Double Vision
May 11, 2021 | What we do
Part of the responsibility of a good location agency is to respond to a production brief not just with exact examples of what they’ve asked for, but also variations that could be made to ‘double’ for the location required.
We often get asked for hospitals, schools, prisons, courtrooms, police stations and other such institutions. By their very nature, the vast majority of these properties are needed to function around the clock, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, 52 weeks a year. This does not leave much in the way of gaps for filming. With this in mind, whenever we assess a property, we always have a keen eye towards its potential as a ‘double’.
Almost every British drama that airs today features sequences in police stations or hospitals. The desire from directors to show ‘fresh’ locations in each show means that often if something becomes too recognisable, it will cease to be of use to the industry.
This is why we’re always looking for the following features in buildings that you may not think of as an ‘institution’:
Vinyl / Laminate Flooring– Always useful for a clinical or medical setting. As flooring can be costly to change or time consuming to cover, if an office/school/warehouse/industrial property has an area with this type of flooring, it can be quite easy to dress the remainder as a hospital ward or a lab.
Brutalism – Due to the mid-20th century expansion of the police force in the UK, many real police stations were built in the once derided (now critically lauded) brutalist concrete architectural style. As these stations are either still in use or long demolished, alternatives are sought after- shopping centres, office buildings, residential developments and telephone exchanges have all portrayed police stations on screen in recent years.
Long & Wide Corridors – Directors love to film in these liminal spaces, as they can be a conduit for dramatic tension and depth on the screen. They also look great on camera, and are useful for walk and talk scenes. Bonus points for very historic or very modern décor, as productions often love a dramatic statement to tell the story in the background of the action. Wide corridors are often sought after to make use of as hospital sets and are surprisingly hard to find!
Period Features (20th Century, in particular)- Items such as old radiators, original ceiling tiles, single pane glass, wooden panelling, dated carpets and brass fixtures will often have been stripped out of a building during renovation. Productions however are often specifically looking for these features- whether the project in question is a period or contemporary piece, these design features can be expensive to recreate or replicate in a building that has lost them over time.
International Ambiguity– Lots of UK buildings have a distinct architectural quality that is not found overseas. If a building lacks these features, it can be utilised to represent an institution in a far away land, saving the production the hassle and cost of shooting abroad- anything with an American, Asian or distinctly Eastern European feel will prove popular with location managers and viewers alike. Generally they will have unusual brickwork (not the traditional British red), large swathes of glass, higher ceilings or wider doors. We’ve doubled locations for America, Spain, Hungary, Japan and India, all inside the M25.
Big Gates and Vehicle Bays – Real police stations and hospitals often have intimidating, secure gates and unusual parking arrangements for larger vehicles, such as ambulances. Finding a location that has these features from the get-go can save a production from having to shoot on multiple sites. An art department can work their magic with signage and barbed wire, but having the basic infrastructure makes their job a lot easier, and cheaper.
Basements and Interview Rooms- Productions love a windowless room- we’ve seen countless windows blocked up to convert them into police interview sets. Basements also often provide a great option for a ‘windowless’ set, whether it’s a secret office, a bunker, a prison cell or a kidnappers lair. Many office buildings and industrial properties have film-ready basements that they don’t even use! That’s why we seek them out.