Vehicle rental for movie work
 

Not really sure where to throw this question out there so this spot looks as good as any others for a couple questions so here goes. Has anyone ever rented out their vehicles for a movie ? Those who have rented out would they care to tell of the experience, good/bad, things to be mindful of. Is there a agency one could register a vehicle with ? What would be the going rates for rental. I am asking as I have a nice little petting zoo and think it high time they start paying their own way in regards to up keep.

Not that there are any WW2 movies or TV shows being made in Ontario these days that I am aware of but it would be cool to connect with a production should that ever happen.

James,

There are many movies being made and folks being paid.

Check your local town / area and see if they have a film liaison unit as part pf city / county organisational structure. Ottawa has a vibrant one.

You can look up "picture car" managers, these folks find vehicles for movies and usually are in between the movie company and vehicle owners and as such get a cut of your monies.

I refused participation locally a few weeks ago when offered $250 to ready, float to site at Gananoque airport, make available and return which I estimated to take 8 hours of my time easily. Not worth moving for even though I knew they had next to no money for the gig.

I know Mike Calnan and associates did go, what they got paid I dont know, maybe he will contribute and discuss.

Insurance coverage is iffy at best, I know we would have had to have had a chat with the insurance company before putting a driving Ferret on set with real planes and real dollars of risk. If the Ferret or driver had malfunctioned and creamed an aircraft the consequences didn't bear thinking about, $250 was just not realistic.

I know the Cold War Collection with whom I volunteer does get regular enquiries from movie companies doing shoots in and around the Ottawa area and has supplied vehicles once clear understandings and paperwork have been gone through. I think the running rate for armour has a start point in the region of $250 per hour with a minimum and many plus plus items such as float charges crew meals etc. You would have to confirm that with the Collection.

You really have to think what is it all worth and what is the risk to your vehicle and who is going to drive it and how many rocks are going to be thrown at it, the list goes on. Yes sure it is cool to have your vehicle on set for what ends up as 3.79 seconds of screen time.

I am sure others will chime in.

Some earlier comments http://www.mapleleafup.net/forums/sh...ighlight=movie

Lots of stories out there about mis-used, abused, damaged and destroyed equipment. Keep in mind the film business renting out your cherished MV views it as nothing more than a piece of rental gear; they treat stuff in the same way they would treat any other rental equipment. They expect it to run and operate as it should, production time costs money and faulty machinery doesn't make them happy. Ask yourself if you really want some extra beating the crap out of your beloved MV before you even think about it. At the very least, if your MV goes to set so should you- as the driver.

I recently rented a pair of dewat 50 cals, cradles and two ammo boxes of dummy rounds to a movie for $800 for one days shooting. My friend, who is in the business, rented them his M939 as a background vehicle to block out the background. That earned him $1K for the day. But in the same breath, he rented them a gutted HMMWV that they could roll over, and they sliced the tarp on him. They paid for the tarp, but didn't ask to do it.

So a mixed bag. Netflix has said it will spend $400 million in Canada on productions for the next while....kind of nice to get a piece of the pie while not subjecting our cherished posessions to undue abuse.

There was a low budget CBC film being done in Manitoba quite some time back. They wanted to rent a friends M135 deuce. He would have to bring it to the far southwest corner of Manitoba, likely take a while day off work, all for the princely sum of $250. He declined.

To Rob's point, yes they may damage stuff and yes they might pay for it. The issue with that is always the possibility that replacement of the damaged item is not always easy, or possible. Movie production people don't know or understand the rarity of parts as we do.

I'm confident there are legitimate opportunities to rent to legit projects, but in dealing with production companies & various directors over time makes me vary leery. It's usually not anything malicious, its just that everything on a set is viewed as expendable in making the film. Also... prop masters are hired employees for the project too and don't usually see a reason to stick their necks out to protect your investment (especially if working for a diva director). If the director wants the vehicle painted or canvas torn, or the windshield looks better cracked, someone had better make that happen or get berated and fired (and possibly lose out on future gigs). Not to sound overly dramatic, but if you're a production free lancer in a smaller town that doesn't have many opportunities, saying "no" to a director can kill your career.

When I had the M20 armoured car, I would get calls from small time producers wanting to "give me the opportunity to have my vehicle in a film". One in particular wanted me to transport it to a location, drop it off, and come pick it up when they were done (all on my dime). After laughing and telling him "not a chance", he asked me if I "wasn't interested in honoring Vets". In most cases, they seem to think you'll roll over and piddle all over yourself to get to be in a talkie.

Here's a worst case story: I think it was in the late 70's or early 80's in Utah. Someone was filming a movie and needed a halftrack. They found a collector that had two halftracks and agreed to rent one to the production company. At the end of the shoot, they were filming a scene where the halftrack is at the end of a bridge (either crossing and stopping or acting as a blockade... I don't know) and somehow the halftrack ended up upside down in the river, unplanned and un-agreed upon. Without telling the owner what had happened, the company called the owner and asked if they could rent his second track, (of course they would come and pick it up). He agreed and they came and got it. They finished the shoot and called the owner telling him he could come and pick up his vehicles, still not telling him about the one in the river. When he found out, he tried to sue the production company but they didn't exist anymore. Sometimes film projects form corporations for the length of the production (for accounting) and dissolve the corporation immediately after filming wraps.

Although this post sounds extremely negative, I'm not saying to forget offering your vehicles for filmwork and/or other events. What I am saying is BE VERY CAREFUL!

Thanks folks for the input and insight of experiences past. I had long ago decided after talking to others and hearing a steady stream of horror stories that if one of my vehicles would be in a movie I, and only I, would be the driver...................full stop. I am not holding my breath that any will ever be on film and still wonder if there is a agency to register with for movie work.