Written by new-contact on Jan 13, 2012. Posted in General Interest

Editor’s Weekly

This week we covered a creative new online advertising campaign from Honda. The UK is in the spotlight again with the release of Steven Spielberg’s War Horse, while the British Prime Minister has called for the UK film industry to back more commercial projects. Elsewhere, US filmmaker Nicole Ballivian is planning a shoot on the West Bank.

Partizan's Off The Grid campaign for the Honda Civic is an eye-catching piece of work, even though its tenuous product link makes it more of a showcase for 360-degree camera technology than the Honda Civic itself. It’s a smart move to encourage audience interaction through the 360-degree element, although the reality is that the spot works just fine as a standard commercial as well.

Honda's production process shows the versatility of the 360-degree camera, so it’ll be interesting to see whether the technology begins to be used for dramatic, scripted usage, as well as the more straightforward landscape shots.

The campaign’s production process shows the versatility of the 360-degree camera, so it’ll be interesting to see whether the technology begins to be used for dramatic, scripted usage, as well as the more straightforward landscape shots. It remains to be seen whether being restricted to online viewings will affect the technology’s future potential.

One of our more eye-catching stories this week was that of US filmmaker Nicole Ballivian, who is determined to shoot feature film Sleeping on Stones in the West Bank town of Hebron. It seems a bizarre choice of location given the simmering tensions between a Palestinian majority and a minority population of Jewish settlers, but Ballivian is willing to take the risk for the sake of keeping her Hebron story authentic.

Ballivian’s project Sleeping on Stones raises interesting questions about the risks worth taking to realise a creative vision and this debate can apply to filming in any part of the world that’s either a conflict zone or in some way dangerous.

Ballivian’s project raises interesting questions about the risks worth taking to realise a creative vision and this debate can apply to filming in any part of the world that’s either a conflict zone or in some way dangerous. Perhaps it can be worth the risk for the sake of the story, but the dangers need to be carefully evaluated against what the filmmaker is setting out to achieve. We’ll be interested to see how Ballivian’s project develops.

Sweeping shots of south-west England are dominating cinemas at the moment in Spielberg’s War Horse, and this week we explored the making of the Great War epic. The legendary filmmaker built trenches in Surrey and took a village in Wiltshire back to 1914 for the project, and it seems British Prime Minister David Cameron wants the UK industry to prioritise projects of this scale and broad appeal.

Steven Spielberg built trenches in Surrey and took a village in Wiltshire back to 1914 for War Horse, and it seems British Prime Minister David Cameron wants the UK industry to prioritise projects of this scale and broad appeal.

The British Government may have extended the UK’s tax relief programme, but Cameron’s comments suggest he and his advisors are out of touch with how the industry works, not just in Britain but globally when it comes to how cinematic success is achieved. That said, the Prime Minister’s words will have reassured international producers looking for Government support for large-scale production.

Staying in Britain for a moment, we spoke to Gabrielle Lindemann, who runs the Kent Film Office in south-east England, and she gave us the lowdown on filming in the region.

On the other side of the Atlantic, early figures suggest that Louisiana made well over a billion dollars from in-state production during 2011, reaffirming its position as a filming centre of massive importance. Can the state keep it up? Could it potentially overtake California and New York in the US? It certainly seems unlikely the bubble will be burst anytime soon. The filming incentive is clearly working and Louisiana doesn’t have anything like the anti-Hollywood rallying calls that have affected Michigan and that are gaining strength even in California.

Louisiana's filming incentive is clearly working and the state doesn’t have anything like the anti-Hollywood rallying calls that have affected Michigan and that are gaining strength even in California.

Given the strength of Louisiana’s roster for 2012, the revenue this time next year could be even stronger as the state draws business from across the continental US and even further afield.

As always, The Location Guide’s Film-Friendly Locations database continues to grow. This week we’ve added Blakes Hotel in the upmarket London borough of Kensington and Chelsea, a luxury boutique hotel designed by Anouska Hempel. We also now have the Snow Castle in Kemi, Finland, a structure built from compacted snow to a height of nearly 15 metres that now includes a restaurant and a chapel. Finally we have Palau Moxo, an 18th Century palace in Barcelona with features including a grand ballroom, antique furniture and stable facilities.

If you manage a building or a location that you think qualifies as film-friendly, or you’ve filmed somewhere recently that you think should be listed on our website, please contact Ewa.

If you’ve got some great location filming stories to share and you’d like to be part of our profile section, or you have an idea for an article please contact Murray.

If you've been working on location anywhere in the world and you're looking for some press coverage, please contact Nick. We’d all be happy to hear from you.