The Location Managers Guild International (LMGI) is the largest organization of Location Managers and Location Scouts in the motion picture, television, commercial and print production industries. Their membership plays a vital role in the creativ
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LMGI COMPASS | Fall 2019 • 19 I always love scouting for period Los Angeles, zeroing in on places that, unlike the Ambassador, have managed to avoid a wrecking ball, and several projects I've worked on have allowed for a deep dive into that world: Zeroville, Love and Mercy, Feud: Bette & Joan and Ford v Ferrari. And these, along with a nice run of present-day LA projects such as Cake, Seven Psychopaths, Lowriders, Roman J. Israel, Esq., Destroyer and La La Land, have served to reinvigorate me with just how many exciting location "stones" there are out there to be turned and given some screen time that they deserve. Fans of La La Land inevitably ask me about the opening dance number … "How the heck did you close down a freeway in Los Angeles?!" While the result of several jurisdictional meetings and approvals, it was ultimately not the most "difficult" location to deal with. Once we got our permits, the CHP's in place, and took control of the 110/105 Fast Track ramp for the weekend, it didn't hold a candle to having to keep an upscale Encino neighborhood happy while blasting "Someone in the Crowd" on playback for two all-nighters! It's funny how a typical movie watcher has no idea what makes a particular site easy or difficult to accomplish from a location standpoint. That simple dialogue scene in the diner? Man, that owner was a nightmare! Those two people talking in the park? It rained and we had to scramble to figure out a different way to get it shot in time. And no matter what the project is, I always figure at the start of pre-pro there will ultimately be at least one person that will go down as one of the worst homeowners/business owner/neighbor that you've ever had to deal with, but also, fortunately, every show has some that you'll always look back on as your favorites. It's still a thrill for me upon reading a script to learn what journey, local or otherwise, I'm about to embark upon. With Ford v Ferrari, I suddenly had an excuse to scout every airport runway in the greater LA area (Carroll Shelby tested his cars at LAX). I'd been wanting to become familiar with them all again, and some for the first time, and within a matter of a week, ta-da! All new airport photos on my laptop. Even better, the scouting of every automotive race track and test track in Southern California, a world I'd never experienced before. And what a treat when Love and Mercy, La La Land and Covers sent me behind the curtain of every legendary LA recording studio. (If those walls could talk or sing!) Yep, for every neighbor complaint to calm down or bogey car parked in your posting, it's days like that where you have to admit, "I can't believe I'm getting paid for this!" that makes being a location manager the best job in the world. And no look back on my career to date would be complete without a shout- out to Tristan Daoussis, one of the best key assistants in the business, who I'm fortunate to have had by my side during nine projects now and counting. From eating Cheerios at the age of 5 in Franklin Canyon for a TV commercial, flash forward to last year's base camp in Franklin Canyon while shooting Matt Damon speeding around the curves "Standing In" for Ryan Gosling! (first ever rehearsal of the Duet Dance— Mount Hollywood Drive, Griffith Park) In the production office for La La Land My fantastic location team on Ford v Ferrari With the first Porsche ever made (while filming Ford v Ferrari)