Bogota, Colombia: Great Film Shoot with Hangar Films!

I feel like an idiot that I once believed there was any truth to what I watched on TV or in movies in the US. In the two years I have been working for Voice123.com, a company with an office in Bogota, Colombia, I found out:

• 'Clear and Present Danger' and 'Miami Vice' is laughable. I sometimes apologize to people I work with from Colombia on behalf of the US film and television industry.
• 'Mr.&Mrs.Smith'...Bogota is not a tropical weather city with cops dressed in black, carrying AK-47 machine guns.
  

I also learned Bogota, Colombia is an amazing place to shoot a film! I see several reasons why from the creative perspective:

• The city is filled with electric, creative energy and freedom.
  
• The people of Bogota are the most hospitable, caring, warm, and positive individuals I have ever come across.
• The locations around Bogota are versatile and equally beautiful.
  
• You can always count on consistent weather all year. The sun rises and sets at the same time almost every day.

From a business perspective?

• The cost of shooting is lower, with no sacrifice of production quality. That should keep both business and creative satisfied.
  

Recently, I was assisting a Voice123 staff member, Giselle Geney, with her short-film based around the experiences as a call center phone operator for a cell phone company.

Such inspirations for this blog came from speaking with a film production service in Bogota, Hangar Films. Please check out their website. The staff I spoke with were incredibly friendly, absent of egocentric behavior, and completely supportive of Giselle's efforts. They supplied equipment and technical crew to assist with lights, grip, and cinematography equipment.

As a student, Giselle took advantage of a student discount Hangar Films offers with the understanding of the 'bigger picture' that all students will be customers one day of Hangar Films. They gave Giselle an 85% discount on rentals. As a former actor, and director of theatre, I can honestly say I was never offered this end of financial support as a student. Saving Giselle money now, to be returned as repeat business in the future is the true act of a company making an effort to build a film industry. Once more, the shooting lasted more days than expected, and they didn't charge her more than what was agreed.

The equipment was picked up and returned to Hangar every single day, so it was managed well and not held for more than 24 hours. The equipment was professional, and in great shape.

The shooting ended this week, and maybe inspired by the end of this, it felt like a great time to talk about Hangar Films. If you are ever looking for a new place to shoot, I do recommend Bogota, Colombia. You will be pleasantly surprised. I also recommend contacting Hangar Films to assist you.

Hangar Films was founded on 1979 and is one of the main film and television production equipment rentals in Colombia. They also train their own staff to assist with shooting. Currently, they are co-producing films in a strong effort to build the Colombian filmmaking industry.

Best regards,

Steven Lowell
Public Relations Manager
Voice123 Premium Forums
Steven's Blog
Twitter: @stevenNYC123