California Film Commission

How to Market Your Property

In an effort to assist property owners who wish to rent out their home or business to motion picture production companies, the California Film Commission (CFC) has prepared the following information to help you promote your property. These are some ideas to think about before you get started.

ADVERTISE TO LOCATION PROFESSIONALS
The CFC's Location Professionals List includes names and addresses of over 400 freelance location managers, location scouts and location assistants in the motion picture production industry. After you create a brochure with photographs of your property, mail it to everyone on the list. Please remember to send copies to the California Film Commission's Location Resource Center for distribution to clients doing research in our Location Library.

To obtain the mailing list, please send a check payable to:

CALIFORNIA FILM COMMISSION
ATT'N: Location Professionals List
7080 Hollywood Blvd., Suite 900
Hollywood, CA 90028

Cost for the list to be sent is $6.00, or $54.00 for pre-printed labels. You may also come to our office, located at the southeast corner of Hollywood and La Brea, to pick up a copy of the mailing list ($5.00 for the list, or $50.00 for pre-printed labels).

If you have any questions regarding the mailing list, please call us at 323.860.2960 x 102.

CONTACT YOUR LOCAL REGIONAL FILM OFFICE
The CFC maintains a network of 57 local film offices willing to assist you in marketing your property in your region of California. Please click here to find your local film office and let them know you have property in their area available for use as a film location. They may also want to receive copies of your brochure.

LEARN HOW TO HOST MOTION PICTURE FILMING
To help you understand the process of hosting filming, the CFC publishes the guidebook Your Property in a Starring Role outlining issues you will likely encounter from the first time you receive a call from a location scout, to when the last truck drives away from your property.

PROMOTE YOUR PROPERTY AT LOCATION MANAGER WEBSITES
The location marketing websites listed below are another effective way to promote your property to the film industry. These are companies created by location managers who will photograph your property and publicize it to the industry. Some of these are free sites where you are able to post your own photographs at no charge. Our office provides these leads to help you help the State of California remain the premier location to film. The CFC does not endorse any of the companies on the following list which are provided for informational purposes only.

  • HomeShootHome.com
    online location marketing and photography service
    626.794.1616
  • IWantFilming.com
    secure online database and photography service reaching 80% of all studio location managers and scouts
    877.FILMING or 877.345.6464 (toll free) office 310.373.3835
  • LocationManagers.org
    Location Managers Guild of America (LMGA)
    professional organization of location mangers and scouts
    post your location photos to member emails
    310.967.2007
  • LocationScout.com
    no charge to post locations
  • LocationTalk.org
    no cost to display locations
  • Reel Directory
    Northern California's resource guide for film, television and media
  • USA-Locations.com
    online database to post your photos

LOCATION SERVICE RESOURCES
Location service companies will represent your property and act as an "agent." These companies offer properties they represent to production companies for a fee. They may charge a listing fee along with taking a percentage of your location fee. A comprehensive list of location service libraries maintained by these companies can be found online in the LA411 directory. Some location service libraries may offer you the ability to post images online.

Please be advised, that if a location service company asks to represent your property for a percentage of the location fee, State law requires the company to have a real estate broker's license. You may want to see the license to ensure that you are dealing with a reputable service or search for the company name online at the California Department of Real Estate license lookup database. A number of professional location services do conduct their business without following this state provision.

RENT YOUR HOME 14 DAYS TAX FREE - IRS Benefit
14 days tax free for vacation rental property, includes film location rentals:

INFORM YOURSELF ABOUT CONSUMER AND SECURITY ISSUES
Anytime you feel it may be necessary to inquire about the status of a location professional asking to photograph your property as a potential location site, do not hesitate to contact a local film commission or the CFC. Please provide the name of the individual and the company they represent. A staff member will let you know if they have worked with or have issued filming permits to any of the names you mention.

Thank you for taking the time to review these marketing options for promoting your film location.

If you have any questions about information provided in this notice, please do not hesitate to call the CFC for clarification at 323.860.2960 x 123.