Marketing Film Locations
So how do you go about marketing film locations?
On the previous pages we discussed which areas were the "high-traffic" film location regions of the UK. To recap, these are primarily London and the major cities (Birmingham, Nottingham, Bristol etc).
If you are (like us!) more than 40 minutes drive from any of these cities then you will have to work a bit harder to attract the production companies.
Here are some essential activities that you need to perform to help you in marketing film location properties:
1. Build A Website
This really is a must-have if you are to cheaply and effectively advertise your property. It is possible not to, but this will limit the quantity of film producers and location scouts who can find you.
Building a website doesnt have to be difficult. In fact, this can actually be quite a stress-free activity and you dont have to invest thousands to produce a site that hits the mark with the scouts and production companies.
On our bio page we have a few handy tips that will help you in creating a website. Take a look at the bottom of that page and view the Free video link to get a better idea of the tools you will need, and how you can get them free.
Details about the property
Lets say that you have a suitable website already.
On your site you will need to provide a certain level of information. My recommendation would be to include the following details. (You can get an idea of what is required here)
- The size of the property
- Room sizes (if available)
- Garden
- Gates and driveway (if you think these may be important. We have electric gates which could be featured in the production)
- Information regarding the general local area (Are there any nice churches or local landmarks nearby?)
- Local hotels/motels (if you are far from the major cities)
- Local eating facilities/pubs - the crew have to eat too!
- Parking space - where they are in relation to the property, and how many cars/vans will it hold?
- Changing facilities
- Toilets
2. Register With Major Industry Websites
We mentioned Shootingpeople.org in the opening section. I believe that registration is highly recommended if you want to get a feel for the industry.
Of course there are other important places to register too ... remember, this activity is aimed at getting your film location property as much visability as possible.
Once registered in the forum sites you then need to get your name and product known. The simplest way to do this is by asking questions, answering questions on subjects that you know about (IT perhaps, or if you are already in the industry, other industry related questions.)
Other key places to register if allowed are the Government Film Agencies. These are dotted around the country and all have different criteri for accepting film location properties in their databases. The UK Film Council manage all of the regional agencies. (The contact details for the regional agencies are contained on this site.)
Unfortunately, if your property comes under the domain of the FilmWM Agency (covering the West Midlands) then you have a tougher challenge. This Agency, unlike most of the others, requires you to give 3 references of Films and Film Makers who have shot at your property before entering you on their database!
If this is the case, then you just have to work smarter and harder to attract the production companies. It's that simple!
3. Register With Film Location Agencies
Each film location agency will charge you a fee for hosting and posting your pictures on their website. This is usually less than £100, so it's worth doing your research first to make sure that your property is likely to attract paid work.
There are several location agencies that you will be able to find easily by searching on the web. OIC is a leading agency. They are based in London but do get requests from all over the country from location scouts.
Other agencies are easily found on the web.
A further option would be to register your property for FREE on UKFilmLocation.com by sending your property description and several images of your property (inside and out) in an email via this link.
You will need to provide each agency with photographs of your location property. They often ask for these to be in high definition - 1600x1200.
If you dont possess a camera with a wide-angle lens then you may be able to strike a deal with the local newspaper's photographer. (It cost us £100 for 3 hours of our local press-man's time. In return we were given a CD of 60+ high quality pictures, covering both the interior and exterior of our property.)
