Location Recce

Location 1 - House

When deciding on where to shoot interior scenes for the home of the App User in the promotional video I had to find a setting for cheap but had the requirements of a bedroom with a window and a kitchen and a filmable front entranceway, I eventually found a location owned by one of my crew members parents however it lacked a front garden for the final shot of the promotional video, so I split the shooting into another home that I had scouted.

Location 2 - Town

I was struggling to decide on where I was going to film the scenes in a public area that had the desired pedestrian crossing, playground and train station to do the public filming on a single shooting day and be within transportable distance for my talent and crew to achieve this. We decided on Kingsbury Village as it has the main Tamworth road for the crossing near a co-op allowing for ease transport between takes as well as a playground less than 15 minutes walking distance. It did lack a train station but it was to perfect to pass upon.

*Notes Post-Production

We ended up deciding to scrap the escalator shot in a train station as we couldn't find an affordable area near are desired location for the ease of talent and crew and it didn't fit with the final product.

Location 3 - CO-OP

While scouting Kingsbury Village for our exterior scenes we found a CO-OP right next to a crossing we were planning on using for the exterior scenes making it a perfect candidate to be filmed in. Having looked in the interior I had to move around the shot setups for filming in there however the manager was open to filming there but I would need to contact the local branch of the company for permission.

Conclusion

I decided on these locations in order to accommodate for the schedules of my talent and crew and their overall cost was under are budget cost, I then went to each location after contacting each of the sites managers and performed an evaluation of the site.

Activity	Is the location suitable for production?	Additional comments
Surveying the location and marking positions and suitability for filming equipment (Camera, Lighting, Sound, etc.).	Yes, it is suitable for my filming equipment. All locations fit with my video as the interiors were big enough to handle the capacity of my talent and crew, but the Crossing might require more time to film depending on the elements of the shooting day, as it's exposed to harsh winds, etc.	Due to the openness of the public areas, and it being on a busy area/road (especially on the main Tamworth road) where we are planning exterior footage  I might have to post letters to nearby residents telling them the filming dates and how to avoid it.
Identify the equipment necessary for this location.	No location seemed to require extra technical equipment required to shoot, but I think having a trailer car/caravan for my makeup/costume department to set up for my actors would be optimal to allow us to film at these species quickly and effectively.	Due to a high school being nearby these exterior shooting locations we should film during school times (Between 8:00am to 4:00pm). To avoid heavy foot/car traffic in our shooting locations.
Examine and identify any potential health and safety issues.	The only health risks I saw in these shooting locations was the potential to fall down the stairs during our interior shooting (as it is a tight space near the top of the staircase of the bedroom scene). I was also concerned about vehicle traffic in the pedestrian crossing area.	Need to have a staff member trained in first aid during shooting and must have medkits on hand and high visibility clothing for my crew during the shooting in these locations.
Check the position of the sun and lighting conditions.	Has suitable natural lighting but will still require light reflectors due to outside shooting locations.	Heavily depend on shooting day and may alter the order of which areas to shoot for better sun positioning as there is little to no shade in these outside shooting locations.
Look for the best camera positioning for filming	Have established the best positioning to fit with my goals for the film opening but I have heavily altered my original ideas from the storyboard.	Had to make adjust crew size to better fit in the interior settings/locations.
Confirm times and dates with technical crew/actors or anybody interviewing etc.	It is suitable and everyone has been told of the filming schedules dates and times agreed by the landowners, and they can all find transport to the set for are filming times.	I will be arriving to set before everyone else, I have hired a caravan company that will provide areas for my staff to set up in for when they arrive.
Make sure everybody on set knows what is planned and how they will help in its execution through the role on set.	It is suitable and everyone knows their roles.	Everyone involved has been informed and had their expectations while on set will be personally explained by me before filming.

Evaluation of Location Recce

By doing a Location Recce it allowed me to evaluate the risks and requirements for my shooting locations, which lets me know what I need to bring to set and book in advance for the shoot. This includes safety precautions and how they will affect talent and camera equipment. The benefit to me and my crew was significant as by surveying the locations I knew what we were going to be dealing with each day of shooting, leading to minimal surprises we weren't expecting (foot traffic, etc.). However, I could have prevented doing this by shooting in a studio where I would have had full control of the setting for interior scenes and could have a lot for the cost of shooting by not needing to pay the owners outside the studio owners and could have had premade sets to have it all filmed and ready to go in a single shooting day. If I was going to shoot this production again I would have definitely used a studio for the interior shots as I could have had it made with my equipment in mind and would have allowed a better setup for me and my crew.

Overall by performing a location Recce and making detailed notes on my shooting locations help me and my crew easily start shooting by pre-planning around problems and issues before arriving on the set. But I could have better controlled my setting and not required this for interior scenes by hooting in a studio for the indoor scenes.