By Jen Farris /LMGI

Born in Puerto Rico of Dominican lineage, Miguel Tapia, LMGI Location Manager and Chairman of the LMGI Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) Committee, is not afraid of being first. Almost the youngest of nine maternal siblings, he was the first in his family to enter in a career in the entertainment business. He was the first in his family to graduate from college, The Art Institute of Atlanta, before embarking on a successful career in Los Angeles. He also enjoyed being an essential part of the first American studio team to film in Cuba in 2016.

The Fate of the Furious, from the Fast and Furious franchise, was led by Supervising Location Manager, Eric Hooge / LMGI and in Cuba, Location Manager, Matt Prisk / LMGI. One other thing that was a first for Miguel, working in his native language, Spanish.

After moving to Georgia from Puerto Rico at five years old, he was required to learn English quickly after the insistence of his mother, who only allowed him and his siblings to speak English at home.

“After many years of only speaking English, you lose some of the conversational elements of the language, but you never wholly forget,” says Tapia. Thankfully he did not lose his native tongue, because his bi-lingual ability has opened many doors throughout his career.

“Luck is what happens when preparation meets opportunity.”~ Seneca (Roman philosopher)

Landing at The Art Institute of Atlanta to study Digital Production provided the first clue film production was something he would do for many years.  After graduation, he immediately moved to Los Angeles to work steadily as a set lighting technician with Larry Levinson Productions, and was wise enough to maintain a strong relationship with his former college professor.  His professor’s friend landed him a stipend gig on a small feature – his first location job – where he was tasked making location maps and communicating with crew about logistics. He humorously remembers hand drawing location directional signs on poster board for the crew to land at several locations. Another first. Never again.  He did a fantastic job, however, and continued moving forward.  Early on in his career, UPM, Mandy Pope, gave him what would be a pivotal opportunity. She hired him as the location manager for a 2nd Unit made-for-television feature, Crash and Burn. The action film was another first. Crash was chock-full of car stunts and lots of thrilling activity. Little did he know that Crash was a precursor of location management opportunities abroad, films with fast cars, chase scenes, and intensely staged explosions.

Film related Government meetings

When the call arrived to travel to Cuba for The Fate of the Furious, Tapia’s feet were back on GA red clay in the A-T-L where filming incentives had become attractive for acclaimed film studios. “[Supervising location manager] Eric Hooge, knew I was bilingual and because we had an amazing work ethic with one another, his team brought me on as a bilingual speaking Key Assistant Location Manager,” he says. “Brushing up on my Spanish was a priority, but it came back so quickly.” He spent four months in Cuba perfecting his Spanish and became fluent once again. Meeting with Spanish-speaking agencies, vendors, telecom folks and the film commission became common place and having Miguel around to speak Spanish was a wonderful asset to the team.

Explosion in Bogota Colombia for “Mile 22”

“We exploded a storefront in the middle of the city!” ~ Miguel Tapia

Back to Firsts—

Hired by a producer to form a location team in Bogota Colombia, Tapia managed on location for five months for the adrenaline-rush action feature, Mile 22, starring Mark Wahlberg. He enlisted a bilingual team from Puerto Rico that included a Puerto Rico-based KALM, Adaixa Freytes / LMGI. Tapia’s team was one of the first big “Hollywood” productions that filmed with the Bogota Film Commission and the Unified Permit for Audiovisual Filming (PUFA). Because Bogota was a 100% Spanish-speaking city with very little knowledge of the American process of filmmaking, he had to remain focused, thorough, and patient. “I was really proud of everything that we achieved as a team. It was very difficult. It required we learned and adapted to a new work system and executing our American style to people that were used to a European style of filmmaking,” says Tapia. “We exploded a storefront in the middle of the city and repaired it the next day. We shot in what used to be the US Embassy. We shut down major Los Angeles-like thoroughfares for multiple days. You name it, we did it. At the end of this project, I realized that I sat in two-hundred meetings with various agencies, officials, the police, and governmental departments.  Some meetings were hours in length and were simultaneously held while we were filming.”

Some people dip their toes in their water. Miguel dives all the way in.

Miguel’s Corgi dogs, Nina and Dre at his production office

Another first, this time as a location scout in Cartagena, Girardot, and Bogota, Colombia for the action, drama, TV Series, Tom Clancy’s Jack Ryan. Scouting in the jungle and near rivers wrapped in 90-degree heat, poisonous foliage, and with altitudes of 10,000 feet above sea level requires skill, but also mandatory down time. He finds relief in his pets, Nina and Dre, two Corgi / Jack Russell mix dogs that have become unofficial, non-unionized members of the location team.  Dre has even traveled abroad with Miguel. “My dogs are very much like therapy for me. They are so well-behaved, people-friendly and very loving,” he comments. “It is nice to have the dogs around to force mini breaks in my day when walking them outside. They bring forth a wonderful sense of balance and mental health and wellness into my life.”

Corgi, Dre in the center of it all

When not engaged in street photography, one of his favorite creative past-times, Tapia is managing the HBO TV Series Euphoria starring Zendaya, and continues his dream to permanently manage film and TV locations in Latin America, Central America, South America, and The Caribbean. Going back to his family’s native land in the Dominican Republic and Puerto Rico will not be a first, simply a first in a long time.

Creative England is the first port of call for productions looking to film in England, outside of London. Their national team offers free comprehensive production support to feature film and high-end television productions, helping them access England’s diverse locations, studios and facilities and talented crew.

After the UK government dismantled the UK Film Council in 2011 and consolidated of a number of regional screen agencies into one body, Creative England’s production services began operating. It is funded by the British Film Institute and works alongside film office partners and national and regional networks.

In October 2020, Creative England launched their Filming in England Partnership to connect organizations across England and unlock England’s full potential as a world class destination for film and television productions. The partnership will also help the sector bounce back after events caused by the COVID-19 Pandemic, ensuring England remains a globally competitive, film-friendly production environment.

Working with location managers on a daily basis and having a deep understanding of their involvement and dedication to the production process, Creative England aims to support scouts and managers with a welcoming environment during every step of that process so they will want to return to again and again.

As an LMGI Business Partner Creative England can serve as a valuable resource to industry professionals. For many years they have developed and maintained solid relationships and a wealth of industry knowledge. They provide free services to support and encourage more production activity across the country, ensuring communities across the different English regions enjoy job opportunities and economic benefits that the sector generates.

Contact Creative England here
Twitter: @filminengland 
Phone: +44 (0)20 8324 2311

LocationFinder is a unique and innovative service for international location agencies, production companies, film offices and commissions, to showcase all their locations and generate more business. It uses visual search technology to let scouts, directors, studios, production companies and photographers instantly find locations with the exact look and feel they want. Users can search the LocationFinder.ai website using an existing location image as a reference – or directly download one they’ve found online.

Their visual location search is free to use and allows access to the world of locations through the power of images, avoiding the headache of keyword search terms. Directors, studios, production companies and photographers can pinpoint immediately the exact look and feel they want. The location that represents the searched image is at the top of the list of 500 results per search. The Location Manager can set a radius limit linked to a postal code (maybe studio or production based) or throw the net wide and see what’s out there.

Click their video to see how it works.

Their sister company FilmFixer represents thousands of locations. They created LocationFinder to bring location searches into the 21st Century and to match what they have to the Location Manager’s search. They soon realized ALL location agencies and film commissions should be present on LocationFinder and expanded their vision.

Karen Everett Director of LocationFinder

FilmFixer managed the first shoot in London after the initial COVID-19 lockdown, helping to establish the COVID protocols that are still being used today. Things were slow to begin, and searches were mainly for exterior locations or sites that could be fully locked off. Now, filming is booming, they are happy to be part of the process of exposing unseen locations and helping to manage location overuse.

LocationFinder partnered with the LMGI because they feel it is a great organization with a location community that can utilize this helpful, new location finding tool.

Karen Everett is the Director of LocationFinder and CEO of FilmFixer. She is a film person through-and-through, and as an industry insider, gets a ‘massive buzz’ from using her knowledge and experience to facilitate productions – starting with the need for locations.  Everett also loves live music and watching bands. Going to gigs is something she’s really missed as we’ve all sat at home with our Spotify playlists during COVID and can’t wait for it all to fully-unlock!

www.locationfinder.ai

Twitter: @location_ai
Instagram: Locationfinder.ai
Facebook: LocationFinder.ai
LinkedIn: Locationfinder.ai

On March 9, 2021, Coffee Tuesdays presented a unique familiarization (FAM) Tour spotlighting “The Royal Film Commission – Filmmaking in Jordan” and curated video and images of filming locations to aid in exploring the robust and thriving communities that embrace productions in Jordan. Thanks to technology, members were able to tour Jordan’s beautiful country from the comfort of their virtual screens and embrace their iconic monuments and diverse array of landscapes, white tropical beaches, and urban cityscapes. Prince Ali bin Hussein, Chairman of Jordan’s Royal Film Commission, HRH Princess Rym, and Mr. Raja Gargour, Director of Royal Heritage, greeted our members virtually prior to a post-tour panel discussion moderated by J.J. Levine, LMGI 1st Vice President.

On Tuesday, April 20th, the LMGI invited location and film professionals to “Locations Behind the Oscars” a conversation discussing the locations behind some of this years’ big Academy Award contenders including films vying for the coveted Oscar for Best Picture and Best Production Design!  Moderated by JJ Levine /LMGI Board as a Coffee Tuesdays installment and sponsored by the unique and innovative service, LocationFinder.ai, this event was open to LMGI members and Business Partners and non-members around the world. Featured panelists included: Klaus Große Darrelmann /LMGI Location Manager: International for TENET; James A. Mahathey /LMGI Location Manager for Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom; William “Bill” Doyle /LMGI Supervising Location Manager & Co-Producer for MANK; Peter-Frank Dewulf, Location Manager for The Father; Tim Kanieski, Location Scout for Judas and the Black Messiah; Bryan IIer Location Scout / KALM for Judas and the Black Messiah, and Nick Rafferty, Location Manager for Trial of the Chicago 7.

Click here to watch “Locations Behind the Oscars”

The LMGI would like to share honorable mentions to our wonderful members that worked on Oscar-buzzworthy films this season!

LMGI Members can login to view a dashboard of archived Coffee Tuesdays events here.

Have a question? Wish to join the Coffee Tuesdays team? Want to propose a topic?
Email them here.

Our cover story for the Summer Compass slated for release in early June, takes an in-depth look at the work of LMGI members David Pieper and Mario Wittmann on the critically acclaimed, international series Babylon Berlin. This noir-detective thriller brings us to swinging 1928 Berlin, where sex, drugs and crime mix as political extremism rises and the economy teeters. In the city’s jazz clubs, Berliners dance with abandon, oblivious to impending disaster which eerily parallels the political scene today.

DEI COMMITTEE

Alison A. Taylor /LMGI, Chair of the LMGI’s BIPOC Outreach Promotion and Advancement subcommittee with LMGI’s Diversity Equity and Inclusion (DEI) committee, participated on a Zoom panel at the Red Nation’s “Women of Power Below the Line” Facebook LIVE event representing the Guild’s commitment to diversity, racial equity, and inclusion within the workplace.

Red Nation Celebration Institute (RNCI) is a non-profit organization dedicated to breaking the barrier of racism and placing American Indian Filmmakers at the forefront of the entertainment industry. Held during the 12th Native Women in FILM Festival, which took place April 19 – 24, the panel discussion was moderated by Red Nation founder Joanelle Romero and included Talylor and the founders of Crewvie, an all-women owned, global, database-driven platform of entertainment professionals.

Crewvie has partnered with the RNCI Indigenous Film Crew Registry, which provides qualified Native and Indigenous candidates for below-the-line positions to help studios and producers who want to have more diverse and inclusive film crews for their productions.

Taylor, who is also an LMGI Board member and 2nd Vice President, hopes to attract members of this new and diverse talent pool into the ranks of Location Managers and scouts, as well as other crafts.  “Our outreach will expose young people to jobs in the industry- painters, electricians, camera and sound people, grips. Even if they just spend a day on set, the next time they watch the credits it may make more sense and will give them an idea of something they may like to do,” says Taylor.  “I am so excited to be on this committee and so proud that the LMGI is at the forefront of realizing opportunities for Black, Indigenous, and People of Color (BIPOC).”

The Facebook LIVE conversation is available for viewing. Click here to watch.

#LMGISocialLight

Social media shout-out! Kudos to our newly re-elected LMGI Board member, Scott Trimble, who finished walking EVERY street (both sides of the biggest ones), including cul-de-sacs, hills, alleys, and creeks in WEST HILLS, CITY OF LOS ANGELES on April 24, 2021!

His NEXT goal: To walk every street WEST of Topanga Canyon Boulevard and NORTH of Ventura Boulevard. Sounds like Trimble is our human version of a Cliff’s Notes Guide to West Hollywood.

Note to self: Clone Scott’s feet onto our editor’s body.

Recently, the LMGI began to streamline its social media handles.

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Hashtag The LMGI on your posts: #LMGI, #LMGIAwards, #LMGISocialLight and #LMGILife.