Tag Archive for 'publicity'

links for 2008-06-08

Published
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R. Richard Hobbs
on June 8, 2008
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Last edited: June 8, 2008
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I’ve Been Schmapped

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R. Richard Hobbs
on April 27, 2008
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Last edited: July 22, 2008
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Update 4/27/2008:

“You’ve been sent a Flickr Mail from Emma J. Williams:
————————————————————
:: Schmap East Coast Second Edition: Photo Inclusion

Hi nyc.locationscout.us,

I am delighted to let you know that your submitted photo has been selected for inclusion in the newly released second edition of our Schmap East Coast Guide:

Brooklyn Bridge:
http://www.schmap.com/eastcoast/attractions/p=5442/i=5442.jpg

If you like the guide and have a website, blog or personal page, then please also check out the customizable widgetized versions of our Schmap East Coast Guide, complete with your published photo:
http://www.schmap.com/guidewidgets/p=21598829N00/c=SG33061032

Thanks so much for letting us include your photo - please enjoy the guide!

Best regards,

Emma Williams,
Managing Editor, Schmap Guides”

From:

Emma J. Williams

Subject:

Schmap: East Coast Photo Short-list
 

Hi Richard,

“I am writing to let you know that one of your photos has been short-listed for inclusion in the second edition of our Schmap East Coast Guide, to be published at the end of this month.

www.schmap.com/shortlist/p=21598829N00/c=SG33061566

Clicking this link will take you to a page where you can:
i) See which of your photos has been short-listed.

ii) Submit or withdraw your photo from our final selection phase.
iii) Learn how we credit photos in our Schmap Guides.
iv) Browse the first edition of our Schmap East Coast Guide.

While we offer no payment for publication, many photographers are pleased to submit their photos, as Schmap Guides give their work recognition and wide exposure, and are free of charge to readers. Photos are published at a maximum width of 150 pixels, are clearly attributed, and link to high-resolution originals at Flickr.

Our submission deadline is Sunday, April 13. If you happen to be reading this message after this date, please still click on the link above (our Schmap Guides are updated frequently - photos submitted after this deadline will be considered for later releases).

Best regards,
Emma Williams, Managing Editor, Schmap Guides”

I let em have it…

Here is the photo they want…

8 Brooklyn Bridge pano

WTF… it is a photo from location scouting for Helmut Lotti’s Crooners - it’s not finished “art” like I shot it for an ad job for big bux - heck, I stuck it up on Flickr for the PR value - you know what? - paid off.

Ok, well, I don’t know about *paid* off - no money changed hands, but it was very little investment of extra time and effort on my part

…Brooklyn Bridge elsewhere on this website…

updated 4/27/2008 | April 6, 2008 at 10:04 pm | original timestamp: April 3, 2008 at 11:53 pm


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links for 2008-04-27

Published
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R. Richard Hobbs
on April 27, 2008
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Last edited: April 29, 2008
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Journal of Popular Film and Television

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R. Richard Hobbs
on February 22, 2008
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Last edited: July 24, 2008
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FindArticles in Journal of Popular Film and Television

“Journal of Popular Film and Television offers sociocultural perspectives on commercial films and television. Essays discuss networks, genres and audiences, as well as studios, directors and stars.”

Note: 2/22/08 The above article is 404 not found - RH original datestamp 2/16/08

  • Search for “Journal of Popular Film and Television” at FindArticles

    • Heldref Publications: Journal of Popular Film and Television

    “The Journal of Popular Film and Television answers such far-ranging questions by using the methods of popular culture studies to examine commercial film and television, historical and contemporary.”

    …read more…

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    # Note: Post Updated 7/22/08


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    Robert Redford Interview

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    R. Richard Hobbs
    on February 20, 2008
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    Last edited: September 19, 2008
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    ABC News | Redford’s Sundance Direction | Peter Travers talks with Sundance Film Festival Founder Robert Redford. | 01/31/2008 | …via Sphere…

    …in which Mr. Travers goes on location to the Sundance Film Festival in Park City, UT to interview Robert Redford. Mr. Redford staunchly defends the festival’s stated mission of, in his own words, “bringing in new work - even rough” in response to a seemingly increasing public and industry outcry of commercialization of the festival.

    You have to follow this link and watch the video on the ABC News site - no off site embedding url was provided by ABC News.

    feed Yahoo! Search: Robert Redford Sundance Film Festival
    • 2009 Sundance Film Festival |
      Official site of the 2009 Sundance Film Festival offers a schedule of the … Making Every Day Earth Day by Robert Redford, April 22, 2009, Huffington. […]
    • Sundance Film Festival — Sundance Film Festival |
      The Sundance Film Festival’s longstanding commitment to documentary has been … Robert Redford” Insider: You started the Sundance Film Festival in 19. […]
    • Sundance Institute |
      Sundance Institute is dedicated to the support and development of emerging screenwriters and directors of vision, and to the national and internationa. […]

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    Mike Veeck

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    R. Richard Hobbs
    on February 20, 2008
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    Last edited: August 9, 2008
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    Reader’s Digest - Characters: The King of Swing | Mike Veeck brings crazy back to baseball. | By Andy Simmons | March 2008

    A friend was kind enough to gift me a hardcopy subscription to Reader’s Digest this past Christmas which I have enjoyed thoroughly! I remember Reader’s Digest from when I was a child; my parents had subscriptions off and on and our family had thick hardcover books of Reader’s Digest collections of short stories and such - the magazine was the type of reading material you would find i.e at the doctor’s office or maybe the dentist’s - always good for a quick read about something interesting. The tradition continues - just about the time I’m ready for something fresh in the way light reading, the miniature, plastic-wrapped package arrives in my mail which never fails to contain printed content of one subject or another which, albeit brief, I will inevitably find either informative and / or inspirational if not just plain entertaining.

    This past month there was a profile (also available online :-) of a very fascinating and entertaining personality, Mike Veeck, a current member of the Veeck family of some note in the history of American professional baseball; son of Bill Veeck, owner at one time or another of a number of baseball teams whose father, William Veeck, Sr. (Mike’s grandfather) at one time was owner of the Chicago Cubs. Bill Veeck eventually became co-owner of the then-minor league Milwaukee Brewers of the now-extinct American Association baseball league and eventually at different times was involved in ownership of the Philadelphia Phillies, Cleveland Indians, St. Louis Browns (extinct) and Chicago White Sox. Mike Veeck continues the family involvement in baseball as a team owner as current owner of five minor league baseball teams.

    Mike Veeck reportedly was the one of the parties responsible for the notorious Disco Demolition Night at Comiskey Park in Chicago in 1979 in protest to a disco music craze popular at the time. I remember this event from news stories; fans were invited to bring their disco records to the park “to be summarily blown up between games of a doubleheader” as a public relations promotion.

    Reader’s Digest: “Was it a success? A hundred thousand people tried to get into a stadium built for half that number, traffic was snarled for miles, and as the disco pyre grew, so did the rioting. In the end, the second game was forfeited.”

    Wikipedia: “White Sox TV announcers Harry Caray and Jimmy Piersall commented freely on the “strange people” wandering aimlessly in the stands. Mike Veeck recalled that the pregame air was heavy with the scent of marijuana. When the crate on the field was filled with records, staff stopped collecting them from spectators who soon realized that long-playing (LP) records were shaped like Frisbees. They began to throw their records from the stands during the game, and the records often struck other fans. The fans also threw beer and even firecrackers from the stands.”

    Wikipedia: “…The large box containing the collected records was rigged with a bomb. When it exploded, the bomb tore a hole in the outfield grass surface and thousands of fans immediately rushed the field. Some lit fires and started small-scale riots. The batting cage was pulled down and wrecked, and the bases literally stolen, along with chunks of the field itself. The crowd, once on the field, mostly wandered around aimlessly, though a number of participants burned banners, sat on the grass or ran from security and police. People sitting in the upper deck could feel it sway back and forth from the rioters.”

    Reader’s Digest: “Then it got worse: The team was eventually sold, and Mike lost his job. “Sometimes,” Bill Veeck told his devastated son, “you have ones that work too well.”

    Other Mike Veeck promotions:

    Reader’s Digest: “…Tonya Harding Mini-Bat Night; Labor Day, when pregnant women got in free; and groundskeepers dragging the infield in drag. Veeck even locked fans out of one park for five innings just to set the record for lowest attendance.”

    Read about the time Mike hired mimes to act instant replay at a St Paul Saints game when you read the rest of the article. It’s a hoot!

    feed Reader’s Digest

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    It’s Freezing - Literally

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    on February 20, 2008
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    Last edited: August 9, 2008
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    Improv Everywhere on location in Grand Central Station, NYC | …via Internal Monologue via Sphere via YouTube

    Improv Everywhere:

    “Improv Everywhere causes scenes of chaos and joy in public places. Created in August of 2001 by Charlie Todd, Improv Everywhere has executed over 70 missions involving thousands of undercover agents. The group is based in New York City.”

    …read more…

    feed Improv Everywhere
    • The Mp3 Experiment Six | Monday, 15 June 2009, 2:04 pm
      watch it larger on YouTube edited by Matt Adams For our Sixth Annual Mp3 Experiment, over 2,000 people of all ages downloaded the same mp3, pressed pl. […]
    • Today Show Appearance | Wednesday, 10 June 2009, 10:50 am
      [today show video] I was on The Today Show this morning to promote our new book Causing a Scene.
    • Surprise Wedding Reception | Tuesday, 2 June 2009, 12:08 pm
      (View it larger on YouTube) edited by Matt Adams / score by Tyler Walker For our latest mission, we picked a random couple getting married at the City. […]

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    WGA Writers Strike 2007 - 2008

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    R. Richard Hobbs
    on January 3, 2008
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    Last edited: August 7, 2008
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    Note: The author is a freelance film / photo location scout and location manager and is neither a member of AMPTP or WGA. Any of the opinions expressed are those of R. Richard Hobbs.

    Been missing the latest episodes of your favorite sitcom lately? Got left sitting on the edge of your seat wondering what happenned next on that tv drama you really like? Tired of watching reruns of late night talk shows (except for Letterman - and maybe the Tonight Show- but only as of this week…)

    Any of the above could likely be due to the the ongoing WGA Writers Strike, which began November 5th, 2007. The two primary organizations involved in this dispute are The Writers Guild of America (WGA) and The Alliance of Motion Picture & Television Producers (AMPTP).

    The WGA supplies writers to the AMPTP, who’s members produce the majority of network television shows and major feature films.

    The WGA is a guild. The AMPTP is a trade association.

    The last contract between the WGA and the AMPTP expired last fall and the reasons for the strike involves what the WGA feels are unresolved issues in the new, pending contract (obviously a large amount of detail, discussion and info…), but are largely with regard to compensation to the writers from income to the producers from new media and distribution, i.e. internet and other electronic / digital media.

    If you follow the many sources of news and information about the strike including entertainment industry and production trade publications such Variety and The Hollywood Reporter (Wikipedia has a good overview of the strike as well), you may find the matter is very involved and complicated. This strike involves major organizations and hundreds of millions of dollars are at stake. Each side has teams of lawyers and representatives and at least one party has hired a public relations firm.

    Conventional thinking might suggest that if two parties in question cant seem to agree, then an expeditious solution might be to enlist the services of a knowledgeable, but impartial third party to be a mediator or arbitrator, however, at this writing, one or neither of the WGA and AMPTP appear willing to allow the matter to be solved in this manner and there is no law prohibiting the strike since the strike (arguably ;-) does not affect “necessity services”, i.e. public transportation, utilities, etc.

    While I am sure, at the bottom of it all, (except for maybe the lawyers? ;-) everyone would like to see this strike settled as soon as possible altho it also appears to be a wrestling match as well; my bet is, sadly, that the settlement comes down to whichever of the two organizations has the deeper pockets. The settlement of a situation such as this potentially has far reaching effects for both parties as a group and the lack of same adversely affects related industries… on a more personal level the situation I think a lot of people really want to get back to work … so complicated…

    In the meantime, from a selfish point of view, while I am not a a laid-off staff from a show (I am a “non-union” freelance location scout, location manager and photo shoot producer) or currently a crew member on involuntary hiatus from a feature film; overall, there is currently less work for everybody and more people potentially looking to do whatever work might avail itself, so while I am not “directly” affected, a situation such as exists does, in fact affect me, so I just wish we could all just “get back to work”!

    AMPTP

    View Larger Map of AMPTP

    WGA

    View Larger Map of Writers Guild of America

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    Shoot Online Publicity Wire

    Published
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    R. Richard Hobbs
    on December 29, 2007
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    Last edited: August 7, 2008
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    Shoot Online has recently announced its Publicity Wire Service.

    “The SHOOT Publicity Wire offers PR, marketing professionals, and entrepreneurs a powerful tool to communicate to a hard-to-reach vertical market comprised of news agencies, search engines, journalists, industry publications, customers, prospects, and influential industry decision-makers in the advertising, broadband, filmmaking, and television production and postproduction industries.”

    …read more…

    The $49.95 (introductory rate thru April 30th, 2008) price per release seems very reasonable.

    This new service seems similar to PRWeb (which I have used) and other online press release services, however, an advantage for production industry related news could be Shoot’s close affiliation with the production industry itself.

    feed SHOOTonline.com

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    Redrafting of NYC MOFTB Rules

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    R. Richard Hobbs
    on December 19, 2007
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    Last edited: July 23, 2008
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    Lots of changes afoot at the New York City Mayor’s Office of Film, Theater and Broadcasting (MOFTB), begun this past year and likely to continue well into 2008 that involve a rewrite of many rules that include potential easing of some film permit requirements and other changes.

    Lots of news about this currently ongoing process can be found elsewhere on the web, including:

    MOFTB Website:

    1. “August 3, 2007 - Mayor’s Office of Film, Theatre and Broadcasting (MOFTB) Commissioner Katherine Oliver today announced that MOFTB will redraft proposed Charter-mandated rules for issuing permits to film or photograph on public property. The revision of the rules will take into account feedback MOFTB has received over the past two months. Public comment, which is scheduled to end today, will be re-opened for another 30-day period after the redrafted rules are published.”
    2. “October 29th, 2007 - Mayor’s Office of Film, Theatre and Broadcasting (MOFTB) Commissioner Katherine Oliver today announced the release of a newly drafted permit rule proposal, which is available online and published in the City Record. Under the proposed rules, which are designed to codify procedures that have existed in practice since the office was established in 1966, a permit would be required for a shoot if production equipment or vehicles create an obstruction, but not for productions that only use hand-held cameras or tripods that don’t cause an obstruction. The publication of the new rules, which are subject to public comment, follows the MOFTB’s decision to redraft rules following an initial publication and comment period that was extended to August 3, 2007. A copy of the proposed rule and an accompanying executive summary and Q&A document explaining it are available on the MOFTB website at www.nyc.gov/film.”

    Elsewhere:

  • Privacy Digest | August 4th, 2007 | NYC’s MOFTB redrafting proposed Charter-mandated rules for issuing permits to film or photograph on public property
  • New York Times | October 28th, 2007 | Mayor to Ease Permit Rules for Capturing City’s Image …via Picture New York
  • Gothamist | October 28th, 2007 | New York Photo-Friendly Again
  • Google search terms such as “MOFTB” or “MOFTB permit” for further news and discussion if this is a subject you are interested in.

    • -RH

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    BizBash Location Scout Archive

    Published
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    R. Richard Hobbs
    on October 12, 2007
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    Last edited: April 10, 2009
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    BizBash, an event-planning resource website, has recently begun a series on its different city and regional websites, which include New York, Los Angeles, Washington, D.C., Florida and Toronto entitled BizBash Location Scout Archive (link is for New York- Location Scout Archive for other cities can be found under the “Venues” tab(s) on each city’s respective website).

    The Location Scout Archives showcase interesting and / or remarkable local venues as well as including relevant featurette stories of interest to event and party planners, i.e. What Event Planners Want, all in a “blog” type format.

    As a New York City area based location scout, I find the series interesting and valuable as I often receive requests for locations for film, video and photo shoots that might include public venues such as restaurants / bars, catering halls and other types of venues such as perhaps, museums or private clubs and it is always good to keep abreast of what’s opening (or closing) as well as “what’s hot or not”.

    Occasionally I receive requests for locations for public events as well.

    Related | BizBash RSS Feeds

  • New York
  • LA
  • Washington
  • Florida
  • Toronto
  • National (U.S.)

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    Interviewed By WCBS-TV (NYC) Re: Orangetown, NY Filming Fees

    Published
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    R. Richard Hobbs
    on April 15, 2007
    in content and featured
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    Last edited: August 6, 2008
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    I was interviewed last week by New York, NY CBS affiliate WCBS-TV, for a video news article entitled Hollywood Being Priced Out of 1 Upscale Rockland County Town that ran on the Thursday, April 12th 11pm Newscast and in extended form the following morning on the Morning News regarding a situation in Orangetown Township, NY whereby the town has initiated a $500 per hour fine for film crews present before 7a.m. or after sunset.

    As I said on camera, Orangetown’s fees are exorbitant. I could never recommend sending a film crew to Orangetown under these circumstances. Film makers are not fools and contrary what many casual observers seem to think from what they may have seen on Entertainment Tonight, the production side of film and tv are not about burning thru money as fast as you can throw it on a fire, which is about what Orangetown’s fees amount to.

    Directors Guild of America (DGA) publication on the subject of runaway film production

    Evidently, at some time or another, someone was inconvenienced by production vehicle traffic (I am told it is one individual in particular and a review of town meeting minutes on the town website reflects a couple of instances where the same few specific residents made complaints about filming activities). The Town Supervisor, Thom Kleiner was quoted as saying they were inconvenienced by truck traffic.

    The majority of film productions are very willing to work to with local residents as well as local government and law enforcement to facilitate conditions with every one’s best interests in mind. It seems like something cumulatively seriously fell thru the cracks in Orangetown.

    It just doesn’t seem to all add up.

    Time lost by residents due to occasional temporary neighborhood film-production traffic delays: 15 minutes?

    Time spent preparing for and attending town meetings to complain: hours?

    What’s sad is the town has cow-towed to these several misguided and selfish individuals. The many positive effects that film production has on a local community seems to be lost on this bunch.

    Film production brings business to town. If there is a crew shooting they are likely putting people in hotels, eating in local resturants and using local caterers, shopping at local retailers and spending money with any number of other local businesses, not to mention owners of property used for locations who could be banking several mortgage payments in fees when their properties get utilised by production even just short-term.

    Film production is a decent-size industry which accounts for around $5 billion a year New York City alone. In fact, contrary to popular belief, the local film offices exist not primarily as arts and cultural entities but rather as offices of economic development and the New York State Film Office and New York City Mayors Office of Film, Theater and Broadcast (MOFTB) are very active at their respective government levels to create tax incentives to attract film makers. A study of effects of New York City’s recent Made in New York Incentive reflects dramatic annual shoot day increases over the past several years which translates to a more than $3 billion increase in city revenue from film production. Tax incentives have shown to generate 30%+ returns, or, every tax dollar waived, have resulted in $1.34 in increased overall revenue.

    The New York State Film Office and NYC MOFTB have both worked long and hard to attract filming to the state and greater NYC metro area, so, a town like Orangetown is, for all intents and purposes, shooting the film offices (as well as their own local economic development) in the foot.

  • New York State Tax Incentives For Film Production
  • New York City Tax Incentives For Film Production
  • New Jersey State Tax Incentives For Film Production
  • Connecticut State Tax Incentives For Film Production
  • Complete list of U.S. State’s film industry tax incentive programs (January 2007)

    • Film Production is clean. You dont have to worry about cleaning up the ground water after a film company leaves town.

    There is no doubt that for most people, being able to say that you have had a movie made in your town brings a sense of pride and most find experiencing the process to be fun and exciting.

    An active local film/arts community does a lot to raise the cultural level of any town or city.

    C’mon Orangetown, wake up and smell the coffee!

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    About nyc.locationscout.us

    Published
    by
    R. Richard Hobbs
    on November 9, 2006
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    Last edited: August 5, 2008
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    Hi- I am R. Richard Hobbs.

  • I am a location scout and I work in film production, which loosely includes television production, video production and photo production.
  • I am also a location manager.
  • I am also a photo producer; I take care of all kinds of production details, from estimating and bidding to crewing up a shoot, casting and on-set production coordination.
  • I find the interesting back drops, (or locations) you see in movie scenes, tv commercials, televison programs, music videos and corporate videos, as well as in photos used for ads and editorial features in magazines, printed brochures, books and billboards. I also find locations that can be used for various public events, such as art/marketing installations, corporate and personal social events and marketing focus groups.
  • I live and have an office in New Jersey, not far from New York City. Living in this geographic situation has allowed me to get to know NYC and allows me to get there and back quickly and also leaves me a lot of freedom to take advantage of the more suburban flavored location resources of NJ and the lower Hudson Valley. Did I mention I love to travel?
  • Over the more than 15 years I have been doing what I do, I have accumulated a sizable library of locations that can be used for production, nearly 3,000 at last count as a matter of fact. All the photos are digital and are stored online at www.locamundo.com.
  • Location scouting is a somewhat arcane end of the production process and it is tough to say exactly what we do all the time, but we do a lot of different things at different times. What might be doing different under different circumstances. This link may help you understand some of the things we might do. Someties we might “wear several hats”, so to speak and we are always flexible and willing to pitch as needed as long as what is expected of us is understood and agreed upon up front. The bottom line is we always do our best to help you solve your production problems while making an income that affords affords a comfortable lifestyle. Give us a call and let’s see how we can work together!
  • Also, here are some FAQS (Frequently Asked Questions) that might help you understand some of what the locations department might be involved with.
  • Here is my resume of sorts.
  • Please give us a shout and let us help you solve your location challenges!
  • Do you own property that would look great on film? Go here.
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    New York Location Scouts to Lose Scouting Tag Priveleges

    Published
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    R. Richard Hobbs
    on June 13, 2006
    in content and featured
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    Last edited: August 5, 2008
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    MOFTB: Scouting Tag Program Discontinued

    “May 23, 2006- Effective June 30, 2006, the Mayor’s Office of Film, Theatre and Broadcasting will no longer issue production scouting tags and all existing scouting tags will expire. Due to the success of the “Made in NY” tax incentive program, the City has accomplished its goal of attracting increased production business and employment for New Yorkers who work in the entertainment industry. In an effort to balance the needs of production and the communities in which they work, the MOFTB will no longer issue scouting tags. Easing the impact of parking upon neighborhoods will serve to keep locations film friendly, and allow the City to attract even more employment for our local entertainment professionals. The MOFTB will continue to issue tags to essential production vehicles with the shooting permit.”

    Cinematical | NYC Cuts Film Industry Perk | Posted Jun 13th 2006 8:01PM by Christopher Campbell | Filed under: Newsstand

    “Just when the city of New York is enjoying a surge in film production, hopefully cutting down on movies set in NYC but shot in Canada, a new decision is pissing off a lot of people in the movie business.”

    …read more…

    “The Reeler | Tag, You’re Out: NYC Location Scouts’ Parking Perks Revoked | June 13, 2006

    “AM New York’s Chuck Bennett today has the “latest” on the troubles affecting New York’s location scouts, whose liberal, city-sanctioned parking privileges will expire June 30–never to return. The news is kind of old–the Mayor’s Office for Film, Theater and Broadcasting made the announcement May 23–but in case you wanted to hear location scouts bitching on the record, here you go:”

    …read more…

    http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20060614/ap_en_mo/film_scout_parking_2 (dead link) | By SARA KUGLER, Associated Press Writer Tue Jun 13, 8:11 PM ET

    “NEW YORK - Film scouts trolling New York City for its picturesque stoops and street corners won’t be free to park wherever they want now that officials are halting a special parking-permit program.”

    I was interviewed by phone today (but evidently, not quoted by name) by Sara Kugler from WABC-Radio in New York City. Here is some of what we discussed and points I tried to make:

    Looks like we location scouts might be losing our location scouting tag priveleges come July.

    “And what exactly is a location scouting tag privelege?”, you say?

    Well… upon completing a New York City filming permit application at the New York City Mayor’s Office of Film, Theater and Broadcast (MOFTB), requesting scouting tag(s) and approval of MOFTB, location scout(s), (for the duration of time allotted on the permit) have considerable leeway and freedom to park anywhere in the five boros in order to see locations with potential for use in their production.

    This is indeed a gift in a city the size and density of New York. Public parking is scarce at best and fraught with not only arcane parking restrictions, but sometimes those arcane parking restrictions are obscured further by the fact that the parking signs that contain those arcane parking restrictiction are, in fact, often absent, whether it be by theft/vandalism, perhaps having been in a spot where an auto accident occurred… there are a lot of reasons a parking sign could be missing in a town the size of NYC.

    The location scouting tag basically gives you the privelege to park wherever you can (with the intention of performing your duties as a location scout), provided you dont place human life in jeopardy (i.e. obvious no-no’s like parking in front of a firehouse driveway, or in an ambulance exitway) and be immune to the city’s ubiquitous “Brownies” (NYPD Traffic Enforcement) and the quite pricy parking citations they are employed to hand out (the last parking ticket I got some years back cost something like $85). If you receive a ticket, you turn it in with your scouting tag- it goes away.

    Doctors and foreign diplomats, as well as some members of the press (this could be an incomplete list) are eligible for many of these same priveleges.

    Alas, reports of abuses as well as the fact (per the excerpted article above) that the city has achieved its filming incentive goals combined with the undebatable fact that parking in New York is scarce in the first place may spell the end to scouting tag priveleges for NYC location scouts.

    I had a scouting tag once; I was working on a feature film, 9A several years go. The shooting schedule was tight, we were facing significant challenges regarding fulfilling locations required by the script, including scouting for night shots (at night) in what most would consider “less than desirable” parts of town; the scouting tag helped. A lot.

    Another argument for continuing the scouting tag privelege in NYC:

    New York is a world-class city. Some of the world’s most famous films (including tv shows, commercials, videos and photgraphs) have been made in NYC.

    As a location scout, one of the reasons you live in the NYC area is to have an opportunity to work on projects of this caliber.

    It is not unreal to assume that you could, in fact, find yourself driving around NYC (showing locations) in the same car together with an Oscar-winning director or acclaimed director of photography, a producer you just read about in a tabloid and a bazillion-dollar net-worth executive producer or financier, with the power between them to give the nod or say no to bringing $100 million or more in jobs or business to the city. (This is “economic development”. It’s good for cities. Production is good at that. And production doesnt pollute the air and water.) Anyway, I am sure you can see the motivation to let these people feel special and get their jobs done quickly and easily.

    In contrast, the film industry has changed a lot in the past few years, nowadays, there are hundreds, if not thousands, of smaller budget films in production in New York each year, thanks to the advent of the internet and digital imaging, which have effectively taken content distribution out of the hands of a few big-money players and put it into the hands of anyone with a passion to tell a story and can afford a camera, a crew, talent and their locations. Individually, these types of productions dont always spend that much, but as the sum of the parts, this group represents a sizable chunk of change in New York’s annual production income. It is this group that will be most affected by the scouting tag change, as they will have to figure into their budgets that their scouts will either have to pay for parking or for parking tickets. New York is already a fairly expensive town just to exist in, period; discontinuing the location scouting tag privelege could be one of many ways that production might have an incentive to go elsewhere. This is what is known as “runaway production”

    It’s a couple of more weeks till the scouting tag priveleges are scheduled to go away. It’s been good.

    RH | GeoURL | NAC | Plazes | Dipity | outside.in | Mapufacture | Post Map


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    Creative Planet Websites

    Published
    by
    R. Richard Hobbs
    on May 28, 2006
    in content
    .
    Last edited: August 4, 2008
    0 Comments

    The Creative Planet websites are the online version of all those niche trade magazines you always can never resist subscribing to (free for qualified subscribers!) and often wonder what you were thinking as six months of “Widgets Monthly” piles up unread; the upside of the online versions (if you can stay your trembling hand from subscribing by email) is you can stay up to speed on your own time on the latest technologies (yup, lot-o industrial/gear/tech press releases) online -and no trees died for your sins:

  • MAGAZINES
    carsound.com
    dcinematography.com
    governmentvideo.com
    medialinenews.com
    prosoundnews.com
    rentalandstaging.com
    resmagonline.com
    sportstvproduction.com
    systemscontractor.com
    surroundpro.com
    televisionbroadcast.com
    videography.com
  • NEWSWIRES
    AVWorshipSystems.com
    LivefromNAB.com
    LivefromNSCA.com
    LivefromCedia.com
    LivefromInfocomm.com
    WhatsnewatNAB.com
  • CREATIVE PLANET COMMUNITIES
    2-pop.com
    cinematographer.com
    designinmotion.com
    dcinematography.com
    directorsworld.com
    dv.com
    editorsnet.com
    governmentvideo.com
    hdvroadshow.com
    postindustry.com
    vfxpro.com
    televisionbroadcast.com
    videography.com
  • MUSICPLAYER
    musicplayer.com
    guitarplayer.com
    bassplayer.com
    dv.com
    keyboardmag.com
    eqmag.com
    backbeatbooks.com
  • EVENTS
    GVExpo
    Digital Media DC
    DV Expo
    Surround Expo
    Entertainment Media Expo
    DVD Entertainment Conference
    HDV Roadshow
  • SUBSCRIPTIONS
    Digital Cinematography
    Government Video
    Medialine
    Pro Sound News
    Rental & Staging Systems
    Residential Systems
    Sports TV
    Surround Professional
    Systems Contractor
    Television Broadcast
    Videography

    • Feeds are available, but as far as I can tell only on the The Creative Planet websites, I wasnt able to find any links to subscribe to the feeds. It would be really nice if these feeds were rss-enabled on the public side; If they were, if you had the tech where-with-all to have (and have figured out how to use) a newsreader, subscribing to feeds to my mind is inherently a lot less painful than an email subscription when you just feel information-overloaded or grow loathe of whatever content you may have happenned to have subscribed to. A lot less potential privacy issues as well, altho admittedly a company such as CMP Media (parent of The Creative Planet websites) is by nature in the business of selling advertising based on aggregation of market research and demographics data, which is probably their reason for not offering up anonymous feed subscriptions. Just seems oh-so-old-school…oh well.

    On the proverbial flip side of the burger, if you are a business in a related field, companies like CMP can provide an important outlet for announcements of newsworthy events or innovations that involve your business. As depressing as all those back issues of WidgetWorld can look piling up on your commode tank, the fact is that journalists rely on these types of periodicals and the data contained therein for background and research. You want to be sure there is plenty of positive hype about your ground-breaking widget in FindArticles as well as (obviously) on Google and Yahoo.

    I personally also like PRWeb, and also NewsisFree for driving people crazy with announcements of my latest bits of news of widget of the month ;-)

    About Creative Planet Communities

    “Founded in 1997, the Creative Planet Communities, a division of NewBay Media LLC, offers online resources for the film and television production professional. Updated daily, the CPC sites offer news, articles and discussions forums for the creative community. The company’s network of sites includes 2-pop.com, VFXPro.com, Cinematographer.com, Videography.com, DCinematography.com and DesigninMotion.com.”

    …read more…

    RH | GeoURL | NAC | Plazes | Dipity | outside.in | Mapufacture | Post Map


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    For Property Owners: Photo Tips

    Published
    by
    R. Richard Hobbs
    on May 22, 2006
    in content
    .
    Last edited: June 7, 2008
    0 Comments

    RICH’S QUICK GUIDE TO POSTING PICTURES TO A WEBSITE

    also here: http://rrhobbs.com/postingyourpics.html

    It’s good to know how to post pictures to a website- whether you are an artist or you have some other tangible object or property you need to illustrate. A lot of people go about this task using email, but there are a few reasons this IS NOT a always a good idea. Consider this: You have a dozen pictures (of anything) that you need to have someone see. Depending on the resolution of the pictures, you could spend HOURS emailing these pictures.

    AND

    1.) If you get ONE letter or number or other character in the recipient(s) email address wrong YOU GOTTA START OVER
    2.) If your ISP limits the message size (my isp limits each email msg size to 2mb) and you go over YOU GOTTA START OVER
    3.) If you need for someone (else) to see the pics later on then YOU HAVE TO SEND THEM AGAIN
    4.)If you forgot to cc: someone YOU HAVE TO SEND THEM AGAIN
    5.) If you left out a picture you have to figure out which one it was and email everybody again.
    Doesn’t it make a lot of sense to only have to go thru these hassles once?

    FIRST THINGS FIRST- WEB BASICS

    A basic understanding of how the www works is needed. For instance, what happens when you look at a web page is that your computer (browser/client) sends a command over an electronic network (the web) to another computer(server) asking it to let you look at some files. (The computers have to understand each other but that’s a story for another day) The spot on the network AND on the other computer where the files are stored is known as a URL (Uniform Resource Locator). The spot that you are “calling” from is known as your IP address (Internet Protocol address). Provided everything goes well, you are sent the content that you requested and you will see a web page(text and/or pictures, etc.) That’s all the web is: FILES ON COMPUTERS! Proper software and hardware on your end makes VIEWING these files possible.

    So the next question is: “How do I become the computer (server) on the “other end“?

    Answer: Unless you are a REAL techie (in which case you would not need to be reading this) you have no business running a web server. BUT there ARE plenty of techies in this world, and there are many servers, AND there are many servers you can USE to display your info to the world. In most cases servers are Unix operating system computers with a direct, very fast connection to the web. Some are free to use, some you pay for.

    Next question: “So how do I get my files to a server?”

    Answer: Several ways, to start.
    Since you are probably new to this you may want to try one of the many “free web space” services available. Several popular ones are: Geocities ( Geocities ), Tripod ( www.tripod.com ), I’m not going to go into detail about using these services, if you go their site(s) plenty of info is available. One way or another the files you wish to display are UPLOADED to the server (More about this later)
    NOTE: The reason these services are free is because you almost always have to display some advertising on your web pages for them. Often you can pay a fee and forego this duty.
    ANOTHER NOTE: You probably use an ISP (Internet Service Provider) to “get on the web”, like AOL, Earthlink, Concentric, RCN using a DIAL UP CONNECTION or maybe you have a DSL or ISDN or CABLE MODEM connection, or maybe you are affiliated with a learning institute or have a a job with a company that is “wired” and they provide you with access to the web. Anyway the point is, if you have an ISP that you pay for you often get web space to use as part of the service.
    You can also get your own DOMAIN. This has a certain amount of appeal because you it’s YOUR domain, and its often easier for people to identify you, which can be a huge boon, especially if you are in business. (i.e. www.rrhobbs.com is MUCH easier to remember than www.tripod.com/rrhobbs or www.geocities.com/broadway/6247/ (these are real url’s however they have not been updated for some time) Getting your own domain involves checking availabilty of whatever domain name “dotcom, net, org” you have in mind, (i.e. rrhobbs.com), and registering the domain with the INTERNIC. The INTERNIC is: “US Department of Commerce regulated organization provides public information regarding Internet domain-name registration services.” See the INTERNIC site for all the details ( www.internic.net )

    Once you have your own DOMAIN alas, you still need a HOST (a server to use). Often your present ISP offers WEB HOSTING SERVICES, and there are many companies who do nothing but web hosting. www.ispcheck.com is a good starting point for finding a web hosting service. Your web host can assist you in registering your domain, too.

    GETTING YOUR FILES ONLINE- REALLY

    If you get your own domain and web host, most likely the way you will be getting your files on the server is to FTP (FILE TRANSFER PROTOCOL) them to the server. Your webhost will most likely have plenty of details about this (the parameters,settings and password needed by your FTP PROGRAM (your webhost will probably have some suggestions, a couple I know of are WSFTP ( www.ipswitch.com ) and Cute FTP ( www.cuteftp.com ). There are Mac OS ftp programs (clients) at www.macosarchives.com .
    A user friendly way to present your pictures is to use THUMBNAILS. A program I use is Thumbnailer . It will not only create thumbnails, it will automatically generate web pages, saving a LOT of time and headaches.

    NOTE:Unfortunately, (at this writing) Thumbnailer is available for Windows only. I’ve heard that Extensis Portfolio is a good thumbnailer for Mac OS. I don’t know whether it will generate web pages on the fly or not tho. You can also make thumbnails in Photoshop.

    This is not, nor is it intended to be, a be-all / end-all for web publishing. In that vein, please don’t email me with questions about any of this unless I specifically requested you do so. Use your ingenuity and search for more info about stuff you dont understand or would like to know more about on the web. There’s A BUNCH of stuff! Good luck!

    Legal Mumbo-Jumbo: The reader uses information obtained via this document at his/her own risk. The author is in no way responsible for damges incurred in any way from use of any information contained in this document.

    RH | GeoURL | NAC | Plazes | Dipity | outside.in | Mapufacture | Post Map

    # updated 6/7/2008 - some clean up / added map


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    About Film Permits

    Published
    by
    R. Richard Hobbs
    on May 22, 2006
    in content
    .
    Last edited: July 16, 2008
    1 Comment

    About Filming Permits | Information for Production and Property Owners:

  • Many towns and municipalities in the New York City area, especially those close to Manhattan such as Bergen, Passaic, Hudson and Essex Counties in New Jersey; Westchester, Rockland and Orange Counties, NY; Nassau County, Long Island, NY and the Stamford, CT area, to New York City (which as been a major filming hub for many years) have filming permit requirements.

    • Additional Info:

  • Many New York City area productions are crewed with members of various guilds and unions that have established their own “film zones“, or, generally speaking, areas in which they will work as locals. Depending on the union or guild in question generally the New York City “film zone” (or “The Zone”) is a radius of 25-30 miles emanating from Columbus Circle in Manhattan. Non-union productions often use “The Zone” as a point of reference for travel and logistics as well.

    Towns and municipalities in “The Zone” are more likely to have formal permit requirements and there may be fees involved. Towns and municipalities outside “The zone” may have permit requirements as well, however requirements tend to relax as distance from New York City increases and population density decreases.

    There are exclusive communities that do not allow filming at all, however this is the exception.

    The point being made is that property owners and production alike should check with local government as to whether a property (whether it be municipally-owned or privately owned) under consideration as a filming location is subject to film permit requirements.

    Property owners and production alike should understand and should be prepared to comply with any local filming or photography permit requirements as they may exist. Not only is it the right thing to do, but when you think about it it be could darn expensive to reshoot after being shut down for not having a permit!

    The city clerk’s office or police department are good starting points for getting information regarding local film permit requirements.

    Often a film permit will include require production to provide a certificate of insurance showing the municipality third-party additionally insured.

    Sometimes “leafleting” or advising neighbors in writing of an intended shoot is a permit requirement.

    Many permit requirements revolve around issues of impact on the community with regard to traffic congestion and safety, noise, and “general commotion”. Even a small photo crew, under certain circumstances, let alone a large production with a large crew, many vehicles and a lot of equipment can be potentially be very disruptive to neighbors or the area at-large.

    Permit requirements very widely from town to town and can require as little effort as notifying the local police department or sending the town a letter of intent to multiple forms to multiple local government offices / agencies and fees of over $1000 per day.

    Even if there is no formal permit required is usually advisable to contact the local government and police department, especially if a shoot is to take place on public property or has any potential whatsoever of being disruptive in any way.

    • Helpful links:

  • NJ Film Office
  • NYS Governors Office of Motion Picture and Television Development
  • The City of New York Mayor’s Office of Film Theatre & Broadcasting
  • Nassau County, Long Island, NY Film Office and The Long Island Film & TV Foundation
  • Suffolk County, Long Island, NY Film Office
  • Westchester County, NY Film Office
  • Connecticut Film Office
  • Pennsylvania Film Office
  • Philadelphia Film Office
  • Association of Film Commissions International

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    The Neon Museum, Las Vegas, NV

    Published
    by
    R. Richard Hobbs
    on February 24, 2006
    in content
    .
    Last edited: September 22, 2008
    0 Comments

    The Neon Museum, Las Vegas, NV

    “The Neon Museum’s mission is to collect, preserve, study and exhibit neon signs and associated artifacts to inspire educational and cultural enrichment for diverse members of our international community.”

    …read more…



    RH | GeoURL | NAC | Plazes | Dipity | outside.in | Mapufacture | Post Map


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