Wedding videographer leaves SF couple longing for video of vows

SAN FRANCISCO (KGO) -- It is one of the happiest days of any couple's life; their wedding day. A San Francisco couple wanted to make sure it was well documented so they could relive every moment. But when the video never came, 7 On Your Side's Michael Finney jumped in to help. He has some advice every bride-to-be shouldn't plan without.

"It was a perfect, for us," said Shanna Wagnor. She and Sean Lewis tied the knot last June at a North Bay winery. They hired a videographer and a photographer to capture every moment.

The photographer came through - they say the videographer did not.

"I think that the ceremony was kind of a highlight for us, and would love to the see the video of our vows and everything," said Wagnor.

The couple agreed to pay De Novo studios $4200 to film their wedding. The contract promised them three cinematographers, to shoot video of their wedding for ten continuous hours. The couple paid for most of the contract, but, a year later, they tell us they still haven't received their promised video.

"Then after the fact, he said it will be 10 days after the wedding and then we didn't hear from him, and then it kept going on like that," explained Wagnor."

They say, owner of the company, Matthew Groza, stopped responding in January.

Apparently, a number of clients are upset with Groza, there are complaints about the now closed company on Yelp!

One couple that did get some of their raw video blamed Groza for ruining one of the most important aspects of their wedding day.

To which Groza responded on Yelp! writing, "...if you think we "RUINED" your wedding day, you should be glad that we preserved the files and sent them to you. Deleting them would have truly ruined your wedding, so snap out of your self-centered realm of life and be grateful you received what you did."

We tried to track down Matthew Groza, reaching out to him on Instagram, on Twitter, and knocking on doors of previous addresses in Oakland, and in Palm Springs.

We even left messages with his parents in Oregon. We left a message at his last known number, but we still haven't heard anything from him.

"Take hiring your wedding videographer just as seriously as you do your wedding photographer," said Ivy Jacobson, Editor of The Knot.

Eight in 10 brides plan their wedding on The Knot. We asked them what should you do if you are looking for a wedding videographer?

"First of all, it's important to have wedding insurance. Just in case anything happens fraud wise, or they go out of business, if you have wedding insurance, you can still get your deposit back," said Jacobson.

Insurance can cost anywhere between $155 and $550, depending on the amount of coverage you want.

The knot also recommends that you check reviews online. Ask the videographer about any complaints. Meet them in person, and trust your instincts. They also urge you to use a credit card to pay for services...this will provide you with an opportunity to get a refund if things go bad.

Sean and Shanna didn't do that - but are still holding out hope that they will someday hear their vows again.

SEAN: "just to kind of see everything again, to relive the day is really what we are trying to do," said Sean Lewis.

Written and produced by Ken Miguel.

Do you know Matthew Groza? We're still looking for him. We hear he's driving for a ride-sharing company --- if you see him...tell him Michael Finney is looking for him.

Click here to contact Michael Finney and 7 on Your Side.