The Art and Practice of Location Shooting
(Proposed Panel for SCMS Conference in Chicago, March 6-10, 2013)

Location shooting can be both an obstacle and a boon to filmmakers. Subject to uncontrollable weather and shooting conditions, locations can be a taxing challenge for filmmakers. But with striking cityscapes and landscapes, locations can pay dividends, offering filmmakers backgrounds imbued with spectacle and a semblance of realism. For "runaway" companies, distant locations can serve as a more economic stand-in for the real thing. To aid in these activities, a whole sector of support services, from film commissions to mobile craft services, has emerged. Considering some of these factors, how might we better analyze and historicize location shooting?

This panel aims to shed light on the logistics, the techniques and the expressive possibilities of location shooting. Topics may include but are not limited to:

- The work of location scouting

- The support of location shooting by studio location departments and film commissions

- Location shooting on "runaway" productions

- Location work and technological development (e.g. widescreen, color, lighting, lenses, film stock, sound recording, mobile equipment, etc.)

- Matching location footage and studio work though background projection, exterior/interior transitions, and CGI

- The careers of location managers, art directors, cinematographers, producers and directors who have specialized in location work

- The salience of location shooting in postwar Hollywood, new waves, new cinemas, etc.

- Location shooting and genre (e.g. Westerns, police procedurals, adventure pictures, etc.)

- Stylistic histories of location shooting

Please submit a 250-word abstract, a provisional 3-item bibliography, and a brief bio to Daniel Steinhart (danielst@ucla.edu) by August 10. Notification by August 15.