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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6 • LMGI COMPASS | Summer 2020 L E T T E R FROM THE PRESIDENT Dear Members, The world has undergone quite an upheaval since the last issue of the LMGI Compass was released. Only a couple weeks transpired between initial reports of the COVID-19 outbreak to an almost total worldwide shutdown of commerce, travel and recreation. It hit everyone like a gut punch, sending us retreating to our homes, afraid to touch, breathe or interact with anything or anyone. We watched daily briefi ngs given by our elected offi cials and health authorities, and in the early days of the pandemic, wondered how we could ever recover. We eventually settled into our safe places, learned how to use Zoom and Skype, baked bread, made chicken soup, taught our kids, took neighborhood walks and waited for the curve to fl atten. We reaffi rmed why we didn't become bus drivers, schoolteachers, doctors or nurses while praising the selfl ess people who did. The LMGI began our "Coffee Tuesdays" discussion/webinar to share the latest information and regional stories with our global members. They also affi rm that we are not alone in this experience—as an industry, we will fi nd a way forward together. We adjusted to the new paradigm, knowing that when we fi nally return to work, there would be a sea change in our processes and practices. Hundreds of thousands of businesses have closed and storefronts shuttered, millions of jobs have been lost. Most jobs will return in one form or another, some will not. But in the darkness there is a ray of light, of hope, of unrealized dreams and potential. Each empty storefront presents an opportunity for a new business to open. Every person whose job does not return has a chance to reinvent themselves. We will get back to work this summer and fall in slow, deliberate, new and different ways. Studios have worked tirelessly with unions and guilds to determine proper protocols for a new production reality. Health and safety guidelines for resuming fi lming have been issued by countries, cities, states, unions and guilds worldwide—all variations on a theme, touting physical distancing, face masks and sanitizing locations and stages as the way forward. They portend a radical change in the way we create content. Commercials are being shot with limited crews. Film and television production has resumed in Iceland, Australia, the UK, New Zealand and other locales on a small scale. Many people are getting calls to check their availability for work this summer. There is hope that we will all be back, hard at work, by summer's end. As we all mentally prepare for a new normal, the terrible events in Minneapolis erupted into worldwide protests. The death of yet another black man at the hands of white police offi cers has once again shown the inequity in America and many other countries. We cannot thrive as a society when systemic institutional racism exists. We must each examine our contribution, or lack thereof, to righting the wrongs of the past. It brings to the fore that black and other minority communities cannot be the only ones calling for change. It can only occur if ALL of us raise our voices in opposition, not just to unequal policing, but to inequities in education, healthcare, access to healthy food, the internet, clean air and water. The LMGI is a unifi ed, vibrant tribe of storytellers that surmounts all racial, gender, sexual identity and governmental borders. We are stronger for our diversity and inclusion. The time for silence is past. We cannot sit idly by. It's up to each of us to determine what to do, even the smallest act that helps break down barriers and provides a bit of light in these dark times. To paraphrase Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, we do not need a rush to judgment, but a rush to justice. Mike Fantasia, President Editors LORI BALTON STEVIE NELSON KEN HABER PAUL MESSANA LMGI Officers MIKE FANTASIA, President JJ LEVINE, 1st Vice President JOHN RAKICH, 2nd Vice President KEN HABER, Treasurer GEORGETTE TURNER, Secretary LMGI Board of Directors JIMMY AYOUB LORI BALTON DAN CONNOLLY JEN FARRIS MAC GORDON WES HAGAN ERIC KLEIN EDWARD MAZUREK RYAN SCHAETZLE ALISON A. TAYLOR LMGI Chairman Emeritus ORIN KENNEDY Administrative Manager ERIKA HOWARD The LMGI Compass is published quarterly by the Location Managers Guild International. LocationManagers.org Comments, editorial and photo submissions can be sent to: Compass@LocationManagers.org Publisher INGLEDODD MEDIA Advertising INGLEDODD MEDIA 310.207.4410 LMGI@IngleDodd.com www.IngleDoddMedia.com Official Magazine of Location Professionals Promoting Excellence on Location Worldwide C MPA SS