Just wanted to take a poll and get people's thoughts.

Which cities do you guys feel are the best for people interested in making their own films? And why do you feel that way?
I'm looking for as much input as I can get.
I'm at a stage in my life right now where I can pretty much move anywhere, and I'm open to anything. I'd like to get as many different perspectives on this as possible, as I'm sure there is many cities and many reasons that I haven't yet considered. Thanks.

I live in the US, and don't have the means to move to another country, but for the purposes of discussion, I'd love to hear what suggestions people have about any city, anywhere.

Thanks.

Ever since I saw Slacker way back when I thought Austin looked like a pretty cool city. Here's what Moviemaker says (it has Austin at #4 by the way): http://www.moviemaker.com/issues/49/top10_2003.html

1. Anywhere.
2. Los Angeles.

Yo RKS. Have you seen the movie American Splendor about Harvey Pekar? It was filmed in Cleveland. Also, if you wanna film a cool movie in Cleveland let me make a suggestion- The Torso Killer. The serial killer who terrorized Cleveland during The Depression. I find it a pretty interesting case.

Hey, Brack, as fate would have it I happened to see it last year at Cannes with Harvey. (http://www.robertks.com/showlogentry.php?entry_id=25)

Two Cleveland filmmakers called the Russo Brothers (Welcome to Collinwood) recently won an Emmy for their Arrested Development pilot; they're also doing the new series LAX.

Harvey looks like he's nodding off in one of those pictures! That guy is a classic. I used to love him on Letterman.

With the advent of professional / semi-professional acquistion equipment and the affordability of some very powerful editing programs available to the Average Joe...there is NO best city in which to make it big.

You are only limited by your own imagination, so, take the leap and go for the gold!

Good luck, RB.

I completely agree, Rick, so, I guess I should say, what cities do people feel have strong and/or developing film communities, filled with people willing to help each other out, and with good enthusiasm? Or, what cities or states are particularly kind to filmmakers, ie permits and grants, etc?

I think a big factor is how much freedom you have to shoot without people getting uptight and cops hassling you. Small towns are probably better than big cities for this. Also, I think a lot of small towns have character that will make your location shoots seem fresh. It's pretty hard to find a surprising element in New York City. I'm not knocking the city, but we've seen every inch of it in movies and TV over the years. I don't know why people think they have to leave their home town to make a good movie. Stay where you are and put all the cash you save on screen.

I hear Ciudad Acuna, Mexico is pretty good....

<<<-- Originally posted by Brack Craver : Here's what Moviemaker says (it has Austin at #4 by the way) -->>>

Interesting that you mention this. I just returned from my first visit to Austin a week ago (the highlight of which was lunch with Chris Hurd at Chuy's :-). I was reading the local paper and they had an article about filmmaking which said Austin is now considered the #1 city (perhaps this was US cities and not North America like the article you cite?). New York was #2 and Philadelphia was listed as #4. I don't recall #3... maybe San Francisco? I think the article was in the Sept 20 Austin paper.

Personally I don't know why any of this would matter a whole lot however. Seems like this would be a personal choice based on where you want to live, where you have friends, and other resources that are important in your own life...

Boyd,

The article Brack was citing was from 2003. The rankings you saw cited in the newspaper, were from the 2004 list. I searched online and apparently Moviemaker magazine has been doing this every year for the last four years. Boston was the #3 pick.

<<<<Personally I don't know why any of this would matter a whole lot however. Seems like this would be a personal choice based on where you want to live, where you have friends, and other resources that are important in your own life...>>>>

I agree with you to a degree, but certain communities have more film enthusiasts, more film productions, screenings, festivals, etc. Certain places are more forgiving in their permit fees, while others offer state grants. I agree that no matter where you are, you can make a film, whether on DV, 16mm, or 35mm. No city is necessarily "the" film city. However, if you want to be surrounded by people that are as passionate about movies as you are, than certain cities are more desirable than others. I guess you could say that you could find film-lovers in the middle of nowhere, but the chances of finding someone who shares YOUR particular tastes are much greater in a larger city, or in certain cities like Austin, which actively support film-making and film-watching.

I guess I'm looking for more suggestions like Austin, cities with very active film communities. Anyone have any more suggestions?

The good thing in New York City is the amazing quantity and quality of the people here. If you are spearheading the project, you'll never want for people at any level.

The bad thing?
three words: time, money, and space ... in any order you want ...

I'd have to agree with the moviemakers ranking, and vote for their top choice, right here in Vancouver Canada. Great crews, good tax breaks, amazing talent, tons of equipment, and a real diverse location. If you want a setting of any kind it's within 1 hour of downtown. There's really no place like it.

Nah, Vancouver is so 2003. No one who's anyone shoots here anymore. It's all Prague now, baby.

Come on! Prague is so over. Kathmandu is the place to be.



... but I heard Vancouver might be coming back next year.

Comebacks are so 2004...

I thought Holland was the place to be. Two "major" Hollywood
productions here this year and you can party after shooting as
well. What more could you ask for?

Michael,

Can you elaborate on what you mean by "time, money, and space"

I understand the $ part, but what about time and space?

Thanks.

Thanks to everyone who replied seriously.

>>With the advent of professional / semi-professional acquistion equipment and the affordability of some very powerful editing programs available to the Average Joe...there is NO best city in which to make it big.
<<
Rick, might want to stay away from places like Arkansas, where the preachers come after you if they find out your movie might contain anything resembling adult content. They try to send in some underage person past security and try to get you busted. (I'm not talking about porno either). And people around Little Rock aren't very friendly at all. (I was raised around there).

People farther out in the country though are very friendly and polite.


If you are doing strictly family/religious stuff, then it's alright. But they will still spy on you.

The only other southern city I found as unfreindly was Louisville Ky.

lol, stole the words out of my mind =). as for my own city (boston) it's mostly a documentary city. for fiction pieces it sux big time.

<<<-- Originally posted by Robert Knecht Schmidt : 1. Anywhere.
2. Los Angeles. -->>>

I would like to completely blow away the L.A. scene, or any large city scene for that matter, by saying everyone and their grandmother has been asked to fund some sort of project in a place like L.A. Almost everyone goes to places like that to shoot something (be it with camera or gun!) and there will always be people looking to ruin your experience by asking for money and permits. If you WANT to make a fictional piece about serial killers or super computer beings flying through sky scrapers, then by all means shoot in a big city. On the other hand, there is a slew of concepts that can be born and molded in the environment of a lesser town/rural setting.

I would also like to point out that Shawshank Redemption was shot almost entirely in Ohio (God I love it here). Not everyone has access to an empty prison to shoot in, nor are all our ideas taking place in a prison. Also, the prison Shawshank Redemption was shot in has been demolished. BUT...there were some beautiful shots taking place outdoors (though few and far between). Basically, you can really capture beauty and power in the country. When you're in the country, you have a quiet and inspiring environment to develope and further mold your concepts in incubation.

chris is right. the question shouldn't be city or country but what your film dictates. if the film is a travel piece like "easy rider" then you can go wherever you need to go to capture for the film.

If you're looking for small villages with a quaint, beautiful historical look...Northern VA has lots of them. All within 100 miles of DC with beautiful countryside to boot. But not for long. Urban spread is going all the way to West VA.

ain't that where they shot those gettyburg & gods+general civil war films?

Providence has quite the burgeoning film scene right now. We've quite a few Hollywood flicks come though (specially in the last year) and the Rhode Island Film Commission is trying to push the independent scene. They'll get you locations, crews and such. The city is beautiful and old and the state has everything from forest to LOTs of coastline (no mountains, our highest point is a 900' hill but there is a surprising amount of rocky and rough terrain). So far in my experience the cops don't ask for permits too much yet, so long as your not blocking traffic or something. The east side has a real artsy indy vibe (mostly due to RISDE and Brown) so business are pretty open to letting you shoot in their spaces. Cost of living ain't too bad either.

I've heard plenty of good things about North Carolina. Varied landscape, qualified crews, less LA attitude? I think they are filming one tree hill and another new series there.

So far, except for the excellent people I've met, I've been unimpressed with VA and Maryland as indie movie locations. Considering how beautiful VA is, i'm wondering how come there isn't more films being made here. From a strictly location perspective, I would rate it over NC.

Not picking or anything, just wondering.

All of these suggestions have been great and very helpful. Thank you very much.

Anyone else??

Hi Joel

Here is a link for you you might find of interest.

http://www.moviemaker.com/issues/49/top10_2003.html

Interesting article, but without quantitative analyses of local film commission budgets, permit prices, union, police, and fire scales, rental locations and prices, etc., the rankings are arbitrary. Some of those cities don't have development labs, and a few probably don't have very good equipment rental houses.

The article notes that the ranking is the third annual; it might be interesting to see how cities have moved up or down the list in the previous years.

Well put Robert.

The one thing I do agree with however is ANYWHERE BUT L.A.!

:0

Everywhere, really. You can even create a filmmaking community, just by working with local film offices, etc.

I push Palm Beach County, where I live, because we're really starting to have some great, locally-produced AND outside-the-state indie film productions happening here. A $1 million film about retireers is filming next month (how appropriate) in Boynton Beach, Florida, about 20 miles from where I live.

heath

To help push Palm Beach County, Florida more, here are some links:

www.pbfilm.com

www.pbifilmfest.org

www.pbfilmsociety.org

www.palmbeachfilmschool.com

http://www.pbcc.edu/programs/program.asp?program_id=21

heath

Joel,

Plenty of great suggestions here... I think the key to finding the best place to be is knowing where you're at in life and in your career.

Here are some thoughts:

If you're just looking to meet "like minded" people who can hang out on the weekends and lend a hand on a DV short every once in awhile, then you may not need to move at all. Like others have said, you can start, build, or join such a group just about anywhere. Like minded people are out there. You just have to search for them.

If you're looking to "test the waters" and a short move is more your thing, South Flordia isn't a bad place to be. Miami has seen A LOT of major production in the last few years. And the Palm Beach/Fourt Lauderdale area is close enough to Miami for commuting, and far enough from all the "Miami" issues.

Check out Green Room Orlando (www.greenroomorlando.com) for a few contacts and info. Maybe you can start by making a few connections in Central and South Florida and commute until you decide to make the move to the area. This way you can get a taste for the nearby options without making any permenant decisions.

I have not yet worked or lived in Austin. So I can't speak from experience. Though I have met plenty who have and I've heard nothing but good things from a community perspective.

If, you're looking for more of a major relocation, then I would strongly suggest New York.

When I made the decision to relocate from Orlando, I chose NY. And it's been one of the best decisions I ever made.

Sure, NY is old and dirty and expensive and cold and expensive and... Did I mention expensive?

Born in SoCal and raised in Orlando, the NY winters hit me hard. I got sick, I froze my ass off and I had to get used to dressing a lot warmer!

I pay almost three times as much to rent my apartment in Brooklyn as I did to pay my mortgage for my very comfortable three bedroom house in Orlando. It's a tough thing to go from the comfort of nice three bedroom single family home that I owned in Orlando to a smaller apartment that I get nothing in return from. My house appreciated in value and gave me a nice chunk of money when I sold it. My apartment keeps going up in price and I get nothing more than my security deposit when I leave! But it's not just the rent that's more... EVERYTHING in NY is 2 to 3 times more expensive.

HOWEVER... I wouldn't trade it for the world!!!

The people I've met, the experiences I've had, the films I've shot, the possibilities I've encountered... Priceless. Not all good, but priceless.

I work all over the country. And plenty of productions lead me right back to Florida. But NY feels like home now.

So far as I can tell -- NOT in Iowa.

Oh well.

Colin,

Then build it, man! Not too many people gave a s--- about film in Palm Beach County, Florida, but we all pitched in and movies are really starting to pop up. With budgets over $100,000! If we can turn a major tourist destination into a growing film community, you can, too!

heath

ps-Or move here! ;-)

Plenty happening down in NZ !!

I was wondering about that same question and the answere leaped right out at me. I went into my back yard and looked at all the creapy looking leafless trees in the winter and started walking around out into the woods and found all kinds of interesting ideas. If you don't have equipment and location, make movies about what you can with what you have got. Stock footage companies can provide you with the shots to make it look like anywhere in the world.

Assets are something you should look at; for instance, Robert Rodriguez had a 16mm camera, a bus and a dog (and a ladder) and he used that and more to make El Mariachi.

heath

Cleveland: since the US is so vast, shouldn't you guys have almost
any kind of "nature" look you want? From seas, lakes, mountains
(and snow) to desserts, palm beaches, major cities, small western
towns, empty roads and much much more?

What more could you ask for!

(just takes a bit of travelling)

<<palm beaches>>

Only in my area of Palm Beach County! <g>

heath

We have palm beaches both on the east and west coasts, However if you look at where St. Louis is, you can see that the nearest beach is about 900 miles (roughly 1500 kilometers) away from me. So I am not making any movies about the beach until I can sell one that affords me a beach house.

So what I am doing currently is writting a script for a film I think would be better shot at this time next year when all the trees have that creepy scary dead look to them. In a few weeks they'll all look different so I'll have to wait a whole year maybe I could do it in Decamber and January but it will be about -20C for at least a few days that time of year. I don't think any sane person would want to help me work in those conditions. Especially not Heath down in Palm Beach.

Yeah, Heath NEVER misses the opportunity to tell me how warm it is whenever I'm trudging through the snow on my way to a shoot. Or worst, shooting outside in winter (rare, but it does happen)!

With the exception of maybe LA, I think every area has thier season to shoot. Florida is just too damn hot to shoot anything during the middle of the summer if you have EXT's. NY is too damn cold to shoot EXT's during the winter.

Rob, I'm not super geo-educated. But I think LA is really the only US city that has every single locale you can imagine within four hours or less by car. Of course, getting out of LA in less than four hours is another story. So if you factor traffic, I guess those locales are just as far away as they are from everybody else! :)

Australia and New Zealand is like L.A. in that you have beaches, mountains, etc.

Cleveland, my family lives in St. Louis and I've ALWAYS wanted to shoot a horror film or two there in the month of October. The rest of my family (and where I'm from) is in Denver, Colorado. Which is C-O-L-D.

heath

The San Francisco Bay Area has an amazingly varied landscape all within 4 hours or less. Everything from snow covered mountains down to beaches and everything in between.

FYI: if you want a beach and palm trees, just take the Treasure Island exit on the Bay Bridge - 5 minutes out of the city.

I agree with everything Jon said about NYC and I also call it home, but the SF Bay Area has a beautiful landscape.

Michael,

I was able to secure a DVD of Blackwater Elegy (www.blackwaterelegy.com) for you if you're still interested in seeing it.

Wait a minute... wrong thread. D'oh.

Ummmm, shot on location in Lakeland, FL... Uhhh, so check out Central Florida's scene!

Sorry Mr. Hurd.

Heh, heh check your email.

Well I live in Urbandale Iowa (suburb of des moines) and i just moved here in January. This seems like a VERY nice place for a filmmaker. Not too many people to get in your way and bother you during shoots, you can easily find a place and be alone for your shoots, and if you want a more populated area, Des moines is a 5 minute drive away.

Of course Des Moines isn't anything compared to NY or LA. But it's a city and I'm sure you can get some nice shots there.

I lived in Boca Raton, Florida before. And I'll say this much, that place is perfect for ANYTHING.

Minneapolis-St. Paul. Good community, lots of talented crew members, reasonable cost of living, lots of venues for indy film, good funding base.

Whatever you do, stay away from Austin....
there are too many of us here already.
:)