When I was given the role of a location manager for our upcoming production, I felt excited but also nervous. It sounded simple at first—find a good location and make sure it’s available. But as I got deeper into the role, I realised that being a location manager comes with a lot of responsibility.
A few weeks before shooting, I went out to scout for a suitable location. I walked around the area, checked the environment, and imagined how the scenes would look on camera. When I finally found a place that fit the story, I spoke to the property owner and made sure we got proper permission. I also went ahead to secure a location permit, because I knew that was important to avoid problems on the shooting day. At that point, I felt proud of myself and confident that everything was under control.
On the day of the shoot, just when we were setting up, a group of hoodlums suddenly showed up. They were shouting and demanding money before we could continue filming. My heart started beating fast because the cast and crew were already getting uncomfortable. I calmly stepped forward with the production manager and showed them our valid location permit. When they realised we had followed the right process and they couldn’t intimidate us, they left angrily. At that moment, I felt relieved and realised how important preparation is in this role.
However, another unexpected problem came up later that day. While the crew was adjusting the lights near a bushy area, someone noticed movement. It turned out there was a reptile hiding close to the location. Everyone panicked, and I felt really bad because it was my duty to make sure the location was completely safe. Thankfully, the security team acted quickly and chased it away before anyone got hurt. Although nothing serious happened, I couldn’t stop blaming myself for overlooking such a detail.
From that experience, I learned a big lesson. As a location manager, it’s not enough to just like a place or get permission. You must properly inspect the environment, check for safety risks, inform the crew, and even involve security when necessary. If faced with such a situation again, I would thoroughly inspect the location days before the shoot and ensure potential dangers are handled early.