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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14 • LMGI COMPASS | Spring 2025 Locations Behind the Oscars Each year, the LMGI celebrates our craft's contribution to filmmaking with an online panel of international location professionals who scouted and managed the films nominated by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences for Hollywood's most prestigious awards. This year's panels, held in two sessions, were livestreamed on March 1, 2025, and moderated by LMGI members Miguel Tapia, Sasha Alvarez Denisoff, JJ Levine and Gina Vreeland. "I love hosting these panels because they foster a real sense of camaraderie and community," says Levine. "It's inspiring to know we have a global family of location professionals to share stories with and from whom we can learn." The panelists shared their behind-the-scenes insights and stories before a receptive audience of more than 130 viewers, who tuned to the live event. Duncan Broadfoot/LMGI spoke to the many challenges and intricacies of filming in the deserts of Abu Dhabi and Namibia on the epic space saga Dune: Part ll. Klaus GroBe Darrellman/LMGI took us to another part of the world altogether in Maria, delving into the Parisian life of opera star Maria Callas and the reenactment of the many opera houses in which she sang. Also featured was the vintage superyacht, Christina O, once owned by Callas' billionaire lover, Aristotle Onassis. Pavel Spacek/LMGI described working on the remake of the 1922 classic Nosferatu as "a dream project," highlighting filming the legendary vampire tale at locations like Invalidovna, veterans' housing and Pernštejn Castle, which was also featured in Werner Herzog's Nosferatu the Vampyre. Nadege Marti, who scouted extensively for The Substance, discussed the hurdles of transforming Cannes into California—from finding the one perfect palm tree to working with celebrity Demi Moore in a never- before-filmed, and slightly downtrodden area of Saint- Laurent-du-Var. Ross Brodar shared Anora director Shaun Baker's philosophy, which is "to use the real-life version of locations as much as possible to help motivate the storyline." Brodar regaled panel attendees with anecdotes of filming the low- budget and eventual Oscar winner in Mill Basin, Brooklyn, an area known for its luxury estates and a large Russian population. They also filmed in Brighton Beach and other areas of New York. For A Complete Unknown, Anthony Pisani/LMGI shared photos of their depiction of early 1960s New York, which was meticulously matched in Hoboken and Jersey City, New Jersey. The production's "takeover" of Cape May recreated the vibe of the fabled Newport Folk Festival. The world-famous Chelsea Hotel, a popular pit stop not only for Dylan, but for many '60s rock 'n' roll icons, was one of the very few actual New York locations seen in the film. The recipient of the 2015 LMGI Award for True Detective, Batou Chandler/LMGI impressed us once again with the depth of her knowledge and a heightened understanding of the difficulties of scouting and managing Nickel Boys, a historically significant and sensitive true story that was filmed in Louisiana. First-time moderator Gina Vreeland/LMGI, an avid scout and photographer, confesses, "I had butterflies, but JJ, Miguel and Sasha helped me through, and truthfully, once we began the interviews, I became so engrossed in the stories, I nearly forgot that there was an audience! It was great getting to know the managers from around the world, and through emails and social media, I've become friends with many of them." "I encourage everyone to watch both panels," says Levine. "We thank all our colleagues who shared their experiences working on these exemplary films, and of course, a big thank you to all the moderators who volunteered. This is what the LMGI is all about!" Video recordings of both panels can be found on LMGI members' dashboards and the LMGI YouTube and Vimeo pages.