5 out of 5 stars and 42 reviews
5
(42)Best of Weddings (3x).Milwaukee, Chicago, Door County, the U.S., and Worldwide
About this vendor
An intimate operation by filmmaker Thomas John Houting. I produce work that is nostalgic, sincere, emotional, ethereal, sometimes moody and dramatic, sometimes upbeat and anthemic. But always designed to preserve the beginning of your epic adventure and shape it in a beautiful, cinematic way. You'll be in good hands from the moment you book, and the products you receive are designed to be well worth the investment you make.
Details
Destination Weddings
- Destination Wedding Packages
Photo & Video
- Digital Files
- Drone
- Second Shooter Available
- Social Media Sharing
- Video
- Full-Length Video
Photo & Video Styles
- Artistic
- Documentary
- Dramatic
Wedding Activities
- Getting Engaged
- Rehearsals & Parties
- After Party
- Wedding
- After Party
Awards and Affiliations
Reviews
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5
out of 5.042 reviews
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When we stumbled upon Character D Films while planning our wedding, we knew INSTANTLY that Thomas and his team had something special. (If you haven’t seen any of their videos yet and are just starting to read reviews, stop what you’re doing and go watch one because just... wow.) Their style and gift for storytelling stood out from the start, but to say that we were blown away once we received our teaser/full video is an understatement.
On our wedding day, they made us feel like we've known them for years. As a couple who isn’t always super comfortable in front of the camera, we were amazed at how natural, relaxed, and ourselves we felt.
The final videos are beyond anything we could have imagined!!! The content, the music, the editing, all of the big and small (or goofy) moments... They brought our day back to life in a way that’s not only cinematic, but true to who we are. Watching it feels like time-traveling right back to those feelings of happiness and we’re so grateful to have that forever.
We could go on and on about how incredible our experience was with Character D Films, but in short summary: If you're looking for a videographer to give you an experience, a feeling, a memory that you get to relive again and again... You're in the right place. We couldn’t recommend them more highly. Thank you Character D Films for everything! 🤍
Thomas and his team were so professional and made everyone feel so comfortable throughout the whole day! Our sneak preview was like a movie trailer into the best day of my husbands and I's life and the full wedding video was a tear jerker!!! Thomas and his teams attention to detail and creativity are unmatched!
Thomas is absolutely amazing at what he does. Not only does he and his team capture all of the precious moments from your day, but the videos he creates are absolutely INCREDIBLE. Both our teaser and 15 minute wedding video bring us to tears every single time we watch them (which is a lot because they're so amazing). As a bride, the wedding day goes by so fast and there are so many fleeting moments and even moments you are not a part of, or don't get to see. Having those moments captured and put into a beautiful film for you to look at for years to come is so worth it.
Talent and hard work aside, Thomas is so kind and communicates wonderfully. He responds to emails within 24 hours and sends updates on when you will receive your films, so you're not waiting in the dark. On the actual wedding day he was so kind and helpful, making me and my husband feel comfortable in front of the camera. He even went over his contracted time for us, because I wanted footage in my second outfit.
He is worth every penny.
Thank you, Thomas!
Our experience with Character D Films and Thomas was extraordinary. Thomas's keen eye for detail and storytelling resulted in a wedding film that exceeded our wildest expectations!
Thomas and his assistant Tony captured authentic moments, weaving them into a cinematic masterpiece that beautifully encapsulated our love story. Their creative flair, combined with a subtle and unobtrusive style, made the entire process enjoyable and stress-free.
We highly recommend Character D Films and Thomas for couples seeking a videographer who turns moments into timeless works of art. Thanks to Thomas and Tony for preserving our memories so beautifully!
Hiring Thomas (Character D) was one of the best decisions we made for our wedding day! As a fellow wedding videographer, I knew what I wanted and Thomas delivered! I had pretty high expectations and he blew me away with our teaser and full highlight film. He made myself and my wife feel very comfortable while shooting and was so much fun to have around on our wedding day! I highly recommend Thomas to anyone who wants to take in the wedding day and relax knowing they hired one of the best. I'll always cherish the videos he made for us!
My husband and I were unsure if we wanted to invest in a wedding videographer but ultimately decided to hire Character D Films. Looking back now, hiring Thomas was one of the best decisions we made on our wedding day! We could not be more in love with our film and all the memories we get to relive watching it. Thomas truly has a gift for authentically capturing his couples and creating film that matches their day perfectly.
We didn't get a chance to meet Thomas in person until the morning of our wedding but when he showed up he immediately made both of us feel comfortable. He knows exactly how to get the shots he needs without being intrusive or interrupting the natural progression of your day.
We could not be happier with our experience with Character D Films and highly recommend Thomas to everyone.
Cannot say enough great things about working with Thomas - so much fun and he's absolutely incredible capturing and putting everything together. He made the day so much more special and knowing we have our wedding video to rewatch over and over again is priceless. Highly recommend Thomas!!!
Going with Character D Films was one of the easiest decisions for our wedding. We had a 15min phone call with Thomas and just knew he would be amazing, and boy were we right. Not only is his work STUNNING (seriously he had us crying at stranger’s wedding videos) but he was so fun to work with on our wedding day! You can easily tell how passionate he is about what he does and he always knows how to capture the most perfect, genuine moment. He was super organized and made capturing our day seem so easy. Thomas was extremely professional and easy-going. I’m almost sad we only got to work with him for 10hrs. Booking Character D is one of the best decisions we made and I will always recommend him to everyone I know.
We had a great experience with Thomas! His work is amazing and it's evident how much time and detail he puts into it. He responded within a timely manner and had great communication. Throughout our wedding day, Thomas made us feel important and helped make our day run smoothly. He was so easy to work with and I couldn't recommend Character D Films enough!
Videography for our wedding day was such a high priority for my husband and I. Our wedding brought together our favorite people in the entire world from all over the world and capturing this was of such high value for us. We are so thrilled to have entrusted Thomas at Character D Films. We were married 7/30/2022 and honestly, I listened to the video in my car, TODAY 4/21/2023. The video is so moving, meaninful and captured the essence of the day and us so perfectly. i cant referr Character D highly enough to capture special moments and memories. We are so grateful for their talent!
If, for whatever reason, you're on the fence about hiring Character D, do yourself a favor and book them now! This was one of the best decisions we made throughout our entire wedding planning process. Your wedding day will fly by, but Thomas will be able to help you relive it, with all of the emotions, again and again. His talent is unmatched, but on top of that, him and his team are such a pleasure to be around and are the ultimate hype team that you need throughout your entire day.
We could not be happier with our finished videos and are also SO glad we got the package that included the raw footage.
Thank you, Thomas and team, for being so awesome! We could not be more grateful.
Thomas is an absolute dream. So easy to work with, is clear about steps and timing and boy, does he deliver. Cannot recommend Character D Films enough!!
When an individual thinks about their wedding day they envision a day they probably will never get to enjoy play out. You don’t realize how intense weddings are until the day is over. Friends and family filling cups of joy your significant other and you will drink from for years on end. Character D films made it possible for my husband and I to relive our wedding day through the lenses of our guests. They created a beautiful video that will last us years on end for generation after generation to enjoy. I highly recommend! Best work I’ve seen, ever! The crew was also excellent and made the stressors of wedding day feel like nothing. Great vibes and positive outlooks. Very punctual, professional yet easy going couple of peeps.
Step 1 go look at his Instagram account Step 2 grab some tissues because you will be crying.
I’m a firm believer that a review is worth a million dollars. Which is why I felt it is necessary to leave one!
When we met Thomas- my first words were “I want my video to make me cry- we need tears”. He said no worries. During our wedding day he arrived early- him and tony. They introduced themselves and let us know that they are going to do some videoing. Throughout the day they were with us - but it was never overwhelming where I felt like they were in the way. They gave us ideas and made sure we knew- we could voice any of our opinions. They kept saying it’s your days- what do you want. Which I loved! We mentioned some places to go to and they mentioned their recommendations as well. If you’re searching for someone just stop. This is who you want. Thomas & tony! Grateful we were able to book them and they were available for our wedding date. I can’t wait to see our video so I can cry !
Do yourself a favor and hire Character D Films for your wedding! We just received the teaser for our wedding video, and I have no words...Thomas and his team are SO talented. If the teaser alone made our whole family cry, I can only imagine what the full video will be!
Not only does his work speak for itself, but Thomas was also so wonderful to work with on the wedding day and leading up to it. He offered so many creative ideas for shots, made us feel comfortable, and was so kind. Character D Films captured our special day so beautifully, and it is something we will cherish forever!
The moment we came across Thomas’ cinematic work we knew we wanted him to be the story teller of our wedding. It was evident that Thomas puts an extensive amount of thought and personalization into every film he creates. We had an exceptionally jam packed day and Thomas took the time to learn about and understand the symbolism of our cultural ceremony. His team was great at capturing all the important shots during both our ceremonies and never felt like a distraction. The film and teaser both captured the essence of our day and emotion of the ceremonies so beautifully. We are in total awe of Thomas’s work. It had us laughing and crying and it far exceeded our expectations. We could seriously not love it any more 💓 We loved working with Thomas and his crew!
We loved our experience working with Thomas and team at Character D Films! We first ran across Thomas' videos after one of our coworkers used them for our Chicago wedding, and we were instantly hooked. First, their videos are GORGEOUS. Love the cinematic approach, and we are suckers for a good drone shot. From the beginning of the planning process, Thomas was very responsive, friendly, and accommodating. On the day of, amid the usual anxiety and stress, Thomas and his team put us both at ease - even though we are not naturals in front of the camera. We are so glad we went with Character D Films for our videography and cannot wait to see the final product!
Tom & his team are amazing! It was easy to choose him as our videographer for our wedding after seeing his work and speaking with him. He is so professional and his films are absolutely stunning. He captured our day so perfectly and we are so grateful to him and his team for their time and effort!
Looking for a videographer? Your search ends now! Thomas & his team ARE IT. For a once in a lifetime event like our wedding, it is so vital to have a creative, attentive videographer to be able to capture every single moment & emotion on your wedding day. Thomas & his team did just that - they were so fun to work with & made everyone feel so comfortable. We also get a copy of the raw footage, which is awesome! It was fun being able to go through & re-live random events throughout the day (especially since it goes in a blink of an eye).
Our wedding teaser & video is truly something we will cherish & re-watch for the decades to come.
Thomas and his team were so great and easy to work with! They also worked will with all of our vendors, especially our photographer. The teaser and final wedding film exceeded our expectations and we could not be happier!!!
Thomas is so professional and made our vision of the perfect wedding video come to life. It was the absolute best money we spent on our wedding. This video is a treasure that we will never forget and we cannot thank him enough!
Thomas was so wonderful to work with! He was always easy to get ahold of, extremely kind and flexible when we had to reschedule, and so nice to have around on the day of.
The video footage we had was so stunning and magical and it really captured our day perfectly.
I was on the fence about having a wedding video and it was by far my favorite decision I made. The raw footage alone is some of the most amazing keepsakes I have.
Thank you Thomas!
Character D did an absolutely fantastic job with documenting our wedding! Right from the first meeting Thomas was responsive, friendly, and had a clear vision of how to capture our wedding day. When it came time for the big day- both my husband and I were impressed with how easy to work with them it was. We’re both not used to being in front of the camera, and the entire process was so easy because of Thomas. We didn’t even realize he was there sometimes! He captured and curated on of our our most valuable possessions now. Our wedding film is incredibly beautiful, unique to us, and we feel so grateful to have Character D document our wedding. 100% worth the investment!!
Wow. I am honestly blown away, speechless and IN LOVE with Character D Films & Tom! Words cannot begin to describe how amazing our experience was with Tom. He is kind, personable, and incredibly talented. You can tell he is so passionate, and puts his heart and soul into every wedding he captures. I have watched several of the videos he’s captured for other couples and each one is special, unique and different.
Not only was our special day the happiest day of our lives, but Tom has given us the gift to relive that day over and over. I have watched our video every day since he sent it to us and it still hits me the same as it did the first time I saw it. It is more perfect and beautiful than I could have imagined.
I couldn’t have asked for a more amazing person/business to capture a page in our love story.
I wish there was a stronger word for “Thank you,” but it just doesn’t do my gratitude for Tom & Character D Films justice!!
I have been following Thomas’ work for years since he was the videographer for a classmates wedding years ago. He was my first choice in videographers. Thomas was absolutely amazing to work with. He has a creative eye that really captured our love and raw emotions on our wedding day. Everyone who say our wedding teaser and video said it was like a movie! The ability to use drone footage really highlighted Milwaukee and our history in this city. He’s truly the best.
Absolutely amazing! Thomas and his team were professional and great to work with throughout the process. The film from our day was incredible!
Planning a wedding during COVID was not an easy task, but with the help of Thomas it was manageable. Thomas was able to have 250+ of our family and friends tune into our ceremony via live stream and also create a highlight reel for us to cherish forever. Thomas' cool and calm energy was so welcomed throughout the day and everyone raved about his team. Thank you for everything! You made our dreams come true.
It is difficult to put into words how lucky we were to have Thomas capture our wedding day amid a global pandemic. We were one of the hundreds of 2020 couples that found themselves having to re-plan their wedding from the ground-up a couple of months before our original wedding date due to COVID-19. We had Thomas set to shoot our May 2020 wedding, and when getting married during the early stages of the pandemic became impossible due to mandatory quarantines, business shut-downs, and limits on gathering sizes, we had to come to the tough reality that a full reschedule with all new vendors would have to happen if we wanted to still get married during the Summer of 2020. However, Thomas was one of the only vendors that was able to stay completely flexible through literally 5 separate planned iterations (and hundreds of emails from an understandably-stressed couple) of what our pandemic wedding would look like – in different states, cities, and venues. We were more than thrilled when we were able to keep Thomas on to capture our Door County, Wisconsin outdoor, summer wedding of 40 of our closest family and friends.
Besides his ability to stay completely flexible during a brand new situation for everyone involved, his ultimate video product was a thing of pure beauty and art. Even the one minute long teaser video that he released was incredible. His ability to use a drone to capture imagines and angles of the surrounding landscape of the venue as well as the Church was truly special. Although our wedding was smaller due to COVID worries and restrictions, Thomas captured all things special during our day. All you have to do is watch our teaser and video on Thomas’s page and you will be sold on his talent. We cannot speak highly enough of Thomas Houting – he created a keepsake wedding video for us that we will enjoy for actual generations, something that we thought we would never be lucky enough to have during the early stages of 2020. We wish we could get married again (without the pandemic), just to hang out with Thomas again!!
https://vimeo.com/466371505
The Character D team was AMAZING on our wedding day. We knew they would make a beautiful video based on the work displayed throughout their website but we were most impressed by how seamlessly they integrated themselves into our day. Something I never considered was how important it is for a photographer and videographer to be on the same page and Thomas + our photographers were amazing. The day was so smooth and I know it is because of the expertise of the vendors we chose. I also appreciated working with Thomas leading up to our day because he was so helpful, listened to our vision, and ensured everything would work out. We last minute asked him to livestream our ceremony and he made it seem like it was no big deal. We greatly appreciated his kindness and flexibility.
We cannot thank the Character D team enough for their incredible work. Every aspect of the process was pleasant, stress-free, and simply a joy.
On the day-of, the team arrived in Madison ready to go and operated with a larger vision in mind. Throughout the day, they captured every detail without adding any stress and provided clear direction when needed. With the flurry of wedding activity, we--along with our families, friends, and other vendors--felt supported and cared for every step of the way.
Thomas kept us informed throughout the editing and review process, even while having to navigate through the significant impact of a pandemic. We are simply blown away with the end result! Being able to re-live the entire day is something that we cherish, especially as our memory became a little hazier later in the evening. We regularly watch our video not only to remember that special day, but marvel at the amazing work by Character D with us as the stars. The added benefit of being able to see the raw footage from the entire day is especially important to us.
For anyone needing to document those special moments in life, we cannot recommend Character D highly enough.
Character D outdid themselves for our wedding teaser and full video - we truly couldn’t be happier. From initial meeting to getting the final product, Thomas and team were super friendly, helpful, and easy to work with. They asked the right questions to understand what my husband and I wanted, and captured every detail we asked for (and then some!) the amount of images shown in a short amount of time far exceeds most videos I’ve seen, and the audio is flawlessly integrated with the imagery and captured our day perfectly - upbeat/creative/funny/romantic - I would recommend Character D to any couple looking for a high quality video with audio!
We recently received our video from Thomas and team, and all we could say was WOW. First of all, for those who are still deciding whether or not to hire a videographer- DO IT, and hire Character D while you're at it ;) Something no one told me is that I'd look back on my wedding day and wish I could relive it over and over again. Thomas made that wish come true. Seriously, his ability to capture the essence of our day was remarkable. No memory I have has been as vivid and accurate and COMPLETE as Thomas' rendering of that day. I feel so grateful to have our day in a capsule for the rest of our lives.
Ok, so now that you're convinced you need a videographer, let's take about why Character D is the ONE. From the very beginning I could tell that Thomas "got it". From his initial call to get to know us to the questionnaire he asked us to complete before the wedding, I could tell he was extremely invested in and passionate about telling our unique story. He understands that he only meets the couple in person on the day of their wedding and there is no time to get to know them. Therefore, he does the work up front. I can see how all of that pre-work came to life in our video. It's like he knew exactly what was important to us and didn't miss a thing!
Last thing- the clincher. Watch our video. Sarah and Philip in Chicago. Maybe I'm bias, but if I were you...my mind would be made up.
I would not recommend any other person than Thomas for all of your videography needs! We were on the fence in creating room in our wedding budget for one, but we are SO glad that we did.
Thomas did one of my friends weddings that I was a part of, and I was first impressed by his skill in working the scene, while being immensely kind, calm, and collected throughout it all. Then when I saw my friends video come out, I KNEW I had to hire him!
He is the absolute Beethoven of videographers, truly. From the flow of the video, to the music choice, to the captured sentimental moments, down to every last detail of the day- we could not be happier with our experience with him and the end product of our video which we will be able to keep for the rest of our lives.
I will shout Character D's name from the mountain tops for all whom I know about to get married. Make the right choice and book him!
Thomas and his crew were amazing! Our wedding video was spectacular and we couldn't be happier! The quality of the film and Thomas' creativity went above and beyond our expectations. We received our film and footage in a reasonable time.
Thomas was the best partner in crime
To work with. He was very attentive and eager to make our visions and ideas come to life. His technical skills, gear etc are the best in the Milwaukee area, maybe even Chicago.
One of the things I loved most working with him was how open he was to our feedback, on the creative process, editing etc. He offered the most value for what we were looking to pay, yep very reasonably priced. He’s passionate about what he does and will go above and beyond to create what we now consider some of our most beautiful memories. I can’t begin to say how thankful I am for his work on our wedding day/weekend! To look back and see our day thru his eyes and artistic perspective is like a movie that takes our breath away each and every time. I’m so thankful for the opportunity we had to have him be a part of our wedding team and I feel like anyone else looking for some serious cinematography should most certainly look him up! This is important you guys, when time corrodes your memories it’ll be his vision and art that will keep it alive and amazing!!! Our wedding actually won a National Award for best wedding of the year and I think his films had everything to do with it!
Character D films created beautiful videos of our wedding day that really captured all the best moments. The team was incredibly professional and unobtrusive, while still managing to be present for everything. They were very fun and easy to be around throughout the wedding. The final product is beautiful! We are grateful to have such a high-quality video to remember our day.
OUTSTANDING! I had the pleasure of first experiencing Character D's fantastic work as he filmed my twin sisters wedding in 2016. The video, to this day, still makes me openly weep. It's beautiful and captured my sister and her husband perfectly. So when my (now husband) and I got engaged, our first contact was Character D. We didn't even have a location yet, we just knew that wherever this wedding was going to be, we needed Thomas and his crew there to film it. As a professional videographer myself, I know the tireless hours and all the heart you pour into each film and Thomas knocks it out of the park every time. He noticed all the little details we loved about our wedding, that made it uniquely us, and edited it into this emotionally beautiful video. People that I only know in passing have come up to me, told me that they saw my wedding video and cried happy tears because it was so lovely. There are certain things you should splurge on for a wedding and honestly, video is one of them. It's a gift to your future self for a day that you put countless hours of work into to marry the love of your life. I couldn't recommend Character D more highly...if I had a triplet and not just a twin, they'd definitely use Character D too 😉
Character D filmed and produced my wedding video and I couldn’t recommend them enough. I was floored by their video and the final product was beyond what I expected. Your wedding day goes by in such a flash, and you forget a lot of the details, but Character D not only captured the wedding, but they were able to portray the style, emotions and feelings through their video. Their film crew was extremely easy to work with and non-obtrusive. They knew what shots would end up making a good video and they executed at a masterful degree. I can now relive my wedding exactly as I remembered it with the unbelievable video they provided for my wife and I. We give them a 10/10 and recommend them to anyone looking for a videographer.
Even just thinking about the beauty that Thomas and his team created brings tears to my eyes. This was the best decision we made on our wedding day - besides saying "I do"...haha. I am so thankful for the films they created for us - we will cherish these FOREVER.
Thomas is amazing!! From the time you meet him you can tell that he’s someone you can be comfortable around, which is important because you get to hang out with him for a big part of your day! He was organized, communicated expected dates of the teaser/ full video, and responded promptly to any questions we had. Even though we gave him an idea of what we wanted, he created something so much better than we could have ever imagined. If your looking for someone to capture your day in a magical and timeless way, Thomas is your guy!
Thomas and the team at Character D Films were amazing to work with - from our initial inquiry to the delivery of our wedding film! Their website is very informative and Thomas was quick to respond to any questions I had prior to booking them for our wedding day. They were always very professional and kept in communication with us after our wedding to update us on when the trailer film and our full wedding video would be delivered. Even though wedding videography is usually not a top priority for many people, we found that having Thomas capture our wedding day was the best decision we made! We will cherish the videos and all of the footage - which he offers at a great price - for the rest of our lives. He not only captured our wedding day through video, but he crafted a beautiful film that exceeded our expectations! We will be recommending him to all of our friends and family who get engaged in the future. Thank You for everything Thomas!
Wonderful, fun and creative team to work with. It's so important to be around people who you trust and find enjoyable on your wedding day. The final product was absolute perfection. Now I'm just trying to figure out a way I can hire them again to capture another big moment in our lives. They are great!
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Milwaukee, Chicago, Door County, the U.S., and Worldwide
Character D Films
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