Travel through space with this sci-fi museum wedding (guest starring Yoda!)

The Offbeat Bride: Elizabeth, Senior Writer/Producer of Branded Entertainment

Her offbeat partner: Lucas, Instructional Designer

Date and location of wedding: Museum of the Moving Image, Astoria, NY — June 18, 2016

Our offbeat wedding at a glance:

Our geek chic wedding was all about subtle nerdy nods and location, location, location. There was a general sci-fi/fantasy/space theme. The Museum of the Moving Image was the one and only place we visited. The modern, stunning architecture was reminiscent of a spaceship! The theater and exhibits reflected our love of film, television, and gaming. We were both theater nerds growing up and both work in media fields today, so it was perfect. Oh, and did I mention Yoda lives at the museum? Yeah, Yoda was at our wedding.

After the location was locked, it was all about the details. Starting with the dress, I knew I wanted it to incorporate my favorite color, blue. My Madison James ball gown exceeded my wildest dreams. We also chose special footwear. The groom wore Converse with a Justice League design and I changed into Star Wars-themed flats by Irregular Choice.

My engagement ring and wedding band are one-of-kind celestial wonders. Custom designed by the groom and jeweler Kevin Feldmann, the engagement ring consists of an open design with a star-shaped diamond and sapphire. The wedding band interlocks between the two stones like an asteroid belt.

The save-the-date artwork was drawn by Kevin Raganit, an artist we met at Comic Con and follow on Instagram. We created the invitations ourselves using VistaPrint and kept the sci-fi theme going there as well.

Tell us about the ceremony:

When planning the ceremony, we knew we had to take advantage of the marvelous Sumner Redstone Theater. With help from our editor and sound designer friends, we put together a special video to introduce the night. Starting with our own take on the Star Wars opening crawl, the video was a love letter of quotes and moments from our favorite scifi/fantasy TV shows and movies.

The ceremony itself was officiated by my brother, as it had to be someone who really knew us. I entered to the The Inner Light orchestral suite from Star Trek:TNG. The groom’s vows drew inspiration from Doctor Who as he paralleled the attributes of the different Doctors and companions to the kind of husband he promised to be.

Tell us about your reception:

During cocktail hour, we invited the guests to explore the museum. There was a flipbook station where guests could create a flipbook that they could take home with them at the end of the night. There was also a classic arcade game exhibit which was a huge hit. Honestly, that exhibit could not have been a more perfect fit for my gamer husband. We love that we were able to provide our guests with an experience unlike any other wedding most of them had ever attended.

After play time in the museum, we had dinner and dancing. Instead of traditional table numbers, each table was named after a famous spaceship or time machine. I created the seating chart and table numbers myself with Photoshop. In lieu of a traditional guest book, I also created a custom poster for guests to sign — so that their names could be “written in the stars.”

Our first dance was to “How Long Will I Love You” from the movie About Time. My dad surprised me for the father/daughter dance by recording himself singing “The Way You Look Tonight.” My husband, who is adopted, was also able to share a dance with both of his mothers. We were able to fly his birth mother up from Colombia for her first trip to the USA.

What was your most important lesson learned?

The guest list was a big challenge for us. We had parents adding a lot of their friends who we didn't always know, and we were concerned about keeping the number of guests within the limits of what the museum could accommodate. The best advice I can give is to keep in mind that at least 20% of the people you invite will not be able to make it. So, that does give you some wiggle room when extending invites.

Vendors

• Venue: Museum of the Moving Image
• Caterer: David Josephs Catering
• Hair & Makeup: Eden Di Bianco
• Florist: Petals & Roots
• DJ: Michael Flatley aka DJ Tanner
• Photographer: Jerrit Pruyn
• Dress: Madison James (purchased at Kleinfeld)

Gallery

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