Location Scouting - Outside London Part 1

As I have mentioned in a previous post, locations are key in the success of a film, especially a thriller, therefore I'm going to scout out various cinematic locations close by. It may seem strange to location scout before having a solid idea, but it's good to know what's available...even Steven Spielberg confesses to changing many things according to location! These locations have to look great and cinematic, but they also have to be easy to film at. It would be hard to film at a place where you need a guided tour and many places ban video cameras, however, in some locations we could film without looking too conspicuous, and although they are busy we would just look like tourists! I shall do a seperate post for the London locations.

Waverly Abbey

Waverly Abbey is a group of decent size ruins in west Surrey, that look incredible! Their cinematic potential is very high, and they have, in fact, been used in a number of high budget films such as '28 Days Later'. This is the sort of place which, if used effectively, would definitely boost the production value. The Abbey is free of entry, has no one 'guarding' it, and doesn't get many tourists. I have seen a video on youtube with people climbing all over it...it's practically been left to rot. It is about half an hours walk away fromt the train station, which is convenient for transportation, and is the opposite direction from the city, making it very secluded. In other words, it is very practical to film at and looks great! A perfect location for the right scene!

Bognor Regis Beach

Bognor Regis seems like the perfect seaside town, and this is a very good attribute for a film. When people see a beach in a film, they don't want to see a random beach, they want to see what they think a beach should look like. Bognor Regis isn't far away on train, and the train station is practically on the sea shore. In summer it is crowded with tourists, but we're filming in the winter, when it will be just about empty, meaning we can do whatever we want. It's practical to film at, and it looks great. Yet another brilliant location!

Frensham Pond

 

Frensham Pond is in Farnham, which is about an hour and a half away by train. The pond, which is practically just a big lake, has a very eerie look to it, and it would make an excellent location for a film. It is relatively easy to access, and it quite empty at the right times, such as winter, which is when we're filming! The only problem is that it doesn't really look like the setting for an action film, more of a horror film, however for the right scenes it could work admirably.