When a homeowner or a city permit office deals with a film, they're dealing with the location manager. Everyone else on the crew sees a location for a day or two. The location manager sees it for weeks: the first scout photos, the fee negotiation, the permit application, the neighbor who wants to know why there's a 40-foot trailer outside her house, and the walkthrough after wrap when someone points at a scuffed floor.
Prep: turning scene headings into signed deals
Work starts with the script and the script breakdown. A feature might have 60 distinct sets but only 25 real addresses, because one house can play "INT. MAYA'S KITCHEN," "INT. MAYA'S BEDROOM," and "EXT. MAYA'S HOUSE - NIGHT." Grouping sets that way is the first job, and it feeds directly into the schedule the 1st AD builds.
From there the location manager (or a location scout working under them) pulls options, shoots photo sets, and presents them to the director and production designer. Once the creative team picks, the business work begins:
- Negotiate the location fee, prep and strike days, and holding days.
- Get a signed location agreement and a certificate of insurance naming the owner.
- File for the film permit and any street, parking, or police requirements.
- Send the neighborhood notification letters and collect signatures where the jurisdiction requires them.
- Plan base camp, crew parking, catering, and where the honeywagon goes.
- Walk the tech scout with the department heads so grip, electric, and transportation know what they're dealing with.
A fee example: a homeowner in the Valley agrees to $3,500 per shoot day, $1,500 per prep or strike day. Two prep days, three shoot days, and one strike day come to (2 x $1,500) + (3 x $3,500) + (1 x $1,500) = $15,000, before permits, security, and any restoration. Our post on location rental costs goes into how those numbers get set.
A shoot day at a practical location
A typical day on a residential street, for a 7:00 AM crew call:
| Time | What the locations department is doing |
|---|---|
| 4:30 AM | Assistant location manager opens the location, puts out signage, confirms parking cones held overnight |
| 5:00 AM | Trucks arrive; location manager walks transportation into base camp |
| 6:00 AM | Floor protection (layout board, runners) goes down before the grip and electric crews load in |
| 7:00 AM | Crew call; location manager checks in with the owner and the 1st AD |
| 12:30 PM | Handles a neighbor complaint about a blocked driveway |
| 7:00 PM | Wrap; locations crew pulls layout board and signage |
| 8:30 PM | Final walkthrough with the owner, photos of every room used |
The location manager usually isn't glued to set. They float between the current location, tomorrow's location, and the office, and they're on the phone most of the day. If there's a company move, they've already confirmed the second location is open and parked.
Wrap and restoration
After the last day at a property, the location manager does a documented walkthrough with the owner, compares it against the pre-shoot photos, and settles any damage claims. Final fee checks go out, permits close, and the department files its paperwork with the production accountant. On a series that returns to the same standing locations, the relationship with the owner matters more than any one episode.
Who they work with
The location manager reports to the unit production manager and works daily with the first assistant director, the production designer, and the transportation coordinator. They supervise assistant location managers, scouts, and location PAs.
Union terms in Los Angeles
On AMPTP productions in Los Angeles, location managers work under the Teamsters Local 399 Location Managers Agreement. The 2024 to 2027 basic feature rate sheet lists three classifications:
| Classification | 8/3/25 to 8/1/26 | 8/2/26 to 7/31/27 |
|---|---|---|
| Location manager | $4,002 | $4,142 |
| Key assistant location manager | $2,700 | $2,950 |
| Assistant location manager | $2,080 | $2,153 |
The July 2024 memorandum of agreement adds several terms that matter to this department:
- An employee who gets a vehicle allowance is reimbursed for actual fuel or charging costs up to $100 per week, and production won't unreasonably deny more if the employee drives over 800 miles in a week for work.
- No one can be required to transport other people in their personal vehicle.
- Production won't unreasonably deny a location manager's request for more staff to cover multiple locations in one day, multiple units, or double-up days.
- Drone use needs written advance approval from the UPM, line producer, or producer's designee.
Episodic and long-form projects use different rate sheets and sideletter reductions, so check which one applies before you budget. See Teamsters Local 399 for how the local is organized.
How people get the job
Almost everyone comes up through the department: location PA, assistant location manager, key assistant, then manager. Commercials are a common entry point because scouting jobs are short and frequent. In Los Angeles, getting onto union shows means working enough days to qualify for Local 399 and the Industry Experience Roster; Contract Services safety training (the Safety Pass courses) is part of that path, and the 2024 agreement pays a $25 per hour stipend for required safety classes taken during non-working time.
Outside LA, a lot of location work is non-union or covered by regional Teamsters locals, and film commissions keep crew directories that list location managers.
Paperwork and tools
The location manager's file for each address holds the scout photos, the signed agreement, the COI, the permit, neighbor notification records, a parking map, a base camp diagram, and the wrap photos. They also produce the location map and directions that go on the call sheet.
In Storiara, the Locations module pulls settings from the script's scene headings so you can give each one a real address on a map, scouting photos, a parking map, availability dates, and comments for the rest of the team.