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 2021 • 39 Island Colony The bucolic Dunkirk Camp & Conference Center on 110 acres of woodland, streams, playing fi elds and nature trails overlooks Lake Erie. The colony appears as a dreamlike paradise after the horrors Regan and Emmett endure on the road. South Grand Island Bridge spans the Niagara River between Tonawanda, near Buff alo, and Grand Island. The spectacular two-lane arched truss is featured in one of the great post- apocalyptic scenes of the movie, as Regan and the reluctant Emmett continue their journey. The Train Station Constructed in 1911, the historic Orchard Park Railway Station in Erie County is where Regan and Emmett encounter train cars that have been torn apart and the platform littered with discarded high-heel shoes. This particularly ghastly and poignant scene foreshadows a sense of their impending peril. BLACK IS KING LM Jason Wisch/LMGI LM Vincent Vanni A young African prince is exiled from his kingdom after his father's death. As he grows into a man, he undergoes a journey of self-discovery that takes him to six countries—Nigeria, Ghana, South Africa, the U.S., UK and Belgium—and across three continents before he can return to reclaim his throne. This visual album fi lm was created as a companion to the album The Lion King: The Gift. What the locations say about story: Black Is King delights the eyes and ears as it highlights the vast beauty of the African continent and the wide range of the diaspora. The prince is guided on his journey by his ancestor, childhood love and his own subconscious. It is an allegory for the journey of discovering, reclaiming, and celebrating a culture and heritage that can easily be lost if not honored. The inclusion of spoken-word poetry focuses on questions of Black identity in a mesmerizing and rhythmic way. What the location managers say: "This was fi lmed all over the world. One of the most universal projects I have been involved with … and they all needed to feel like they related to each other." Locations to watch for: Ponte City Apartment This cylindrical skyscraper with an open center in Johannesburg, South Africa, visually portrays the king's ascension into heaven and subsequent release from earthly struggle. Shakaland Zulu Village The Royal Family's village scenes were shot in KwaZulu-Natal, along the east coast of South Africa. The traditional majestic Zulu beehive hut with large horns is featured at the beginning of the fi lm. The recreated village welcomes visitors from around the world to showcase traditional Zulu culture. The hills to the east off er a splendid view over the Mhlatuze Valley, where legendary leader Shaka's military stronghold, KwaBulawayo, once stood. Ndebele Church Featured in the wedding scenes, the Roman Catholic Church is in Emthambothini, South Africa. Its white facade is decorated with colorful geometric patterns, for which the Ndebeles ethnic group are renowned. They inhabit the northeast provinces of Mpumalanga, Gauteng and Limpopo. Havasu Falls, Grand Canyon The scene for a powerful song of renewal seamlessly blends this spectacular Arizona waterfall with locations in Africa. Known for the dazzling blue-green pool at the bottom, the falls are on the grounds of the Havasupai Indian Reservation and access to this unique desert waterfall requires special permission from the tribe. Extravagant Mansion The prince is seduced by the delights of the material world and temporarily loses his way. The Beverly House, an opulent Mediterranean Revival-style mansion in Beverly Hills, was designed by Gordon Kaufmann and built in the 1920s. The house boasts 19 bedrooms, 29 bathrooms and expansive gardens with cascading waterfalls. The Olympic-size swimming pool appears as an old Hollywood dreamscape culminating in a Busby Berkeley- style aqua-musical fantasy with a synchronized swimming routine inspired by the 1944 Esther Williams fi lm Bathing Beauty. CONCRETE COWBOY LM Christopher Gormley Scout Staci Hagenbaugh There are Black cowboys in North Philly! For 100 years, they have stabled horses, saddled up and proudly ridden the city streets of this unique neighborhood. While the tale of a rebellious teenager sent to live with his estranged father for the summer is an imagined one, the people and the place it is based on are very real. What the locations say about story: The locations, along with real members of the Fletcher Street Urban Riding Club featured on camera, create a powerful level of authenticity as a reluctant father hopes the "cowboy way" will rub off on his son. The ethos of "the West," with its good guys and bad, moral codes and a poetry of the range is evoked in the blocks of row houses, dilapidated brick city warehouses, vacant grass lots and shots of riders silhouetted in the setting sun—or streetlights— against the cityscape. The creative storytelling weaves this equestrian subculture with real-life issues of urban decay, gentrifi cation, and drugs. What the location managers say: "The culture is real and exists on Fletcher Street in North Philadelphia. To accurately tell our story, we had to fi lm in the real stables, on the real streets and in the real neighborhoods of these riders. Realism and authenticity were Black is King Concrete Cowboy