How To Choose The Best Location For Your Film Shooting?
Scouting the ideal location is just like finding a needle in a haystack – it requires your time and a lot of patience, but when you discover it – it gives you nothing but satisfaction and joy. If you, do it the right way and find the right balance between the location being picturesque as well as affordable you could be on to a great start. Not only does one need the best camera for cinematography but other aspects of the film like location, cast, budget etc. should also be well thought out.
One must take into account thebelow mentioned tools and approaches to shortlist an amazing location for your next film project.
7 things One Must Consider When Shortlisting The Shooting location
When finding the perfect location for a film production a right balance between the following factors needs to be considered:
- Aesthetics: Is your location space in accordance with what the director has envisioned and as per the description of the script. So, for instance if you have a thriller script then an exotic picturesque location may not be required, you can find something simpler and affordable.
- Location and distance: Determining how far the shooting location is from the main office is critical. The location you select should also be easy to reach for all the stakeholders involved right from the crew, to the cast to getting the equipment there. The distance should not be too much as that will eat up into your productive hours of the day
- Permission: All permission to use a property needs to completed and reviewed. If this is not in place it could lead to delays and loss of time and money. Find out the owner or the right commission in charge, get your permissions, complete them and then have them approved. An estate, federal property or a county – all will require permits.
- Cost: Each location will involve a fee, ideally you should have allocated a budget for each item – location, salaries, costumes, equipment etc. If your location budgets are significantly exceeding your original projections, reduce the number of locations or negotiate the location cost with the owner.
- Logistics: Each location will have an associated cost of logistics. Parking costs, transporting equipment, electrical power backup, bathrooms, food and water provisions etc. One must take these into consideration – both from a cost angle and a feasibility point of view.
- Environmental Considerations:You must do multiple recces at different times of the day to gauge the natural lighting as well as interior. Does you location have an ambient sound such as a river flowing, traffic on a nearby road, or an air conditioner that could adversely impact the recording sound while shooting. Also know the weather conditions and be prepared for any sudden rain, winds or snowfall of the area is prone to it.
- Take Notes: Always take notes – you may not be able to recollect everything so any observations, any changes to be made and points of concern that you notice at the location should be jotted down in order to be dealt with at a later date.
Apart from this go to the location beforehand, take some pictures and videos at different times of the day, have a contact at each location, check the satellite location to see what surrounds the area. T is also important to ensure that the film shooting camera you are using is cleaned and well maintained. If you have done all the spadework with full dedication, your location is bound to be the ideal spot for your film.