[BCMA] Location Filming Fees - Thanks!

[Moderated BCMA subscriber listserv.]

Good morning,

I would like to extend a huge thanks to the BC museum community for all of the guidance and advice in preparing for location filming at our museum this August. Your assistance was extremely helpful in setting the guidelines for this type of use of our building. 

The film crew set up at the museum for 2 days of filming on August 21 and 22; we were open for the first day as the set-dress crew prepared the museum, and closed the second day for filming. In terms of compensation, we received a flat fee for the use of the building, and also charged $50/hour for Curatorial Liaisons who were present for the set-dress day and filming days

In the contract that was supplied by the film company, we added a number of clauses to protect our collection, including limitations to the alteration of the building, use of artifacts, and the moving of exhibits. Prohibited items were listed (food, drink, smoke machines, etc), and we also outlined the areas that could be used for filming. Lastly, we wrote in the contract that Curatorial Liaisons had the power to shut down the filming if the collection was put in risk for any reason. All of these tips were gleaned from our colleagues.

Lessons learned from our experience: 
  a.. Be very clear from the beginning that the preservation of the collection comes first, and that the museum has the right to shut down filming if anything goes sideways. Have this backed up in the contract. 
  b.. Schedules will change moment by moment; be prepared to have supervision for larger blocks of time than anticipated. 
  c.. Be flexible and helpful. Some great advice from Kirstin at Britannia Mine Museum was that this is a transaction done in good faith, so be helpful and positive in your interactions to make everyone have a good experience. 
  d.. In small spaces, your temperature and humidity will be fluctuating with larger crews (we had 35+ people). Keep a hygrometer handy to monitor; our was hard to access during filming. 
  e.. You will learn some new filming jargon – video village is where they set up all the monitors during filming and a tech survey is when the production heads visit your location beforehand to 

When everything was set and done, it was a great learning experience for our organization that was financially beneficial, and we were left with a good feeling about the interaction. If the circumstances feel right, I would echo other folks’ comments that location filming is definitely worth considering as long as your collection is protected.

Thanks again everyone!

Matthew Lovegrove
Curator-Manager
Sunshine Coast Museum & Archives
716 Winn Road PO Box 766
Gibsons, BC V0N 1V0

604.886.8232
www.sunshinecoastmuseum.ca

From: Moderated BCMA subscriber listserv. 
Sent: Wednesday, August 01, 2018 5:12 PM
To: BCMA 2014 
Subject: [BCMA] Location Filming Fees

Hi all, 

My organization has been approached by a major Hollywood production company for the possible use of our museum location for filming. We are still arranging the details, but it looks like it will potentially be a 2-3 day shoot. We have never rented out our facility for this type of film production before, so there is no precedent set as to what we might charge for location filming fees. 

Can anyone share any resources or recommendations as to what a reasonable fee would be for this type of usage? We are hoping to come to the negotiations with a general idea of what other non-profit facilities charge in this type of scenario. I would love to hear your experiences on this matter! 

Thanks in advance, 

Matthew Lovegrove
Curator-Manager
Sunshine Coast Museum & Archives
716 Winn Road PO Box 766
Gibsons, BC V0N 1V0

604.886.8232 
www.sunshinecoastmuseum.ca
scma_manager at dccnet.com



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