For students at Full Sail, having a multi-scened backlot right on campus enables them to have a production-ready space they can use as a filming location for a wide range of projects.

“Our students at Full Sail University are fortunate to have a Hollywood-style backlot available to them 24/7 to shoot class or personal projects,” says Rick Ramsey, Full Sail’s Education Director of Visual Arts. As Education Director, Rick oversees numerous visual arts degrees, including the film curriculum. Students studying the visual arts often use the backlot as a backdrop for various visual projects, although the space is available for students of all degree programs.

Many students are tasked with assignments that require them to shoot material as part of the curriculum. This entails assembling actors and a crew for the project, using real film equipment, and location scouting. By using the backlot as their filming location, students have access to a wide range of backdrops, where they can shoot various types of scenes at no cost to them.

“With facades depicting everything from iconic locations such as the Seattle Fish Market, New Orleans, and New York, to everyday places like convenience stores, pizzerias, laundromats, and nightclubs, the choices for ‘location’ shooting without leaving campus are abundant,” says Rick.

Location shooting, as Rick mentions, is the process of filming in a real-world setting as opposed to a sound stage or studio. In the professional film industry, filmmakers must location scout to find the best setting for their shoot and then reserve the location by acquiring a permit. This process comes with a number of challenges such as availability, pricing, and long wait times for approvals, which can prove to be difficult for students on a tight budget or a quick deadline. However, obtaining permission to film at the backlot is a simple, inexpensive experience that any student can do.

“The backlot is there to expand student location options for all students in any degree program,” explains Backlot Scheduling & Casting Administrator Emily Mink. “It allows them to have an external location for shoots that doesn’t require them to go through the local film office for permitting. It’s adaptable and may be scheduled 24/7 under instructor supervision.

“[In order to shoot at the backlot, students] have to reserve the space using an in-house reservation permit. It’s not the same as having to go through the Orlando film commission, however. Filling out an in-house production location form and having an instructor submit it on your behalf to book the space is a lot faster and has a lot less hoops to jump through than getting a permit via the film commission for shoots outside of Full Sail property.”

Once students have obtained their permit to film on the backlot, they have a variety of locations and facades to choose from. Filmmakers can set their characters against any of the various backdrops for a scene, such as the corner emulating Bourbon Street in New Orleans, the famous Pike Place Market in Seattle, a complete gas station, or even a coffee shop. Some of the most popular filming locations are the New York City brownstones and the backdrop known on campus as “Amsterdam,” a strip of buildings for scenes with a European atmosphere, including a café and several shop exteriors. The backlot also features a house backdrop for scenes in need of a suburban, domestic setting.

With such variety, there is a huge range of possibilities. Whether it’s a student completing a film assignment or an artist filming their music video, the backlot’s variety of backdrops allows it to suit projects of all genres. Students simply need to obtain an in-house permit and bring their equipment to set, and then they can see their creative vision come to life against any of the backlot’s many facades.