Saw this neat quote in a different thread, and thought it would make a positive thread in its own right:
So share a story of something you got, for free, that normally should have cost a fair bit... just by asking!
In 2008, we were filming a weekend-long short film down near Temecula way. It was as lo-budget as you could get, down to cast & crew sleeping in tents on some spare acreage in the middle of some horse farms. We had a small gas BBQ to heat our water for coffee & oatmeal cups, and grill some hot-dogs for lunch - good times!
The (always broke) producer still managed to arrange us dinners where we dined like kings & queens! There was a small family-owned Italian restaurant at a town nearby, that the producer had visited the week before. He had walked in hoping to get a discount on 2 nights of food for a dozen people - he walked out with the entire thing for free. The owners were simply thrilled that a "glamorous" movie shoot was underway a few miles down the road... and their restaurant name could be in the credits!
Massive trays of ziti, lasagna, garlic bread... endless bowls of salads, stacks of pizzas... it was literally hundreds of dollars of food that we scarfed down every night (and it was deeeeeee-licious, btw).
All because someone introduced themselves to the local businesses. Who'da thunk it?
During pre-production, you gotta find (or create) the best opportunities.
WheatGrinder said:they are NOT the big city, they might actually think its "neat" that you want to make a movie there rather than see it as a revenue generating opportunity
So share a story of something you got, for free, that normally should have cost a fair bit... just by asking!
In 2008, we were filming a weekend-long short film down near Temecula way. It was as lo-budget as you could get, down to cast & crew sleeping in tents on some spare acreage in the middle of some horse farms. We had a small gas BBQ to heat our water for coffee & oatmeal cups, and grill some hot-dogs for lunch - good times!
The (always broke) producer still managed to arrange us dinners where we dined like kings & queens! There was a small family-owned Italian restaurant at a town nearby, that the producer had visited the week before. He had walked in hoping to get a discount on 2 nights of food for a dozen people - he walked out with the entire thing for free. The owners were simply thrilled that a "glamorous" movie shoot was underway a few miles down the road... and their restaurant name could be in the credits!
Massive trays of ziti, lasagna, garlic bread... endless bowls of salads, stacks of pizzas... it was literally hundreds of dollars of food that we scarfed down every night (and it was deeeeeee-licious, btw).
All because someone introduced themselves to the local businesses. Who'da thunk it?
During pre-production, you gotta find (or create) the best opportunities.