Residents Call for Greater Communication with Film Crews

Anyone who lives in the neighborhood knows that our streets have a certain timeless charm. And that same charm has increasingly been catching the eye of major Hollywood production teams and Indie film crews alike.

"There's a reason why we love our neighborhood," said local business owner Gaia DiLoreto, proprietor of By Brooklyn on Smith Street. "And it's the same for the film crews - it's beautiful."

These days, crews of workers, actors in costume and camera equipment and trailers are a common sight. Sometimes, the shoot occupies an entire block of major pedestrian thoroughfare. Not surprisingly, some residents have concerns.

"It can be disorienting," complained one Cobble Hill resident. "One minute, you're walking down the street, running errands, and the next there's someone yelling at you from across the street, they get in your face and say 'Don't walk there, we're trying to work.'"

Indeed, the stars have long left the eyes of some locals. People are fed up with Hollywood's Brooklyn invasion, complaining about rude film crews that have a monopoly on public space.

"We are continuously inconvenienced by their presence: they commandeer entire blocks and all the parking spaces that come with it," said Boerum Hill resident Wanda Fleck.

According to the New York City Mayor's Office of Film, Theatre and Broadcasting, production crews are allowed to apply for permits a mere 48 hours before filming dates begin, which does not always allow for enough notice for neighborhoods.

Maria Pagano, President of the Carroll Gardens Neighborhood Association, has taken it upon herself to start a dialogue between residents and film crews to encourage neighbors and businesses to work together.

As Pagano emphasizes, the key issue between residents, business-owners and film crews is collaboration.

"It's pretty straight forward," she said. "Nobody wants to have the film people leave - we just need to find a way to work together."

Pagano has been inspired by people in nearby neighborhoods, such as Brooklyn Heights, who have successfully been communicating with production crews for years. Her hope as of now is to come up with a neighborhood bill of rights, to ensure that neighborhood businesses, residents and infrastructure are respected throughout the filming process.

"There is a need for a little more repsect for people who live in the neighborhoods," she said. "I know [production work] can be a thankless job, and certainly we don't all know how films are created, but we do live here."

Pagano's hope is that through a united front, residents will be able to meet and coordinate with film and production crews to ensure that both the needs of residents and the production, are met.

When store-fronts are blocked, parking places are cordoned off or monopolized, and pedestrians are re-routed, people are bound to get angry, Pagano continued.

Like many, Pagano believes that a little information could go a long way in easing tensions between film crews and residents.

"We're not asking for the moon here. As residents, we need to learn a bit more. Maybe the production crews could send out notices earlier - more than one or two days in advance, for example, and have a little more PR. They could make it a bit more friendly," she said.

Although DiLoreto's experience with film crews over the years, both as a resident and as a business-owner, have been "pleasant" for the most part, she acknowldeges the difficulties.

"There's definitely a lot more room to improve relations," she said. "The communication goes both ways."

But sometimes the communication is there. When signs mysteriously disappeared and shooting was rescheduled for the recent filming of ABC's show Pan-Am, a production assistant stopped into By Brooklyn.

"A film rep came into my store, talked to me about it, and explained what was going on - an actor had gotten sick and caused the date change," said DiLoreto.

This degree of communication has not been enjoyed by all, however. Many locals are enraged by the behavior of film crews in the area, and feel they act without graciousness when they are in fact guests on the streets of Cobble Hill, Boerum Hill and Carroll Gardens.

"They [producers/coordinators] should remember it is a privilege, not a right to work in our (or any) neighborhood," wrote Boerum Hill resident Louie Fleck on the Boerum Hill listserv.

But there are easy ways to improve how film crews are received by locals. Two ideas both have the crews supporting the community in which they work.

Wanda Fleck (no relation to Louie Fleck) suggested production companies give back to the community by making donations to improve the neighborhoods they use for shoots.

"For me, the biggest concern is why [they] don't use local restaurants for staff food trucks?" suggested Diloreto. Some crews do set up accounts at local restaurants and delis, but a further boost to local commerce would go a long way.

"Pan-Am set up a Kraft service truck on Douglass Street, while we have a huge selection of local foods, right here, and venues that could be given business."

"It's really all about communication," DiLoreto concluded.