

The story behind the film

Hiking is one of Chelsey & Ben’s favorite things to do together, so it was only natural for their love story to take place through the cobbled trails and thick trees of St. Croix Falls, WI. But I wanted to capture more than what meets the eye. I wanted to show their deeper connection, and how that will lead them on beautiful adventures throughout their lives.

One thing they told me they love about one another is how they balance each other out. Ben is more of a planner, and Chelsey is more of a free spirit. As Ben says in the film, “one thing I love about Chelsey is she can go out and do her own thing.” And Chelsey mentions how Ben helps her “keep it within reason.” So I wanted to symbolize how this balance makes them so great together.

To do this, I filmed their journey starting at the water’s edge, and ending overlooking the water. This symbolizes that they have made to their ultimate destination together. But I also wanted to show that they didn’t get by chance. As a planner, Ben packs the bags and plots their path. And as a free spirit, Chelsey pulls ben off trail (literally at 5:53) and up some rocky cliffs.

So when they reach the summit in the end, it’s only through each other’s differences that they were able to get there. They were each other’s compass. The love story reaches the end at the highest point possible at Interstate State Park, and concludes with a sunset picnic just like the one they had the night of their engagement.

 
 

Hidden gems

 

  • During their hike, I show Chelsey slipping on a log which reflects her roller blading fall on one of their first dates. This time though, she doesn’t fall because Ben is there to catch her.

  • During the picnic scene, Chelsey & Ben play Spin the Bottle with the actual bottle from their engagement picnic.

  • The picnic scene itself is a recreation of the wine and cheese picnic they had together on the St. Croix River on the night of their engagement.