The Sweet Story of Jake Shick Productions

It all began with a donut. God works in mysterious ways, and often we can see that He has a great sense of humor. The story of one of the premier videography companies in East Tennessee, Jake Shick Productions, can be traced back to a donut, and it’s a sweet story.

“It just so happened that one day my mom went through a magazine and saw a really pretty cottage donut shop, and it just happened to be in Tennessee,” Jake recalled.

The Shicks are originally from California. That image was of the Donut Friar in Gatlinburg, and it inspired Jake’s mother and father to visit Gatlinburg to see if East Tennessee would be the right place for them to relocate. They fell in love with the area and months later the Shicks made the move. Jake stayed behind to continue his work in the Los Angeles entertainment industry, although he began hearing God’s voice calling him to move to Tennessee too.

“Honestly, it was God who brought me out here. I did everything I could to stay in L.A., but now I see God’s great blessing of having moved here,” Jake shared as he spoke about moving from California to Tennessee three years ago. It took him about six months to set up his business and each year it has grown successfully. Jake Shick Productions is thriving in East Tennessee and Jake attributes that to his faithfulness to the Lord.

Meet Jake Shick

Decades of Experience

Jake’s interest in videography began in junior high as he joined the broadcast journalism staff at school. He soon learned that video was his passion. His experience in videography began with old-style videotape recorders, and he learned to edit from the footage captured on the videotapes. As he grew deeper into his hobby, Jake saw technology move to the easier digital process we see today. Because of his early interest in video, Jake has decades of experience in the industry.

Later, in college, he majored in business administration with an interest in becoming an accountant. He shot weddings on the side during this time, and his love for video never wavered. Now, Jake is grateful for the business skills he uses on the operations side of his company.

Jake’s Cinematic Style

Jake describes his style as “cinematic yet real.” There are many trends in the photography and videography industry, but Jake sticks to a timeless and high-quality style that will stand the test of time. Overly edited footage can detract from the heart of a wedding production, and Jake strives to honor the real memory of your wedding by capturing moments with his classic and professional style. The team is dedicated to providing their clients with the most authentic representation of the wedding day. 

“It’s more like a documentary film. We want to make it as realistic as possible. There are videographers out there who want to make it look vintage, airy, or dramatic. For us, we want to tell the story as it is, as a real-life moment. It’s a real story but told in a way that you’re getting cinematic shots and good audio, but we’re allowing the real moments to play out. We don’t want to take away from what happened,” Jake explained when speaking about his classic style.

The Jake Shick Productions Team

Jake’s team consists of seven people who film and edit. Jake trains his team to film and edit in his style so that all videos have his signature look. The team shoots the footage with the highest quality technology, and they employ professional tactics to give their clients cinematic-quality productions. From start to finish, Jake Shick Productions handles the entire process. The company doesn’t outsource any aspect of the filmmaking so that the final product has the true feeling of the day and the couple.

“When outsourcing, those people doing the work don’t know the couple and there’s no heart in it. I never outsource anything; I oversee the projects I don’t personally shoot and make the final decisions on everything,” Jake said. “I’ve been able to teach my team my preferred style so that they can replicate it.”

Wedding Video Products from Jake Shick Productions 

Jake Shick Productions offers wedding productions in three lengths. These various options give brides flexibility when working with their wedding budget, and they also fulfill their different wants and needs. The productions range from one-minute and five-minute lengths to full-length productions. See examples of Jake’s work on his YouTube channel.

Wedding Trailer 

A wedding trailer is a quick, one-minute overview of the wedding day. The trailers are highly shareable and easy to distribute to loved ones. The turnaround time for a wedding trailer from Jake Shick Productions is one to two days, and they can act as a sneak peek for upcoming longer productions. This gives the bride a quality snapshot to share soon after her big day. 

Wedding Highlight 

The wedding highlight is a more comprehensive production while remaining shareable. Its 5-minute length contains more special moments than a wedding trailer but is easier to watch and share than a full-length production. According to Jake, 5-minute-length wedding highlights are common on the West Coast and the trend is becoming increasingly popular here in the East.

Full-Length Productions 

Full-length wedding videos were once the standard in the wedding-videography industry. These one or two hour productions are comprehensive and couples generally watch them on an anniversary, or rarely at all because of their length. Today, more brides are opting for shorter and more shareable products. A full-length wedding video will cover every moment of the wedding day, and a team of two videographers will work in tandem to accomplish this. This is a nice option for those who want to document the details of the entire day. 

“Wedding highlights are perfect for those wanting a beautiful love story told in a short amount of time. With our highlights, we’re able to condense it down and tell the story, and then make it something that couples want to watch over and over again,” Jake explained. “A full wedding film is for those wanting to see everything from their wedding day.”

The Importance of Investing in a Wedding Video 

One of the biggest regrets we hear from brides is that they didn’t hire a videographer. Your wedding day will only happen once. All the effort and resources you invest into the venue, food, décor, and other aspects of your wedding will be enjoyed for one day. After that, some memories remain but video ensures that those memories live on. 

“Couples spend so much money to have everything decorated and set up in a nice place. Having a videographer allows for those moments to be documented and enjoyed for a lifetime,” Jake explained. “This is one of those few moments when you’ll have everyone gathered, and things change as time goes on. Having a video that documents everyone at that stage of life will be more valuable as time goes on.”

Your wedding video will include the friends and family who were there to celebrate with you. Capturing those guests at that point in life will be even more special as time moves on and your loved ones grow older. When watching your wedding video, you will see and remember moments that might have been forgotten.

“You only get that day once. Wedding videos allow you to live in a time where everyone was together,” Jake added.

Saving the Day

“I remember one couple; they had a horrible wedding day last year. Her dress wasn’t fitting right, and she was super stressed,” Jake recalled. Jake and his team were filming as much as possible without capturing the bride’s stressful moments. They were able to put together a video of the positive moments. The bride assumed that her wedding video would be just as bad as her wedding day, but she was pleasantly surprised when she received her production. Her wedding video highlighted all the positive aspects of her special day while leaving out those stressful moments.

“She’s not going to remember all of the bad moments; she’s going to remember the good moments,” Jake shared. “If you have a bad wedding day, we’re only going to show off the good parts.”

More About Jake Shick Productions

Jake Shick Productions is authorized to shoot weddings and events in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park. The National Park only allows authorized photographers to professionally shoot photo and video footage inside the park’s boundaries. If you’re planning to get married inside the national park, be sure to hire an authorized professional like Jake Shick and his team.

Along with weddings, Jake Shick Productions produces content for individuals, corporations, small businesses, real estate agents, and more. The company offers drone photography and videography as well. Their services are available in Knoxville, Sevierville, Pigeon Forge, Gatlinburg, Chattanooga, and anywhere in East Tennessee. Jake is willing to travel farther if a client needs him to.

Included in Jake’s catalog of corporate work is video productions for the pro angler Ott Defoe. Defoe is a local professional fisherman who has more than 50 career Top 10 wins. You can see some of Jake’s work on Defoe’s YouTube channel here.

While Jake truly enjoys producing any type of video, weddings are his favorite and they make up three-quarters of his business. Contact Jake to receive a customized quote for your Smoky Mountain wedding.

“I love weddings,” Jake declared. “Your wedding day is one of the most important days of your life. I love it when I can help others relive that day for years to come.”

Romans 10:9-10

Jake proudly displays the Bible verse from Romans 10:9-10 on his website. Jake gives all credit for his talents and success to God.

“If I’m going to do this business, and if this is the business that God gave me, my hope and my goal are to make sure that I’m always giving Him the glory,” Jake expressed. “I hope that JS Productions is a light for the world representing Christ.”

It was Jake’s faith that led him to Tennessee and gave him the vision and ability to form Jake Shick Productions. He stands proud in his faith.

Smoky Mountain Wedding Association

Jake Shick Productions is a member of the Smoky Mountain Wedding Association. Brides planning a Smoky Mountain wedding can use our association as a resource for planning their dream wedding. Our group is made up of local businesses with a common goal of providing couples with a perfect Smoky Mountain wedding. The Smoky Mountain Wedding Association helps you create a day to remember with quality recommendations, advice, and help when you need it most.

View our site to find professional and talented wedding vendors like Jake Shick Productions. Our site is also a great resource for the latest wedding trends and advice for planning a Smoky Mountain destination wedding. Submit your information here to receive customized quotes from our local wedding professionals.

Authored in Appalachia || Amy Morton