Location Managers Guild International

Spring 2018

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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18 • LMGI COMPASS | Spring 2018 G U I L D I N T E R N A T I O N A L TM LMGI At 16, I worked summers as a still photography assistant and commercial PA for my cousin, innovative photographer Steve Horn. Horn/Griner was one of the most sought-after photography and design companies in the world. My cousin never pre-scouted, so my location photos had to be accurate. When he arrived to shoot, there could be no surprises. It was great training, and I loved the work. After three years majoring in art and design at Pratt Institute I left school to begin my scouting career. I worked as a freelance location scout and CAREER FOCUS The Creative Arc of Location Scout Ken Haber manager in TV commercials in NY for about 10 years. My art education provided a foundation for scouting and photography. Not a day goes by that I'm not grateful for that art background. Rising to the challenge of the compressed timeline of commercials, I learned to visually tell a story in 30 or 60 seconds, boiling down a theme to its essence. This ability landed me a job on Adrian Lyne's Fatal Attraction. He wanted to work with me because of my background in TV commercials, which was his background as well. It also proved to be a valuable connection in my work with director Ridley Scott. When asked why he still directs commercials after his successful career in features, Scott answers, "You might work for a year or two on a single feature, of which only about three months is actually directing. By directing commercials, I can keep practicing my craft." When I did start working on features, it was a trial by fire. In those days, the crew was about 45 people, with only half a dozen ten- tons, plus maybe two people movers, and a honeywagon. Hair/makeup and wardrobe changing rooms were arranged at each location. The entire location department consisted of myself, one assistant and a day-player scout. Lyne's directive on Fatal Attraction was "Shoot details of the various locations, the things on dressers, tables, desks, walls and so on. They contribute to the soul of the location and the backstory of the characters." This is a method of scouting that I use to this day. I also learned that Lyne is not your typical director. If the script called for a loft exterior, elevator, staircase, entrance and apartment interior, this was not one or two locations, it was five. Each element had to be perfect. As a result, we scouted well over 400 loft buildings. Scouting on Fatal Attraction was daunting, but never having done a feature before, I thought that this was how they all were done. I must have done something right, because I went on to location manage Wall Street, Black Rain, Thelma & Louise and School Ties. On the latter, I met my wife, set decorator Rosemary Brandenburg. School Ties shot in the Boston area and central Pennsylvania. Half the crew was from NY; half was from LA. One of the first issues to become evident was the jurisdictional differences of job categories All photos courtesy of Ken Haber/LMGI My father was a professional photo retoucher. He was also an excellent fine art painter. Although he died when I was 13, the seed was planted; I pursued a career in the arts. I grew up in Brooklyn Heights and commuted to the High School of Art & Design in Manhattan. Three-year-old Ken with his dad

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