What's up guys! Today I want to talk about one of my favorite film studios on the east coast! Occasionally I'll find myself in Florida for a shoot, and when I'm there there's one place I really recommend...... SoFlo Studio. A video may often require an indoor scene as well as various outdoor scenes. Depending on the type of scene, it may even require permits or prior authorization from an owner or company to use a location to shoot video. Permits are usually expensive, a hassle, and authorization to use a shoot location from an owner or company may require thousands of dollars to make up for their lost profits of the space for that day.
The police departments in Miami and Fort Lauderdale refuse to allow anyone to use their interrogation rooms for just any video shoot. According to the city of Miami Film Office a production project must have liability insurance covering at least $1,000,000 per any occurrence. There's an application fee of $120 non-refundable whether approved or denied a permit; an inspection fee of $25, and $0.20 to $0.35 per square foot used depending if traffic needs to be blocked the application for the permit can be found here if interested. A location rental could cost thousands of dollars to shoot at a real police station, not to mention that according to seattle.gov, any usage of real or fake weapons on public property requires your production to hire uniformed officers to be at your film shoot for public safety. In all trying to shoot in public locations are just way to much of a hassle so......
An easy affordable solution to the high costs of renting a film location is renting a standing set instead. Standing sets do not require film permits, police officers, or any sort of waiting around for the government to get back to you about a permit. You can basically get started on your project asap. This makes your client(s) happy as well as your bank account.
Going back to my post So You Want to Shoot Music Videos? I am going to add that standing sets are perfect to affordably make music videos look great without requiring an expensive upfront cost that most freelance filmmakers and production companies can't afford. If you're ever in or by the south Florida region and need an interrogation room, police station, or even a classroom, SoFlo Studio has these standing sets and more already built, ready for your shoot at such an affordable rates. Lastly, If you don't have production gear, SoFlo Studio also has everything you need to shoot your video and get production underway! - Jakob Owens
SoFlo Studio: http://www.soflostudio.com
Don’t forget about all the props SoFlo Studio has to offer!