Marketing to the Film Industry
There are several factors that will influence a production company to select a specific area for filming.
- Locations: The first, and probably the most important thing which any movie company looks for is how the physical locations match the requirement of the film script. Generally, if the locations are right, many of the requirements discussed below can be negotiated favorably.
- Housing: A film company often has between 50 - 150 people working at the same time. These include the director, producer, designers, crew, actors, and office staff. They will be looking for affordable hotel accommodations within 30-45 minutes of the filming site that is capable of housing a group this large. If it is a long shoot, crew may prefer to be housed in a furnished apartment rather than in hotels. Since film companies typically work 12 - 18 hour days, six days a week, they prefer a hotel that provides free local phone calls and room service. If room service is not available, a restaurant nearby that is open 24 hours a day can suffice.
- Services: The film company will need to rent office furniture, cellular phones, cars and equipment, and will need to purchase supplies for wardrobe, set building and office work in the area.
- Airport: Since actors and crew people come and go on a film project, and since the film needs to be sent out on a daily basis for processing, the film company will be looking for the nearest commercial airport.
- Crew Availability: A film company on a limited budget prefers to be close to a city that has a concentration of crew people to staff the movie, so that they will not have to incur housing and per diem costs for the entire film crew.
When a company that is producing a feature film, television project, commercial or documentary needs to find a location, they often call film offices across the country. If we feel that Virginia has the kinds of locations they are requesting, Film Office staff immediately start the search. We have thousands of photographs on file, which are catalogued in our computer database. If the request can be fulfilled using existing photography, a package of potential locations is compiled and sent to the production company. Many requests, however, are so specific or unique that they require additional research and specialized photography. This is where the state's extensive network of local contacts is invaluable. The contacts are our eyes and ears in the communities, and have the ability to search out special locations that we could never find otherwise. The Film Office's ability to attract film production to the state is directly related to the strength of our local contact network.
Local contacts are people in Virginia cities, towns and communities who have made a commitment to promote film production in their areas, and who have indicated that they are willing to act as liaisons between the production company and the community, should their area be selected for filming. They have also agreed to help find locations, participate in location scouts with film companies if required, and to ensure that the company has a pleasant and productive experience while filming on location.
The local contacts are an invaluable source of information to the Film Office. If a specific location is needed, the Film Office will either telephone or send a fax or e-mail to the local contacts who then determine if that location might be found. They, in turn, get in touch with others in their network of people who are knowledgeable about the area to get ideas for the project. Finally the local contact will report back to the Film Office and will sometimes be asked to take photos of specific locations and submit them for consideration.
When the Film Office gets specific requests which it feels can best be handled at a local level, it will refer a production company directly to the county or city involved. The local contact must be prepared to act as liaison between the film company and the community, and to help with such things as finding locations, securing housing and permits, and working with local government and law enforcement officials to facilitate the shoot.
HOW TO BE AN EFFECTIVE LOCAL CONTACT
Those who are the most successful in attracting production to their areas are those who respond to requests quickly, and who are willing and able to put time and effort into finding locations for projects.
This is often not easy, since nearly all of the people who have agreed to participate as local contacts work in organizations which are understaffed and underfunded, and it's often difficult to find the extra time to search for locations. That's why it's critical that each local contact have as large and varied a network of knowledgeable people as possible to assist with the search.
When working with film locations, there is nearly always some sort of time element involved. Therefore, the quicker the response, the better the opportunity of success! At the Film Office we try to respond to all location requests in three days or less, and hope that in most cases, the local contacts will be able to do the same.
Each local contact should have a list of area people who are willing to assist in the search for movie locations. These contacts should be used to search out those hard-to-find locations. Real estate agents, members of local historic societies, garden clubs, county agents, employees of tourism, convention and visitors bureaus, and longtime residents of the area are ideal contacts to develop. It may also include local professional photographers who are willing to help by taking location photographs. It is important that one person be used as a clearing house for information to prevent several people pursuing the same property owner about the same project. It's frustrating for owners, embarrassing for everyone and potentially detrimental to the film if a property owner is contacted by several different people with the same request.
Depending upon the specific needs of each area, there are steps which can be taken to market an area to the film industry.
- RESPOND QUICKLY TO REQUESTS: Perhaps the single most important thing to be done is to respond quickly and thoroughly to requests for assistance, both from the Film Office or directly from a production company. Location suggestions which are presented to a company in a timely manner are the ones most likely to be seriously considered.
- START A LOCATION LIBRARY: This could be as simple as having a list or database of possible film locations in your area, with contact names and phone numbers. Or, you can start your own location library with photographs of interesting houses, towns and landscapes. You or your staff members could take the photos, or you could hire a professional location scout to assist you. Call the Film Office for further information on starting your own library.
- OPEN A LOCAL OR REGIONAL FILM OFFICE: Larger metropolitan areas or regions of the state may want to establish a more formal arrangement by creating a local or regional film office. In many states, film offices that represent specific geographic regions have been created through cooperative funding from several agencies. Currently in Virginia, Richmond and Virginia Beach have their own film offices. The office can be staffed with a full time commissioner, (as Richmond has) or it can be staffed on a part time basis as part of another organization - as in Virginia Beach). Most film offices belong to the Association of Film Commissioners International (AFCI). For further information on starting a film office, you can get in touch with Barbara Shore at the AFCI: 7060 Hollywood Boulevard, Suite 614, Los Angeles, CA 90028. Phone 213-462-6092.
