Firstly, income! According to Ontario Creates, productions in Ontario will pay anywhere from $500 – $5,000 per day for location rentals! This of course depends on many factors, but regardless of the specifics, renting your property to production companies is a great source of extra revenue.

Secondly, exposure! If you have a unique or interesting property, why not let everyone know it? Productions are looking to give audiences something they haven’t seen before, and London has an untapped market for fresh and distinct locations. Renting to a film or tv production is a great way to show off how special your property really is.

Thirdly, free maintenance! If a production wants your property to look updated, touched up, well-manicured, or fresh, they will pay to have those changes made. If you like the changes, they’re yours to keep. An unexpected way to get free upgrades to your property.

And finally, support for your community! Film Productions mean big business for local economy. When a company shoots at a location, they will often need other amenities from surrounding commerce such as food, accommodations, prop items, etc. Hosting a popular film or TV show also attracts tourism to the area – people love to see filming locations. Having film and television productions in your community is a great way to diversify your economy and support local businesses.

Location, location, location. It’s true in real estate, it’s true in film & TV. Finding the right location is one of the most challenging tasks for any production. The right property can be worth its weight in gold. Having diverse and accessible locations will make London very attractive to nearby production companies.

Register with us at filmlondon.ca and create a listing for free!

The Ontario Creates website outlines some important notes to keep in mind when advertising your property. Some highlights include:

• Upload a lot of photos: because we don’t know exactly what companies will be looking for, it’s best to give them as many options as possible. Show off what you have!
• Show both interior and exterior: productions may be looking for the inside of properties, the outside of properties, or both! Let them see the whole package.
• For exteriors, take a photo of the front of your property from across the street, and a reverse of it from the front door to show the property and its immediate surroundings. Use the same rationale for the back of the property.
• For interiors, stand at one end of each room, off from the corner, and shoot a reverse from the opposite side of the room
• Shoot the room to give a sense of space – not individual decorative details.
• Please ensure photos are in focus and in color, with no filters applied.
• 20 to 30 photos are adequate for most locations.
• Don’t photograph people or pets
• Make sure photos are well lit, and that your location is represented accurately.
• PHOTO GUIDELINES: Shoot single, high-resolution images in landscape orientation at minimum 1600 x 1200 pixels. This is generally a “medium” setting on most cameras. Save photos as JPEGs at Maximum Quality. · If using an SLR, please do not use a wide angle lens, as they warp the visual space and do not give an accurate representation.

There are local resources whose job it is help stage your location for the best possible exposure. If you’re stuck, reach out at filmlondon.ca.

For security purposes, we do not recommend uploading photos of the interior of your private home. However, this is ultimately up to you. If you’d feel more comfortable, you can always upload photos of the exterior and add in the description that additional photos can be made available upon request.  Feel free to reach out to us if you’re unsure of the validity of someone who is requesting additional photos. 

Make sure to list any unique qualities and features that your property might have. Examples can include, age of location, architectural style, number of rooms, square footage, ceiling height, amenities, trim, molding, or other finishing, fireplace, etc. Remember to be factual and to include as many interesting details as you can.

It is your right to see proof of insurance before a production enters your property. A 2-million-dollar policy is an industry standard and is highly recommended.

In addition, many industry regulations govern how production companies treat your property, such as a rental agreement. Read the agreement ahead of time and add any criteria you feel is necessary.

Companies are encouraged to leave the site in the same condition as they found it, and sometimes even better. Based on the needs of the production, and with your permission, experienced construction personnel might need to mend cracks in walls, give a room a fresh coat of paint or plant new landscaping. It’s an unexpected way to give your property a fresh look!

This of course depends on the production. All the details about what a company might need from you, or your property will be outlined clearly ahead of production. You have final say about what productions can and cannot use in your property.

Tech Surveys are when the heads of all the departments visit the location to survey the space and request what they’re looking for. This can be overwhelming – expect a lot of people asking a lot of questions. Don’t worry, the producer or location manager will touch base with you after to go over everything. You don’t have to agree to anything you don’t want to do. If the production has requested changes be made to your property, they should also be offering to pay for them, and to change things back to how they were afterwards.

That depends on many factors, but feel free to reach out to our office for guidance.