Originally Posted By dagobert I'm asking, because it seems that Disney is producing all its movies, like Cinderella, Thor or Episode VII, in England? Not one of the recent Disney movies was shot in Burbank. I know that post production happens in California, but what about shooting in the soundstages? Are they too small? Is it cheaper to produce in the UK?
Originally Posted By FerretAfros I'm not sure what's going on. I can't imagine that it would always be cheaper to film in the UK, since I believe the cost of living is higher over there (not to mention they need to send over key production staff and actors from the US). Combined with the less-predictable weather which makes it tough to film outdoors, I really wonder why they've shifted so much across the pond I know that Disney recently announced that they would be building a new studio complex in the Thousand Oaks area, on the ranch that they've owned for decades, where they filmed Spin & Marty, portions of The Parent Trap, and the Zorro tv show (among many other things). Perhaps they're just waiting for that complex to be built before they continue with their 'local' production Does anybody know where Disney Channel films its stuff? I imagine they might be using the Burbank soundstages, but I know they've filmed a lot of stuff in Canada in the past. Perhaps ABC uses them (though I know they film a lot on the CBS lot)
Originally Posted By leemac << I can't imagine that it would always be cheaper to film in the UK, since I believe the cost of living is higher over there (not to mention they need to send over key production staff and actors from the US). Combined with the less-predictable weather which makes it tough to film outdoors, I really wonder why they've shifted so much across the pond>> Two words - tax credits. The UK has always had a very producer-friendly environment. Those credits attracts productions that in turn built up all of the ancillary industries that are required (like grips, set construction etc.). Most producers regard the UK as the best location for shoots now. Disney has a long standing relationship with Pinewood that has much larger soundstages than in Burbank. The Mary Poppins soundstage just isn't big enough (they had to physically dig down to accommodate Armageddon over 15 years ago). The lot just isn't big enough to handle most productions now. The soundstages are mainly used by ABC Studios for TV stuff now. The new lot will be exclusively for TV (more soundstages but nothing on a scale required for tentpoles).
Originally Posted By dagobert I already guessed that it has something to do with tax incentives, but I didn't know that the Disney Studios Lot is too small to comprehend big movies. Does Disney have any plans to build bigger soundstages either in Burbank or at the Golden Oak Ranch for movie productions. Wasn't ABC also using other Studio lots, like the one from Universal for the former tv show Desperate Housewives, or Culver City Studios for the final season of Scrubs? Is ABC still using other studios' soundstages?
Originally Posted By dagobert Since we are already talking about the Disney Studios, under what division does Lucasfilm operate. I have just taken a look at Disney's corporate homepage and Lucasfilm wasn't listed under any division. Does the company have more freedom than Pixar or Marvel? I guess its more likely that the homepage just isn't up to date.
Originally Posted By leemac <<Does Disney have any plans to build bigger soundstages either in Burbank or at the Golden Oak Ranch for movie productions.>> Definitely not in Burbank. There are a lot of folks that would advocate the removal of the existing soundstages too. They aren't an efficient use of space. <<Wasn't ABC also using other Studio lots, like the one from Universal for the former tv show Desperate Housewives, or Culver City Studios for the final season of Scrubs? Is ABC still using other studios' soundstages?>> A lot of the time it depends on the location of the dominant production company. Touchstone/ABC Studios have always spread the shoot locations around. ABC have based shows in NYC and North Carolina too. Vancouver is also a popular location for tax credit subsidies.
Originally Posted By leemac <<Since we are already talking about the Disney Studios, under what division does Lucasfilm operate.>> Studio Entertainment. Kathleen Kennedy reports into Alan Horn.
Originally Posted By dagobert >>>Definitely not in Burbank. There are a lot of folks that would advocate the removal of the existing soundstages too. They aren't an efficient use of space.<<< And what should replace them? After the soundstages for ABC Studios at the Golden Oak Ranch are completed, I guess the ones in Burbank aren't needed anymore. >>>A lot of the time it depends on the location of the dominant production company. Touchstone/ABC Studios have always spread the shoot locations around. ABC have based shows in NYC and North Carolina too. Vancouver is also a popular location for tax credit subsidies.<<< Did Touchstone/ABC Studios produce shows for other channels as well, or only four in house channels? The only show I know was Scrubs for NBC, except for seasons 8 and 9.
Originally Posted By leemac <<And what should replace them? >> More office or more parking! Parking at the lot is a nightmare. There probably isn't the same pressure since folks started to move to Glendale. <<Did Touchstone/ABC Studios produce shows for other channels as well, or only four in house channels? The only show I know was Scrubs for NBC, except for seasons 8 and 9.>> Did and do. Still a lot of ABC Studios shows on other broadcast and cable networks - Criminal Minds on CBS and Devious Maids on Lifetime. Scrubs did move to ABC at the end of its life.
Originally Posted By dagobert >>>More office or more parking! Parking at the lot is a nightmare. There probably isn't the same pressure since folks started to move to Glendale.<<< Are they moving to the old airport terminal Disney was restoring recently? I think I read about that somewhere.
Originally Posted By FerretAfros >> The Mary Poppins soundstage just isn't big enough (they had to physically dig down to accommodate Armageddon over 15 years ago).<< I don't know what all specifically goes into building a soundstage, but aren't they essentially just big warehouses? I know it's relatively common practice to drop the floor, but I have a hard time believing that's really cheaper/easier than just knocking it down and building one that's taller. Excavation is very expensive (especially inside an existing structure), so it seems like it would be easier to just replace the pop-up building to get the needed height >>Wasn't ABC also using other Studio lots, like the one from Universal for the former tv show Desperate Housewives, or Culver City Studios for the final season of Scrubs?<< At least for the outdoor stuff, that has to do with what sets are available on the backlot. Disney tore down its backlot and replaced it with office buildings, so they're always going to other studios or on-site. Desperate Housewives used Universal's Colonial Street set for Wisteria Lane throughout its production, and I'm sure various other shows have filmed there too. One of the fun things when I lived in the LA area was to watch shows and movies, and try to guess where they were filmed; if you've seen the places in person, it's usually pretty easy to recognize it
Originally Posted By leemac <<I don't know what all specifically goes into building a soundstage, but aren't they essentially just big warehouses? I know it's relatively common practice to drop the floor, but I have a hard time believing that's really cheaper/easier than just knocking it down and building one that's taller. Excavation is very expensive (especially inside an existing structure), so it seems like it would be easier to just replace the pop-up building to get the needed height>> The workable floor space on the lot is the problem rather than the height. The soundstages are more complex than just warehouses - you couldn't constantly demolish and rebuild on a working lot.
Originally Posted By leemac <<Are they moving to the old airport terminal Disney was restoring recently? I think I read about that somewhere.>> The old GCAT building doesn't have a particularly large floor plan but it is at the heart of the Grand Central Creative Campus that encompasses WDI, ABC-7, Consumer Products etc. The largest structures are down on Flower where the likes of DCP are located.
Originally Posted By dagobert >>>The old GCAT building doesn't have a particularly large floor plan but it is at the heart of the Grand Central Creative Campus that encompasses WDI, ABC-7, Consumer Products etc. The largest structures are down on Flower where the likes of DCP are located. <<< Does Disney own that Campus? I'm asking because I thought DreamWorks Animation is also located there and we all know that's one of Disney's biggest competitors in animation. Just out of interest, I though Disney abandonned the Buena Vista International brand. Yesterday we have seen Rush in the cinema and at the beginning of the movie, the logo showed up.
Originally Posted By FerretAfros Buena Vista is Disney's distribution company. They distribute all of Disney films, and have increasingly begun to distribute work from other studios (including a lot of the live action stuff from DreamWorks). I'm not sure about the international part specifically, but BV is definitely a large presence in the US
Originally Posted By dagobert >>>Buena Vista is Disney's distribution company. They distribute all of Disney films, and have increasingly begun to distribute work from other studios (including a lot of the live action stuff from DreamWorks). I'm not sure about the international part specifically, but BV is definitely a large presence in the US<<< Over here Buena Vista was used to distribute all Disney movies from Touchstone over Miramax to Disney. Then a few years ago all movies from the Disney Company were ditributed by Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures.
Originally Posted By mawnck >>Does Disney own that Campus? I'm asking because I thought DreamWorks Animation is also located there and we all know that's one of Disney's biggest competitors in animation.<< Yes to both questions. They're right down the street from each other.
Originally Posted By dagobert >>>Yes to both questions. They're right down the street from each other.<<< I guess I'm misinterpreting this quote, but does that mean DWA is on Disney property? That can't be true.
Originally Posted By mawnck No. They're just very close to each other. Glendale is a city, not a Disney-owned property. Both the Disney Glendale campus and Dreamworks Animation are on Flower Street in Glendale.
Originally Posted By tonyanton Lee...I remember also seeing some stuff for one of the Pirates films on the Burbank lot (I think in '05). I would guess with as few live-action films Disney does now (and they all tend to be huge productions) it makes sense that either location (Avengers, other Marvel), England (Star Wars), or some other random place (wasn't Michigan used for Oz?) makes sense.
