The Location Question We Hear Most: Where Do I Start Scouting?

Almost every new student asks me some version of the same thing: where do I even start when I need a location? They usually expect me to name a good street or a quiet building. I never do, because the honest answer begins somewhere else. You start with what the shot needs, not with where the shot might happen.

Before anyone visits a site, write down what the scene has to do. An interview needs a calm corner and a steady background. A report on a harbour needs movement behind the speaker. Once those needs are on paper, you can look at a place and say yes or no in minutes rather than hours.

In early autumn this matters more than usual, because the light shifts quickly and the days shorten. A vague wish like somewhere scenic turns into long, tiring afternoons. A written list of needs keeps the search short and keeps your notes comparable.

• Write what the scene must show before searching
• List sound, light and space needs separately
• Keep the brief to one page

When you do visit, carry a simple notes sheet and fill in the same fields at every place. Record the address, the nearest parking, where power sockets are, how loud the surroundings are, and which direction the windows face. It sounds dull, but the habit pays off when you are comparing five places a week later and cannot remember which one had the humming fridge.

Take a handful of photographs from the spots where the camera would stand, not only pretty wide views. Note the time of day for each one. A room that looks bright at noon can be flat and grey by four in the afternoon, particularly now that the sun sits lower.

Sketch a rough floor plan if the space is small. Even a hand-drawn rectangle with doors and windows marked helps you place camera and light later, and it can be passed to a colleague who has never been there.

• Use one notes sheet for every visit
• Photograph from camera positions, not just wide views
• Note the time of day on every photo

The second thing students underestimate is permission. A place that suits the shot is useless if nobody agrees to let you film there. Ask early, in writing where you can, and be specific about what you intend to do: how many people, what equipment, how long and on which day. Vague requests get vague or slow answers.

Callum Reid, who teaches our locations module, reminds students to ask who actually decides. The person at the front desk is often not the person who can say yes. Find the owner, manager or the office that handles bookings, and keep a note of their reply.

Public spaces have their own rules, and they change from one place to another. Check what applies before you plan around it, and never assume that because a place is open to everyone it is open to a tripod and a crew.

• Ask in writing and state what you will do
• Find the person who can actually approve
• Keep every reply with your notes

Constraints rarely announce themselves. A lovely courtyard may only be free before nine, a hall may close its doors for cleaning, and a path may be unavailable during a local event. List these limits next to each place rather than hoping to remember them.

Think about noise as a constraint, not a bonus detail. Traffic, building work, school bells and air handling all end up in your recording. Stand still for two full minutes and simply listen before you decide.

Consider people too. If your shoot involves passers-by, ask whether anyone might object to being filmed, and decide how you will handle that. Planning for it costs nothing on the day, while ignoring it can cost a whole morning.

• Record opening times and restricted hours
• Listen for two minutes at every site
• Plan for bystanders before arriving

Once you have visited three or four places, lay the notes out in one table with a row per location and a column per need. Mark each cell simply: suitable, acceptable or a problem. Patterns appear quickly, and the choice often makes itself without any argument.

Do not chase a perfect score. Most real shoots settle on the place with the fewest serious problems, not the one with the best single feature. A modest room with good sound and easy access will beat a striking view with a noisy road behind it.

Keep one second choice in reserve. Weather turns, permissions fall through, and people cancel. Having a backup already checked means a lost location becomes a short phone call instead of a lost day.

• One row per place, one column per need
• Mark cells suitable, acceptable or problem
• Always keep a checked second choice

A finished shortlist is not the end of the work, it feeds the next step. Your chosen place tells you how long travel will take, when the light is best, and how much setup time to allow. Carry those facts straight into the filming schedule instead of guessing again.

I encourage students to revisit the chosen location once more, ideally at the same hour as the planned shoot. Standing there with the shot list in hand shows you what the notes missed, such as a door that sticks or a window that glares.

That second visit is short, often twenty minutes, and it removes most of the surprises that otherwise appear when the crew is already waiting.