TL;DR
A Same Day Edit (SDE) is a 3–5 minute film screened at your reception on your wedding day — cut and colour-graded from morning footage while your ceremony and cocktail hour proceed. It costs £1,200–£2,500 as an add-on in the UK, or is included in comprehensive packages from £5,500. It is one of the highest-impact moments MKTRL delivers — watching your morning together on a ballroom screen during dinner. But it is not right for every couple, every venue, or every day structure. This guide gives you a decision framework: when SDE is worth it, what the venue and logistics requirements actually are, what the cost breaks down to, and who should skip it entirely.
What an SDE is — and what it is not
The SDE is not a rough cut or a preview of your final film. It is a purpose-built, independently produced 3–5 minute short film, colour-graded, scored with licensed music, and designed to be shown to a room of 80–300 people during a live event. It is emotionally calibrated for the moment: raw, fast, designed to land rather than to be perfect.
It is also not a substitute for your full highlight film or documentary feature. Those arrive 8–16 weeks later. The SDE is the premiere — a live experience built into your wedding day, not a file you watch at home afterwards.
The concept originated in South Asian and East Asian wedding traditions where multi-hour celebrations create natural screening windows. It has since moved into mainstream UK and EU weddings, primarily at larger venues with existing AV infrastructure and formal dinner programmes. Roughly 15% of MKTRL weddings in 2025–2026 included an SDE booking.
The SDE decision framework
Work through the following questions in order. If you answer No to any of the first four, SDE is likely not the right choice for your wedding.
- Does your venue have AV infrastructure? A fixed projection screen or large-format display, HDMI input, and a PA system capable of delivering stereo audio to the full room. Venues without this infrastructure require equipment hire (£400–£800) and venue permission — not always granted.
- Does your reception programme include a natural screening window? Dinner service is the most common slot — during the starter course, typically 60–90 minutes into the reception. If your schedule runs cocktail hour directly into dancing with no formal dinner, the screening moment does not exist without engineering it artificially.
- Is your ceremony completing before 15:00? The editor needs 4–5 hours from first shot to screen time. If your ceremony ends at 16:30 and dinner begins at 19:00, the edit window is 2.5 hours — too compressed for a polished result. Ceremony completion by 14:30 is the optimal condition.
- Are you comfortable with a slightly larger crew presence? SDE requires a dedicated editor who is not also shooting. That is an additional person in your production team — typically on a laptop in a quiet room near the reception space. For couples who want an invisible crew, this extra presence is worth considering.
- Do you have 80+ guests attending dinner? Below 40 guests, a screen screening can feel theatrical or forced. The SDE premiere works best as a shared audience experience — the emotional response of the room is part of the moment. Smaller gatherings often find that a private viewing weeks later is more intimate.
Venue requirements: what to confirm before booking
| Requirement | What to check | Why it matters |
|---|---|---|
| Display type | Projection screen or TV/LED display size; ambient light level in the room at dinner time | Projectors wash out in bright rooms; a 65" TV is not visible past 10 rows |
| HDMI input availability | Confirm HDMI 2.0 input on the display; ask about VGA/DisplayPort alternatives | Mismatched connectors are the most common SDE technical failure |
| Audio routing | Can the venue PA take a 3.5mm or XLR stereo feed from a laptop? | Film audio through a TV speaker in a 200-person room is inaudible |
| Network/transfer | Is there on-site WiFi or will file transfer be physical SSD hand-off? | File transfer from shoot location to edit suite must complete within 30 minutes of ceremony end |
| Edit space | A quiet room near the reception, with power, where an editor can work for 3–4 hours | Cannot edit in a noisy corridor or shared prep space |
| Venue permission | Does the venue allow video screening during dinner service? | Some licensed venues and heritage properties prohibit AV during dining |
Confirm all six requirements with the venue coordinator in writing at least 2 months before the wedding. An SDE booked without venue confirmation is a risk that will materialise on the day.
Logistics and cost: what you are actually paying for
The SDE premium exists because it requires an additional professional — a dedicated editor who is not on set shooting. No studio should attempt SDE with one person handling both camera and edit.
| Cost component | UK estimate (2026) |
|---|---|
| Dedicated editor day rate | £600–£1,000 |
| Additional shooter (if your package is single-cam) | £400–£700 |
| Licensed music for SDE | £50–£150 |
| AV support and HDMI setup | £100–£300 |
| Total add-on cost | £1,200–£2,500 |
Studios that include SDE in a comprehensive package (rather than as an add-on) price those packages at £5,500–£9,000 in the UK, reflecting the full crew infrastructure. For destination weddings, the editor travels with the crew — add £400–£800 per EU destination for travel and accommodation per person.
Guest experience value vs risk: the honest trade-off
Done well, the SDE premiere is the single moment of the reception that guests describe for years. Watching a 4-minute film of the morning — the dress being laced, the vows being said — while the couple sits at the top table creates a shared emotional experience that no other wedding element replicates. It is the closest a reception gets to a live theatrical moment.
The risks are real, and dismissing them is dishonest:
- Technical failure is possible. AV systems fail, HDMI cables get kicked, projector bulbs die. A professional SDE team will have a contingency plan (direct laptop display, delayed screening), but no guarantee. If the screening fails, you have paid for it and not experienced it.
- The edit is not your best footage. The editor has 4–5 hours and access only to morning and ceremony footage. The portraits, the reception, the speeches — none of that exists yet. The SDE is necessarily incomplete. It is a teaser, not the film.
- Timing can slip. If speeches overrun or dinner service delays, the screening window shifts. Most SDE teams build a 30-minute buffer, but a full postponement is occasionally necessary. This is rare but not unknown.
- Cost does not reduce the main film quality — provided the crew is properly structured. But if a studio is attempting SDE with a single shooter-editor, both the SDE and the main film will suffer. Always confirm the crew configuration in writing.
Who should skip the Same Day Edit
SDE is not the right choice if any of the following apply:
- Your wedding has fewer than 60 guests, or your reception is an informal gathering rather than a seated dinner.
- Your venue is a private residence, garden, or unconventional space without fixed AV infrastructure.
- Your ceremony completes after 15:30 and dinner begins before 20:00 — the edit window is below 4.5 hours.
- You want the smallest possible crew presence on the day.
- Your wedding runs to an elopement, micro-wedding, or destination format where logistics coordination is already complex and crew travel costs are high.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can we choose the song for the SDE?
Yes, but you must agree on 2–3 pre-approved options before the wedding day. The editor cannot spend 45 minutes on music selection during a 4-hour edit window. Provide licensed track options from Artlist or Musicbed in advance — your videographer will select the best fit once the footage tone is clear.
Does the SDE count as one of our standard deliverables?
No. The SDE is an additional deliverable produced in parallel with your standard package. Your highlight film and feature film are still produced in post over the following weeks. You receive the SDE file after the wedding for personal archiving.
What if the projector fails or there is a technical problem?
Professional SDE teams always have a contingency: a direct laptop-to-display fallback, a delay slot built into the schedule, or a portable display for smaller rooms. Confirm the contingency plan explicitly with your studio before signing. It should be in the contract.
Can we do an SDE at a destination wedding?
Yes, but logistics increase. The editor travels as a separate crew member (add £400–£800 EU travel and accommodation). Venue AV requirements must be confirmed 2–3 months in advance through your local coordinator, as EU venues vary significantly. Italian and French chateau venues often have excellent AV; rural villa venues often have none.
How long is the SDE film?
3–5 minutes. Shorter than 3 minutes does not do justice to the morning footage. Longer than 5 minutes risks losing audience attention during a live dinner setting. The format is a teaser — emotionally complete, not chronologically exhaustive.
Is SDE more common at cultural weddings?
Yes. South Asian weddings (Indian, Pakistani, Sri Lankan) and East Asian weddings frequently include SDE as a cultural expectation. The multi-hour evening programme creates ideal screening conditions, and the family expectation of a shared visual experience during the celebration is well-established. MKTRL has delivered SDEs at Indian weddings where the premiere was as formal as a cinema showing.
What file format is the SDE delivered in for screening?
MP4 H.264 or H.265 for maximum venue compatibility. The editor should test playback on the specific venue display or projector before dinner begins — never assume that a standard MP4 will play without checking the device's codec support in advance.