We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Jason Wisch a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Jason, looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. Can you talk to us about a project that’s meant a lot to you?

My name is Jason Wisch, and I am a location manager. For those not in the know, a location manager finds the location that film, tv, commercials, and music use to shoot at. I work mostly in commercials and music video side. I find the idea of working for a few weeks, and moving on to the next project, fun.

I think my most meaningful project had to have been when I location managed the music video “Happy” for singer Pharrell Williams. This is the project that seemed to overnight, change my career. Before the shoot, I had to constantly make calls to look for the next gig. A project that I almost turned down because it seemed impossible to complete, the needs were too great, and honestly, the pay was not what I was used to. But not being one to ever turn down a challenge, I agreed to do this job. Since it came out, I have not had to pick up the phone once to ask for the next gig. I remember the week it came out, I started to get calls from around the world, asking if I was the location manager from the video. I would say “Yes”. They would then ask me what my rate was, and my joke every time was… “A lot more than it was last week”.

Let me give a little back story on how I came to be a part. of this one. I got a call from the producer Kathleen, asking if I could come meet with the directors. They were two guys from France, who called themselves, “We Are From LA”. I don’t think I have ever had to meet with the directors for a project. It’s usually a phone call or email. But I took the drive to West LA to see what it was about. The meeting was well over an hour and half. That is a very long time for a talk about locations. Through the talk, it seemed like they wanted to shoot a million location around the city. The concept for the video was, that it was going to be the world’s first 24hour video. (I honestly at first thought they were insane, and that there was no way to pull this off. ) The list of location needs was really long. Something that I thought was not really going to work. We talked it out, and I told them that maybe it would be better to do “Grids”. In other words, we would walk around and shoot one area for longer periods, and just keep going instead of stopping and moving the entire crew every few takes. This seemed to work for them. They wanted to see what I could find in the next few days, as they had a timeline to get this done. This again presented a challenge, as it was a holiday weekend, and I had a short window to figure it all out. Plus, there were some budget constraints. All of this made the task harder. Before I left the meeting, they told me that they had talked to a ton of location manager, and they all turned it down. It seemed that most just thought the needs were way too much. I took this as a challenge. Off I went.

I look at location managing as if I am doing casting for one or more of the main characters of the project. That the place we film at, guides the feeling and emotions of the shoot. I do some directing on occasions, so I try to find a location that I would be great with shooting the project at. I’ll use the storyboards the client sends, and any directors notes to try and get the exact angles they want. Occasionally, I will throw in a location that may not fit what was asked for, but what I think the director might find interesting. And often, it works out.

During the shooting of the “Happy” video, I worked straight for 28 days. As mentioned, the needs were great. We were constantly working, 18 hour days every day. we shot for 10 days, and covered most of the city. At the time, I didn’t really concern myself with the thought of what we are doing. I just considered it another paycheck. It wasn’t until it came out, and I saw the final video, 24 hours, that I was I able to stand back and really take in what we accomplished. There were several lessons here. One, that if you have an idea, bring the right people together, you can get the unimaginable done. I was and always will be “Happy” to have been a part of this. Two, enjoy the process and what you are doing. You never know where it is going to lead you. This little project, has led to many other great opportunities. I have worked with almost every brand you can imagine. I have worked on some of the biggest music videos and biggest artists in the world. Including, Beyonce, Taylor Swift, Maroon 5, The Weeknd, and so many more. My Nieces and Nephew think Im a rock star.!!!

Some side notes for the “Happy” shoot. They kept asking me to be in the video. I was not really into the idea. But we needed a ton of people, as the fact that every 4 mins, a different person is supposed to show up. Im not sure the 24 hour video is still up, but it was pretty amazing. Every 4 mins someone new, except at the top of the hour it was always Pharrell. I did end up caving, and agreeing to be in the video. I love old cars, and one day, we were shooting late at night, an old Buick Skylark pulled up. I asked what that was for, and they said, they were going to put a couple of models in the back and drive around. I told them I would be happy to be the driver. We went out driving, and I thought they would shoot one 4 min video and we would go back. But we didn’t.. we kept going. and going.. and going. I ended up being in the video for like 20 mins or more. The only person in it longer than me is Pharrell. So technically.. I kind of am the co-star in this video. (And yet.. Hollywood has called me for my next project.. )

The other amazing thing that happened from location managing this… I ended up winning “Location Manager of the Year” for the video. This too opened a lot of doors.

If I can leave the reader with any advice. Its this. Try and enjoy the process of getting yourself to the next level. It doesn’t matter where you are in life, what your goals are, what career it is you are pursuing. Use everything you find on the journey, as a lesson to help you get to where you want to be. Continue to learn and grow. Every day, good or bad, is a building block to help you create what you want. And don’t let others tell you what can work or not work. Don’t stop dreaming.

Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.

I have been in the film and television industry since I was a kid. First as an actor, then worked my way up in production. Started as a PA (Production Assistant) and then worked as a coordinator, associate producer, casting, producer,, and eventually, location manager. I also do some directing when the opportunity arises. Ive worked on Commercials, music videos, Movies, print shoots, and also did some producing and location on many reality shows.

As a location manager, it’s my job to find the places that we shoot at, based on the needs and wants from the client and the director/photographer. These can range from average houses to mansions, streets to beaches and mountaintops. I have been asked to find locations all over the world.

My work can be a lot about being creative and problem solving. Clients, usually a production company, will call me to see if I am avail for their project. The production company work with a director or. photographer, that has been hired by a brand or agency, to shoot their product. They then hire me to find the location that they feel will work best to portray their needs. I then set out to find those needs. The easiest way to start, is to have a location library ( Think of them as agents for properties) send you over places that fit the description. They (The location libraries) will send me dozens or more (I have received up to 100 locations from just a single library before, and I usually will reach out to 10 or more libraries for each job. So at the end of the day, I could have looked at 1000 or more properties, to find maybe 15-30 that I feel will work. This can be a very creative process, as I have to figure out what I think will work best for the overall Needs of the client. The other way is that I often will have old files that I may have used for other clients, and I will add those to the mix. Usually I will build a website for each client, so that they can view the files all on one place. The client, director, agency and brand, will then go through those files, decide on a few that will work. I then call the libraries to have them confirm that the location is avail for our dates, willing to work with us based on our fees avail, and also I will ask about. Most of the time, we will do a director scout of the top choices, so that the director and production can get their eyes on the locations, which will often help them in their decision making process. Maybe the house is smaller in person or it’s hard to get equipment in. Maybe the street is not as nice as it was in the pictures. Once a final choice has been made, I have a ton of work to do to before we can actually show up to film. I start with getting a permit going. I usually use a permit service to handle this. It’s a small fee compared to the work they provide. They, the permit service, will let me know if there are any issues I need to deal with that might come up with city rules of filming, any issues with the neighborhood I might have to deal with, etc. In most neighborhoods, we need to inform the people around the location, of our dates and actives. Again, the permit service will go out and do that for us, based on what our shoot will entail. I then will need to do things like, find parking for the crew cars, since we are not allowed to park any personal vehicles on the street, I will find a location to put out catering, as it can be very large need based on crew and cast size. usually I find a neighbors house to do this at, or we sometimes will do catering at the parking lot. I also need to hire security guards for the shoot. And often times I need to hire off-duty police to help us on the shoot. they might be needed if we are doing driving shots, or if we are in an area that might need them to help with traffic control. We also hire a layout service to come to the property prior to us entering the property. They come in, put rubber mats around the house, and cardboard around doors and walls, to protect it as best we can, so that when we come in, we don’t destroy it. I also have to be the liaison between the film location, production, and the neighbors. It’s a lot of hand holding and babysitting, to make sure at the end of the day, everyone is happy. At some point, we will do a tech scout. This is so that all the heads of the depts and production, can walk through the house, get an idea of what is needed for our shoot day, so that when show up, hopefully there will be no surprises and we can going as soon as we get on set. It helps with us with the flow of the shoot.

On the shoot day, I am usually the first person on set, and the last to leave. I get there early to make sure our posting (Signs put up by the city or permit service, that allows us to park our working vehicles as close as possible to the location.) is up and there are no vehicles parked in our area. Average is about 300 ft of posting. But often, people wont read the signs, and leave their cars parked in posting. I then need to sort this out, so that when the trucks and equipment pull in, there is room for them to fit. I do my best to not tow any vehicles, but occasional I must.

Once the crew has arrived, had their breakfast, layout boards have been put into place, I am on set to deal with the issues that might arise. Keeping the house in the same shape it was when we got in. working with the neighbors to keep them happy (Sometimes that is a what I am dong all day, as there are usually 1 or 2 people that don’t like us being there. ) I have to do my best to make sure production follows all the rules the city has put in. place for filming. I make my security guards and police are doing what is needed from them. Sometimes we might have 2 or more locations in one day, and I might need to run over and make sure those locations are ready for us when we arrive. At the end of the day, if we are running late, I might need to call the film office and extend our permit. And once we are done, I will do a walk through of the location, to make sure we have left it the exact way as when we walked in. If there are any issues, I make sure production is aware of this, and will coordinate making sure it is resolved. And at that point, I can head home, possibly to wake up and do the same then the next day or several more days.

I think one of the things that sets me apart from a lot of other location managers is, that I am willing to do whatever it takes to get my clients the locations they need. Even if they have given me an almost impossible or challenging goal. There are times when they are unrealistic on what they will be able to get for the fees they have. Like wanting a 100 million mansion for the same cost we might pay for a small house. Or sometimes that are looking for a location based on reference pictures, that is either not available in the area they want to shoot, may no longer be available all together, or timing is just not right. Examples of this might be, having a client once that wanted me to find some farm land in Southern California for a photo shoot for a huge piece of farm machinery used to water large areas of farm land. They sent me pictures of the crop they wanted. It took me a hour or so to figure out that the crops they wanted, were not available at that time of the season, as they had just been planted and would not be the height they wanted for at least 6 months down the road. So they had to rethink what they wanted to use as the crop. I ended up finding them a pretty nice farm in Texas. I had another client contact me in July, and wanted to shoot snow…. in July… I told them it would be a hard one. But I did actually find a very small amount of snow available at a mountaintop about 4/5 hours away. And that is what I am talking about. its seemed to be highly improbably that I would find snow in the end of July. But I kept searching, called people I had worked with that might be in the know and was able to present a working option to the client. We ended up at that location for our shoot.

I am proud that I have built this brand of location manager for myself. I feel I have become a vital part of some amazing projects. I love working with great production companies, brands and talent every day. I enjoy being creative and helping guide the direction and feel of the shoots I am on. I really do fell like the locations are as important as the casting of the right actors. The location is the background for almost every shot. It’s a huge part of the storytelling.

I think it’s a good idea to learn as much about all the departments in the industry as possible. I once was told by someone, just concentrate on the one area you want to be in. I feel this is not the best advice. To me, the people that are the best in this business, have knowledge of all positions. I think this is one of the things that makes me great at my current job, that I pretty much have been a part of many of the other positions on set. So I know what it takes for them to get what they need done. Everyone on set is there for a reason and for their specific skill set. I continue to strive to go to next level. For me, that is developing my own projects. I have several in different stages of production. I also have enjoyed directing when the opportunity presents itself. Both of those are the goals I have set for the future.

Is there a particular goal or mission driving your creative journey?

I am always striving to go to the next level. As much as I enjoy working on the projects I do, when it comes down to it, I am working on other peoples ideas. I am a creative person at heart. I have a head filled with stories. I love being able to use my creativity and bring ideas and elements to the projects I am on. Often times I get told by directors, that the location I brought them, ended up giving them other ideas that might be great to add to the shoot. I’ll take pictures of and dogs at a location. I’ll shoot a swing set in the backyard, even if it was not asked for. I will add the owners old cars to the mix. Simple stuff, but can sometimes make a client or director fall in love with the idea of using it. I have also been known to add a person to the mix, if I think they might be right for the projects. Having done casting before, including Real People Casting (Also called street casting) I will sometimes throw them into my website. Clients will often like using the real people that work at a shop or location.

As I mentioned earlier, I am working on getting some of my own projects up and running. I have several pilots out to the powers that be. I have been talking to some production companies about adding me to their roster of directors. im even looking into getting a group of people together to buy a small studio lot. It’s that need to continue to grow and take it to new levels.

Can you share one of your favorite marketing or sales stories?

Every time I did locations for a car commercial, I kept thinking that to myself… “You know,, they should do a car spot with a location manager scouting in one of their vehicles.” So one day, I called up my contact at Mercedes (When I need cars for my shoots, I can give them a call and they will loan me one) and asked if I could borrow a car for a week. They happily gave me one. I then went out with a cameraperson, and we shot me location scouting a good portion of California. I came back, edited the project, did a fun little VoiceOver, and then showed it to Mercedes. They loved it, and asked if they could put it on their social media channels. I got a some great PR out of this.

The California Film Commission got wind of the spot, and asked me to do a cut for them, focusing on more of the filming in California angle. So I did that. Cut out some of the driving shots, and added some more of the locations I film at around the state. It’s currently up on their website. I have gotten a few jobs off of that too.

I dont get asked for a resume too much anymore. But the few times I do, I just send them one of those spots. Ive gotten hired every time.

Contact Info:

• Website: http://www.3leggeddogentertainment.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jason.wisch/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/jason.wisch
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jason-wisch-791aa71/
• Twitter: https://x.com/jasonwisch1
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@jwdreams

Image Credits

All owned by me.