How soon is too soon to secure a location?

M

MatthiasClaflin

New member
I am working on a short film for a Spring 2016 shoot schedule. It will only require two 10 hour shoot days (roughly). That being said, I have finished the script and gotten my crew together. I'll be casting after Christmas.

So my question is this, how early, is too early to ask to use a location?

I need a gym location, where my character will be alone, so probably after hours, or during a slow time. I will need the location for roughly 2-3 hours to get the coverage I want. That being said is it too early to ask a couple gym owners if this would be possible? Or is it too soon to try and secure that location? Most of my other locations are already secured through family/friends. I appreciate any advice you all have! Thanks!

Sincerely,

Matthias
 
I would get it on the schedule as soon as possible.

That being said, you need to work out your scheduling. Roughly 2-3 hours is how long? A good way to loose your location and the time you have invested into it is to is to be in breach of your agreement. Do you need 2 hours, 3 hours, or do your really need an hour of production design, an hour and a half to light and setup, an hour to block your shots, 3 hours to shoot, and an hour to tear down?
 
Thanks for the advice. I think we can shoot it in 2 hours. Lighting and set up will probably take no more than an hour. The total "runtime" for the gym portion of the film, is about 30-40 seconds. It is actually just a workout montage, for a 5 minute short film. That being said, I don't need any audio from it, except some room noise and breathing from my main character. I think we could easily set-up in 45 minutes, shoot in 20-30 minutes and tear down in 30-45 minutes. I wanted to be safe, and say 2-3 even though that is probably an exaggeration.

That being said, I'll talk to the DP and his team to make sure he agrees, but I assume that two hours will be fine.

That being said, has anyone had any luck with getting a location such as a gym/workout location for cheap/free? If not, what should I expect to pay for such a location?
 
Last edited:
MatthiasClaflin said:
Thanks for the advice. I think we can shoot it in 2 hours. Lighting and set up will probably take no more than an hour. The total "runtime" for the gym portion of the film, is about 30-40 seconds. It is actually just a workout montage, for a 5 minute short film. That being said, I don't need any audio from it, except some room noise and breathing from my main character. I think we could easily set-up in 45 minutes, shoot in 20-30 minutes and tear down in 30-45 minutes. I wanted to be safe, and say 2-3 even though that is probably an exaggeration.

That being said, I'll talk to the DP and his team to make sure he agrees, but I assume that two hours will be fine.

That being said, has anyone had any luck with getting a location such as a gym/workout location for cheap/free? If not, what should I expect to pay for such a location?
Click to expand...

However long you think it will reasonably take, double it.
 
Make sure to bring your DP on the tech scout so he can chime in on setup and tear down times, and scout all the little things like where's the load-in, etc...
 
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