The risks of filming at historic sites and maintaining the physical integrity of heritage sites are some of the issues explored in a Blog by University of Edinburgh’s Clare Flynn, based on her dissertation, which comes to IHBC via America’s National Trust for Historic Preservation.
Clare Flynn writes, based on her 2016 dissertation:
Taking part in filming can offer considerable benefits to historic properties. Exposure through a popular film or television series may lead to increased public awareness, visitor numbers, and sources of funding that can facilitate the ongoing care and preservation of a featured property. On the other hand, film productions introduce a high degree of risk to historic properties and become more dangerous as they increase in scale. Weighing the potential benefits against the chance of irreparable damage is essential in determining whether to approve an application for filming at a historic property.
The mitigation of these threats begins with thorough communication, risk assessment, and planning, followed by proper site preparation and trained onsite supervision. The impact of filming activity on historic sites and properties is a globally relevant topic that deserves closer attention, particularly as a specialized concern within the field of historic preservation. Best practices can help historic sites and properties reap the benefits of filming without sacrificing their historic integrity, though it will be important for them to evolve alongside filming activity.
Risk Mitigation
- Filming applications and “recces.” Assessing the risks of a film shoot begins with the initial inquiry and filming application, which gathers the basic facts about a production’s needs. After this, key members of the production team tour the proposed filming location during a series of scouts or “recces.” Recces are an essential part of preventing damage during filming because they are the primary time for the production team to ask questions and discuss their plans in detail with property staff. During this planning period, staff may need to conduct tests, consult specialists, or request method statements and product information sheets in order to determine the safety and feasibility of specific filming requests.
- Location agreements. These negotiations culminate in the signing of a location agreement—a binding contract between the production company and filming location that provides the legal framework for the protection of the location during filming. It establishes the precise timing, terms, and conditions of use; details location fees and footage rights for the shoot; and specifies that the property has the right to immediately stop filming if any of the terms are broken. It also stipulates that the production company is liable for any damage that may occur.
- Site preparation. Successfully preventing damage may also require physically preparing the site, often by removing vulnerable items and installing protective materials on floors, doorways, staircases, furniture, and other areas of high traffic where the movement of people and equipment is most likely to cause damage.
- Supervision. Inevitably, circumstances will arise once filming begins that pre-written agreements and physical protections did not anticipate. It is therefore imperative that a system of onsite supervision be in place to monitor filming activity and respond to unforeseen changes. In many cases, the property’s permanent staff may perform this role. However, recognizing that site staff often cannot perform their normal duties on top of overseeing a long day of nonstop filming, the National Trust in England, English Heritage, and several private properties in the United Kingdom employ freelance project conservators with specialized knowledge of the filmmaking process to supervise filming on their sites.
