Shooting a film or television show on location helps broaden the story, but viewers don’t often realize the amount of effort that goes into capturing footage in a public place. The real world doesn’t stop just because a crew sets up a camera; it takes a dedicated production team to handle the logistics of filming in different environments.
We recently learned just how much work goes into these shoots when we caught up with Full Sail Film graduate Rocco Nisivoccia Jr, who has been coordinating locations for film and television for nearly a decade – with credits on such projects as Spider-Man 2, The Sopranos, The Bourne Supremacy, and Get Rich or Die Tryin’.
“Working in the location department is a serious hustle,” he says. “It’s all about making sure that these two worlds coexist – the film world and the regular world – so that both sides are happy. Pulling that off isn’t easy, there’s so many steps that go into securing and maintaining a location, but the payoff for us is knowing that all your work makes everything smooth for the rest of the crew.”
For the past two years Rocco has been working as assistant location manager on the hit CBS legal drama, The Good Wife, which shoots in and around New York City. His position would be a challenge on any weekly series, let alone one that takes place in one of the busiest cities in the world – where cars plow through the streets like herds of cattle, and the sidewalks are filled with just as much foot traffic. Working alongside the head location manger, Rocco’s job isn’t just about getting film permits and diverting traffic, but also negotiating with businesses and residents who own properties they want to shoot on.
“Working on a series like this is just a constant machine, where every eight days we have to put together another new episode under all these different rules,” he says. “What happens is we’ll get the script in and then have to find places in the city that match certain descriptions. Then we’ll speak to the people who own the property and see if they’re interested. If they are, we’ll bring back the producer and director to do a walkthrough and approve it.
“From there we prepare the owners for what they can expect – working out a schedule and getting permission to rearrange the interiors. Then on shooting days I’ll get there at 5 a.m. and make sure everyone has everything they need. Afterwards it’s generally a 12-hour shooting day, then I’ll stay another two hours after they wrap. So you’re talking about a 16-hour day for the location department.”
It’s exhausting just thinking about maintaining that kind of schedule over two full seasons, but Rocco is proud to have watched the show become a commercial and critical success. Since its debut in 2009, *The Good Wife* has been nominated for over two dozen major awards, and netted a Golden Globe win for lead actress Julianna Marguiles, as well as an Emmy for supporting actress Archie Panjabi.
“I was here from day one when no one knew if it was going to be a hit or not, but we just worked our tails off and it’s been nice to see it flourish like it did,” he says. “It’s rare to find a home like this in television. Our cast and crew are able to make a show that you can relate to on an everyday basis, and that’s why we keep getting recognition. It’s a credit to the actors them and everybody who works on the show. The hours are too long not to be enjoying the whole process, and I’m really proud of what we do here.”
While still working on his career in locations, Rocco has also recently launched his own independent production house, Nisivoccia Films. Taking what he’s learned about the industry, he and his team have already developed two short independent films, as well as a documentary, which they’re shopping around to different distributors. One of those two shorts – a zombie film called Eat Me – will be screening at the New York No Limits Film Festival in March and the Garden State Film Festival in April.
“It’s funny to think about my first days on a set after I graduated, where I was just in awe of everything going on around me,” he says. “I was all wide-eyed, looking at this gigantic crew bringing a movie to life. Now I’m right there in the middle of it helping to make it all happen, and even making my own movies. It’s a great feeling.”
Check out the website for Rocco’s zombie short film Eat Me at www.eatmezombie.com.
