London is a great city to film your corporate video production in, however it does present a variety of difficulties. Having been involved in hundreds of shoots in London, here’s what you need to know beforehand;

 

Prepare a plan:

  • Those who are unfamiliar with doing a shoot in London can be challenged by a number of factors.The Difficulties of Filming in London
  • Create a logistical plan before the shoot which includes clear instructions for the day, who is needed when and where and why.

 

Getting to the shoot:

  • If your crew need to travel on public transport, then know that it can be tricky to get everybody there on time. There is congestion, there are delays and the frustration and expense of parking to deal with. Where possible get people to travel together.

 

Build a contingency plan:

  • Plan for no-shows, bad weather and cancellations of venues. It rarely happens, but things do change even the day before the shoot.
  • Everybody should have access to this back-up plan so that they know what is expected of them if things don’t work out as intended.

 

Parking:

  • Parking is by far the hardest thing to find in London. It’s worth planning your day and allowing for parking moves. Some spaces only allow 2 hours, so if your cameraman is parked and it takes an hour to set up, that only leaves and additional hour to film before the shoot is interrupted.
  • How close is the parking to the location? Having to trek with all the equipment isn’t a huge issue, but it definitely helps if the crew don’t have to.

 

Private Property:

  • There is a lot of private property in the capital, it’s worth just making sure you have permission to film where you are filming. Before filming outside of anywhere, make sure to go and check with the manager or owner of the property that they are happy for you to do so.

 

Budget:

  • Allow a little more budget if you’re going to hire a location in London. It’s like most things in the capital, rule of thumb is that it’s at least 10% more for anything.

 

Time:

  • For some reason, working in the capital takes a lot longer than anywhere else. Mainly because most of the environments aren’t in your control, so allow additional time for each shot.

 

Sound:

  • The city is a lot louder than more rural areas, so if you’re planning to film interviews in the capital it might be worth making sure you can do them inside, in a controlled quieter environment. You may have to handle noise from sirens, traffic, helicopters and construction – all contributing to your shoot being ruined.

 

Mess:

  • Leave a location as you found it. You don’t want to leave any bitterness behind you after filming in businesses or residences. There are also some fairly large fines for not disposing of rubbish correctly in London.

 

London is a vibrant city and makes for an exciting backdrop for your corporate video production. Done right, you’ll be amazed by the results, but it’s all about knowing what you’re letting yourself in for and doing your homework. Contact the team, we’ve got plenty of knowledge and can help you with your video production.

Want to read more, check out our previous blog – ‘Working With Actors on Your Corporate Video Production’