Student Filming Resources
- Halogen or LED work lights (250-500 watts) (stands)
- Clamp lamps (LED 3800K or above, or Reveal brand light bulbs)
- China balls (IKEA or similar)
- AC extension cords, heavy (20+ amps ideal), 50 foot (to reach different circuits)
- Ground lifters (2 to 3 prong)
- Rope
- Grip clamps (metal, #1 & #2)
- Cloth tape (gaffers)
- Diffusion (cheap =baking parchment)
- C47s (wood clothespins)
- Aluminum Foil (heavy duty)
- Windshield shades, silver (as reflector)
- Foam core/white cardboard (bounce)
- LED work light (needs correction gel- minus green or CTO)
- LED flashlights (needs correction - useful for back/rim light in tight location)
- AC circuit tester
These Items from an Expendable Supply Store:
- Black paper tape (for taping across barn doors, flagging lenses)
- Black wrap™
- White drafting vellum for bounce and diffusion
- Daylight (blue) cut Gels
- Minus green Gels (if LED or Fluorescent used)
- Roscoe™ Tough Opal Frost (diffusion) Lee™ 216 (250) or similar
Shooting Permits for LACC Cinema 2 Class
(There are four different types of Locations/Requirements)
1) LACC CAMPUS (To Shoot on the LACC Campus - use this facilities link. Approval will come electronically from your instructor & the Cinema/TV department chair. No other city permit needed to shoot on campus. This will take ten days for processing. Follow all rules & instructions).
https://lacitycollege.edu/Community-Business/Event-Rentals-Filming/Event-Rentals-Filming
2) Shooting Permits for the City/County of Los Angeles: Film LA (Sunset Blvd. Office: You need to take a physical letter from your instructor, cash, Student ID, insurance is already provided LACCD. This can take as little as 72 hours for processing. Follow all rules & instructions.)
https://www.filmla.com/for-filmmakers/student-filmmakers/
3) Shooting Private Liability Insurance (This is for a privately owned location that asks for its own insurance. Example: restaurants, museums, apartment complexes. You need to provide the information of the OWNER of the property on this form, not just the manager, including a clear email address. Once the form is completely filled out and signed by your instructor it goes to the LACC Cinema/TV Department Chair for processing. This typically takes 1-2 weeks.
http://www.lacitycollege.edu/Academic-Departments/Cinema-TV/Forms
4) Shooting Permits: Individual Cities (Each City, NOT covered by Film LA has its own requirements to follow. Below is a partial list only, consult each cities’ website. You will need at least two weeks lead time to get the liability insurance in place through the Cinema/TV Department Chair. Follow all rules & instructions.)
In order to legally shoot a film on public property (and sometimes private property), you are required to have a permit. A letter must be obtained from you instructor indicating that you are a student and that the film will not be used for commercial purposes. The Los Angeles City College is registered with FilmLA and the City of Los Angeles so student permits can be obtained in Los Angeles. These are Municipalities other than Los Angeles. See the websites below for complete information on the permits you might need. Most of the needed forms can be downloaded.
City of Los Angeles, County of Los Angeles, Southgate, Diamond Bar and others
Film L.A Inc.
6255 W. Sunset Blvd., 12th Floor, Los Angeles, CA 90028
Phone: 213.977.8600, main fax: 213.977.8610, permit fax: 213.977.8601 website: FilmLA/
Procedure for Applying for Student Permits through FilmLA
City of Long Beach
hhttp://www.filmlongbeach.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=category&layout=blog&id=43&Itemid=55
Contact the Special Events & Film Office
Phone: (562) 570-5333 Fax: (562) 570-5335
City of Burbank
http://www.burbankpd.org/online-services/film-permits/
Contact the Traffic Bureau of the Burbank Police Department at (818) 238-3105, fax 238-3109, no less than 48 hours prior to start of proposed filming.
City of Santa Monica
http://www.smgov.net/Departments/PublicWorks/ContentAdminSvcs.aspx?id=7290
1685 Main St., Santa Monica, CA 90401
Phone 310-458-8737, Fax 310-576-3598
City of Beverly Hills
http://beverlyhills.org/business/filming/default.asp
To start the permit process, please first contact Community Services - Filming and Special Events at (310) 285-2408.
City of Pasadena
By appointment only
http://ww5.cityofpasadena.net/economicdevelopment/filming-information/
Phone (626) 744-3964, Fax (626) 744-4785
Email: @email
City of Culver City
http://www.culvercity.org/work/filming-in-culver-city
Film Permit Coordinator:
Phone: 310-253-6212
Fax: 310-253-6220
City of West Hollywood
http://www.weho.org/city-hall/communications/west-hollywood-film-office
State Of California
No charge for permits
Sources for Student Discounted Software:
751 Miller Drive, Lees burg VA 20175-8920
(800) 543-8188 (703) 777-3871 info@campustech.com
749 S. 8th Street/ Rt 31, West Dundee, Illinois 60118
(800) 517-2320 (847) 426-9898 @email
Source for Software Manuals & Textbook:
1033 N. Sycamore Ave., Los Angeles 90038
(323) 464-4322 opamp@netcom.com
located 1 block east of La Brea, 1/2 block south of Santa Monica
Source for DV & Analog Editing Systems, Mac Hardware, DV cameras, etc.
16 Technology Drive #102 to #106, Irvine, CA 92618
(949) 727-3977 Phone (949) 727-3546 Fax (800) 977-6629 @email
Los Angeles group supports independent film production with inexpensive resources, workshops, labs, etc.
Information about production jobs in the LA Area
Film Festivals
Diversity Resources
Film Independent: Project Involve
Nonlinear Editing Software
Information on Apple Final Cut Pro editing software for
Macintosh only
Software for video editing , music, photos, blogs for
Macintosh only
(free with any Apple computer - inexpensive upgrades for older Macs).
Information on Adobe Premiere editing software for
Mac & PC platform.
Information on Sony Vegas editing software for
PC platform only.
Avid Video Editing Student Price
Information on Avid editing software
Information about digital video cameras and problem solving
Great site for reviews and information on digital video cameras
DV, DVCAM, DVCPro and other Formats
Sites for frequently asked questions about digital video formats
Resources and forums for digital video creators
Reviews & Sells Digital Video Products
(800) 323-2325
Sells Mac computers and other products at a discount to students
Apple's own online store - loans are sometimes available. Be sure and use this link to receive the Education discount.
(800) MY-APPLE
Shooting List of Important Items to take on a Shoot
BASIC ITEMS FOR EVERY SHOOT
- Camera or Phone Camera (+ manual)
- Camera Batteries (freshly charged)
- AC Power Supply / Battery or Phone Charger / Car Cord (12v)
- Play to TV Cable (Adapters)
- Tripod
- Blank Media
- Headphone
- Extension Cords / Grounded to Ungrounded Adapter
- Labels, Markers, Tape (Masking, Duct, Electrical)
- White cardboard, foamcore, ropes
- External microphones (extra batteries) cables, adapters
- Lights (stands, extra lamps, clamps)
- C47s (wood clothespins), gel
- Necessities (toilet, food, shade)
- Releases / Permits / Letters
SPECIAL ITEMS FOR MORE ADVANCED SHOOTS
- Laptop compute r/ Tablet, power supply, charging cables
- Hard drive (s), flash media
Casting Resources
Below are some of the casting services available to students. Students choosing to use these resources must take great care when contacting talent. Remember, some are professional actors, and they expect student filmmakers to be professional.
Here are some of the perks you should offer them:
- If you expect your shoot to last less than 6 hours, please offer your talent a healthy snack; always have water available for them.
- If your shoot will run 8 or more hours, please provide one snack and one full meal. You may look at www.la411.com for a caterer. Some caterers seek out small and independent productions. If you're pressed for time, you may put together a meal via Costco, Vons, Ralph's, Albertson's deli section, Subway Sandwich Shop, etc.
- If you will be shooting more than one day, please offer your talent some kind of stipend to cover the cost of their transportation (i.e. gasoline, bus ticket, etc.)
ALWAYS provide your talent with a copy of their performance on both DVD and an editable format such as .avi or .mov file.
Casting Websites
IMPORTANT: Indicate in your posting that it is a student project and the actor will get paid with a copy of the film, get screen credit, and be provided meals.
- www.lacasting.com
A division of CastingNetworks.com. This one has a lot of student notices. Actors pay to be listed so they're serious. Excellent reputation. - www.actorsaccess.com
Actor paid site. Excellent reputation. - http://www.backstage.com/bso/index.jsp
Actor paid site. Excellent reputation. - http://www.castingfrontier.com
Reputable site but many designed for agents so not as many actors for general public. - http://losangeles.craigslist.org/
While many of our students have had no problems with Craigslit, be careful. There have been complaints of non-serious actors and the well-publicized dangerous incidents.
Please keep in mind if you abuse these services, they may choose to deny students from using them in the future.