This latest addition to my camera bag, comes from a “duh” moment I had on set after a lengthy location shoot following two consecutive rehearsal weekends. Each day we were on set, the gracious owners of our location vacated for our convenience, allowed us to rearrange their furniture and swap out their light bulbs, and even cooked lunch on the day of the shoot. Granted, this home belonged to our director’s parents, but that does not diminish our appreciation for their contributions to the film.
We expressed our gratitude verbally, and I’m sure it was not overlooked in various text messages and phone calls, but as we were packing up to leave, a thoughtful cast member pulled a “Thank You” note from her purse and we all gathered around to sign it. If you’ve ever received a hand-written “thanks,” you know how far the gesture goes – perhaps more so in our age of cheap, fast social media interaction. A note is a very simple and inexpensive way to follow-through on your collaboration with a person or business in a personal way.
Although this experience focused on locations, there so many people along the way who help make our films possible and thank you cards will only cost you some spare change. If your budget is tight and you have a lot of cards to give, here’s a free one you can print at home:
Any generic thank-you card will do, but here are a few film-themed customizable cards I designed for you on on Zazzle. These and the amazon link above will both support this blog, … thank you!
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With my feature film, I waited to distribute Thank-You’s after the movie was completed. For some of our locations, this was two years after they opened their doors for us. I can’t believe it never occurred to me to write something on set while all of the cast and crew is there to sign it, rather than scrambling to hand-deliver or pay for postage down the road. Since these little gems are lightweight and don’t take up much space, I’m adding a dozen to my camera bag just in case.
Need some extra motivation? Your note, proudly displayed on the recipient’s desk or refrigerator, could even spark a conversation about your film. People who get involved with our projects generally want to share the experience with others, and stay involved. Giving them that memento or conversation starter is so easy!
I have had good and bad experiences with locations, and a bad experience can ruin a location for you and for all of the filmmakers in your area. Do yourself, your cast and crew, and all other filmmakers a favor and tell your location how much you appreciate their willingness to be a part of your project.
… a big thanks to all locations out there: “Because of you, we didn’t have to build an entire set from scratch. Thank you!”
(speaking of “thanks” – thanks for this post’s thumbnail image from rawpixel, via unsplash.com)
(2019 UPDATE: An earlier version of this post appeared on May 27, 2014. Today I revised it, y’know, to make it better.)