Page - 10 - in JRFM - Journal Religion Film Media, Volume 04/02

Editorial | 9www.jrfm.eu 2018, 4/2, 7–21 pher, is founded on the desire to make this day unforgettable, even though for more than half the protagonists the contracts they seal come to an end before “death do them part”. The television transmission of the royal wedding showed moments of the event taking place in (semi-)private and (semi-)public spaces. We might assume that the invited guests had privileged access to spaces that the spectators in the street could not enter. The picture of the crowds lining the streets proves, however, that such is not entirely the case. The onlookers are stretching out their arms with their smartphones in their hands to catch the moment when the wedding couple drives by in their coach (fig. 3). The smartphone had a dual role: in addition to taking and holding its own image of the famous couple, it also enabled the spectators to watch the television coverage of the wedding. The photograph taken with a smartphone is evidence that its owner has “met” the couple in person and in a clearly public space, that they occupied a single location at a single time. The ability to watch the transmission of the church service and the ceremony also enabled a privileged viewing of some moments, as we will show. Fig. 2: The photographers need to catch every important moment during the wedding. Picture by Yves Müller, Zurich 2017.