A Kia car commercial films at the old Brooklyn Esplanade.  Photo courtesy of Mark McKennon.

By Eve MacKnight
March 1, 2007 - Scouting locations is more than finding pretty spots throughout the city. Location managers R. Richard Hobbs and Mark McKennon introduced students to the challenges of the field in an introductory locations course held at the Learning Annex in February.

As the second class in a three-part series, the class outlines the responsibilities a location manager must face every day when finding that key shoot location in New York City.

Both Hobbs and McKennon would know since they are Big Apple experts, who routinely negotiate with production crews and landlords and act as the liaisons to city agencies such as the MOFTB.

Students attending last month’s class were mainly new to the field, but Hobbs explains the course is also a great review for anyone involved in location work. As for breaking into the business, Hobbs and McKennon agreed, “There’s no education like experience.”

The students, who came from a wide range of backgrounds, were uniformly positive about the evening. “This is very helpful to me. I’m in construction management and I’ve always dreamed of working in entertainment” said Chiri Fitzpatrick. “Location manager is a perfect fit for my skill set.”

McKennon and Hobbs recommended attendees begin working on student films and low-budget independent movies to learn more and develop a contact network. The class will be offered again in the first week of April. For more information go to learningannex.com.