SAN DIEGO (KGTV) — Pandemic wedding headaches inspired San Diego couple Hillary and Chris Soriano to write, direct, and star in their movie "The Wedding Hustler."
"They say planning a wedding is the most stressful day of your life. Now throw a movie on top of that," said Chris Soriano. I was like 'this is a disaster.'"
"My mom was like 'what's going on here?'" said Hillary Soriano.
It started when Chris Soriano proposed and immediately feel pressure from the pandemic. Finding a venue, caterers, and more became much more difficult as a result of pandemic restrictions.
The couple got married last May after postponing their ceremony twice. They had little film experience at the time, but the idea for a movie still came quickly.
"I just took all those experiences and said 'I'm sure there are a lot of people experiencing this right now in this pandemic,'" said Chris Soriano. "So if I can make a movie to shed some light on how to put on a wedding in the craziest time, hopefully, they'll be inspired to do it."
Couples emerged quickly and often, and the couple's first day of production was their real-life wedding day.
"That's our special wedding day, but the next day we have to be on set," said Hillary Soriano.
The couple released "The Wedding Hustler" in January, hitting ten theaters across the country and several more in the Philippines. Now it's available online, and the Sorianos hope viewers take away one message.
"You can be resourceful and pull off some of the hardest challenges of your life. And in our case we were able to do it with such a minimal, shoestring, budget," said Chris Soriano. "At the end of the day, the most important people will be there. And I hope they can get inspired by our story."
You can watch "The Wedding Hustler" on Amazon Prime and Apple TV.
