Why Scouting NY Is Coming To An End
Dear Scouting NY reader,
About a decade ago, I was hired to work on my first movie.
Yep, that’s me on set in my very first job in locations, and though I look quite elated to be wearing that ridiculous hardhat, I was actually feeling extremely scared when this picture was taken, for one simple reason:
I had absolutely no idea what I was doing.
I’d just graduated from college a few months back, and had been trying desperately ever since to get a job on a film production. As an aspiring director/screenwriter, all I wanted was to get some actual on-set work to understand how “real” movies were made. I scoured job boards and sent out resumes to every listing I could find – and didn’t hear back from a single one.
For a moment, there was a glimmer of hope. A friend helped me get a job working as the assistant to an ultra low budget director making an indie romantic comedy, for the impressive salary of $100 a week. Sadly, the production closed down after only a few weeks without a single day of shooting, and I was back to where I started. I thought I was sunk.
Then, one day, completely out of the blue, I got a call from someone I’d met briefly while working on the indie film. This person happened to recall that I was pretty good with tech stuff, and would I be interested in working on a movie he was helping to location manage, Steven Spielberg’s War of the Worlds?
Me attempting a cooler pose after the embarrassing hardhat photograph
I said yes before he could even describe the position…which turned out to be a rather unusual one.
Essentially, Tom Cruise had a stipulation in his contract that guaranteed him four hard internet lines and four hard phones lines in his trailer at every one of the dozens of shooting locations we were scheduled to visit up and down the East Coast, from upstate New York to West Virginia. I was to be solely responsible for making this happen, from logistics to installation to support.
I had no idea what I was doing.
Luckily, I’m a quick learner when it comes to tech stuff, and it didn’t take long before the trunk of my car looked like it belonged to a seasoned telecom vet. For phone lines, I worked with Verizon to run lines from the nearest pole to where his camper would be parked. As for internet?
Pictured above is the “Wireless Internet Trailer,” an enormous satellite dish on wheels some guy had built to miraculously provide internet anywhere you wanted it. As I heard frequently on set, this was to be the future of portable internet access.
It was designed to be idiot-proof. The teamsters would off-load it next to Tom’s camper. I’d then push the button, the dish would rise up, circle around until it got a signal, four lights would blink on, and we had internet. I’d run the hard lines to Tom’s trailer, then start planning the next location.
Except it never, ever worked. I would go on to spend many a freezing morning that winter huddling up in the cold as I waited for a fourth connect light that would never turn on.
Though I was extremely grateful to finally be working on a film set, I was a bit disappointed to have wound up in Locations. All day, I’d watch other departments doing what seemed like very important tasks on set: camera guys changing lenses and pulling focus, grips throwing up stands at a moments notice, electricians running cable, sound guys holding booms, ADs barking orders…
As for locations guys? As far as I could tell, all they did was stand around with a stack of permits not doing much of anything.
One day early on, I mentioned to one of my locations co-workers that I was hoping to get into the camera department on my next job, saying that I thought it would help me to get a better of understanding of how movies were made. He looked at me like I had two heads.
“What do you have left to do today, Nick?” he asked.
“Not much, really,” I said. “The trailer is already hooked up. I need to call Verizon to double-check a few installations, but I’m mainly just standing by in case any of the lines go down.”
“OK. So. Go learn how movies get made.”
It took me a few seconds to understand what he was saying…but the moment I did is the moment I realized I’d found exactly the job I’d been looking for.
The secret beauty of Locations is that the vast majority of our work is done in advance. From scouting and permitting, to contracts and payments, to securing camera positions and parking and dealing with community boards and finding catering spaces – nearly everything is taken care of in prep, which means that on the day of the shoot, as everyone else is scrambling like crazy to get that first scene, you get to simply stand there and watch.
And that is exactly what I did.
Every day, for the rest of the shoot, I’d go out of my way to get my work done early, then hurry over to set to watch Spielberg and company at work. Observing from the sidelines at a respectful distance, I paid close attention to how each camera position and lighting set-up was chosen…
…how actors were blocked, stunts staged, and locations dressed…
It was like going to a film school taught by the best of the best – and I was getting paid to be there. Film crew people will tell you that nothing will ever compare to your first job; for me, War of the Worlds was magical.
After the movie ended, I eagerly signed on to my next film as a Locations production assistant – essentially, the lowest position in the department. It’s probably one of the least glamorous jobs on set, and a typical day will have you hauling trash, plunging toilets, and putting up road signs for crew parking.
But as long as you did your work, you could use your downtime to do as you wanted. For me, that meant going to set and being a fly on the wall as I watched movie after movie get made first hand.
As I worked my way up the locations ladder, I began to devote much of my free time to screenwriting. My goal had always been to direct my own feature, and while I didn’t have a dime to put toward such an endeavor, my friend Jack would always remind me that writing costs nothing. So I kept at it.
—–
I’ve been watching movies get made from the sidelines for quite a while now. And I think it’s finally time to put it all on the line.
Last year, my latest script started getting an extremely positive response, earning the attention of a manager. It quickly became apparent that if I want to make a serious attempt at this, I need to be in Los Angeles.
I didn’t want to leave. I owe everything to New York City. My wife and I have spent ten years building our lives here. Our families, friends, jobs – pretty much everything we know is centered in and around New York. And to give it all up for something as crazy as trying to become director/screenwriter?? It would have been so easy, so comfortable, so safe to stay, to just keep doing what we’d been doing for another decade, and another decade after that. The idea of leaping headfirst into the unknown felt…
…well, it felt a lot like that first day on set.
Which is why I’m going for it.
Thank you to everyone out there for supporting my work over the past seven years, and for coming along on this adventure with me. I hope I’ve made the greatest city in the world seem just a little bit more magical.
Finally, last but not least: yes, of course this is happening…
-SCOUT
Hi Nick,
Congrats for your next big adventure! I’ll deeply regret your scouting post about NYC and around. Being in love with this city, but living really far away from it, your blog was always a way to get back there.
I hope success will be yours with your movie, and I can’t wait to read you in “Scouting LA”.
Cheers,
Myriam
Good luck out there…We’ve all certainly seen enough LA, but I hope you can find the same sort of things below the surface that you found here in NYC.
And I’ve heard the LA River can be quite treacherous. Let’s be careful out there.
Congratulations !
You had me worried until the last line 😉
Good Luck with the Move! I’m really sad this website is coming to an end. I love NYC but have no interest in LA so probably won’t look at the new website much 🙁
Ah nuts…. Well I wish you luck with your movie and I really hope you do well in L.A. but myself I just can’t get worked up about that sunny putrid palm treed tinseltown like I can NYC.
I always remember that great quote of John Huston as Noah Cross in ‘Chinatown’
“Whores, Politicians, and old buildings all get respected if they last long enough.” (or something like that.)
I somehow have always applied that to L.A. for some reason.
Bravo. Well written.
Long time reader but never poster here. Loved your blog, always one of my favourites having visited NY once in my life. I look forward to learning all about the cool places in LA. Good luck!
Hi, Nick – I live in Los Angeles, on the trendy west side. I’d love to meet you and your wife. Let me know if I can help you settle in. It was a shock for me moving here from NYC years ago. Still miss it. Sorry I don’t have industry contacts to help you.
Congratulations and good luck! Have read ScoutingNY for a long time. Found it fascinating before I moved to NY and even more so after living there for a couple of years. Back in Europe now and will really miss your insights. Although maybe you can inspire me to like LA…no one else has managed to but we’ll see..!
Congratulations! I’m a big fan of the philosophy, “Leap and the net will appear before you,” and it appears that you are, too. I’ll miss Scouting NY, but I look forward to your Oscar speech, when I scream to my wife, “Hey! I used to read that guy’s location scouting blog!”
Congratulations on this next journey! I will greatly miss Scouting NY. Keep us all on the list though, so that way we can be the first in line to watch your films! Good luck to you and your wife. Scouting NY really brought a lot of happiness through your entertaining location choices.
Thank you so much for so many years of educational and enjoyable reading about this city I love so much. Very happy for you about this next stage of your adventures — good luck!!!
I’ve been reading the site for years…it’s always been a favorite. Best of luck! Can’t wait to see what you uncover in Los Angeles!
You are my inspiration. Never never never give up!!
Thanks for this website! I’ve learned so much from it and appreciate all the hard work you put into. Best of luck in chasing your dream. And though I know next to nothing about LA, of course I’m going to start reading your blog and learning a lot.
Best of luck to you!!
Congrats, I’ll miss your posts about NY but look forward to seeing LA. Good luck with the film!
Congratulations. It’s always sad when a blog ends, but you have to move on. Good luck!
Congratulations Nick! I’m sad to see Scounting NY but excited for your next challenge. Best of luck! Thanks for all the great content and I look forward to Scouting LA.
Good Luck Nick, maybe you can turn your blogs into a book with pictures and sell it for some extra funding. I know I’d be willing to buy one!
–Rick
Yes! Great idea! I’ll love to buy the book!
Love, love, love this! So sad to see Scouting NY go, but excited for Scouting LA…plus, there are tons of archives to keep at it in NYC. Best wishes to you, Nick! This is absolutely one of my favorite blogs!!!
Yea! I was hoping you’d start a blog for LA! This is fantastic. I’m so glad you’re following your dream, but even happier you’re taking us with you. Godspeed!
Congratulations! But thank goodness for Scouting LA – I’ll be reading along and cheering you on.
Thank you for all the amazing photos in NY! I know it’s hard to leave NY, but you can always come back, and living in LA will be a wonderful experience. I know how hard it is to break into certain fields here in NY. I want to get into acting, but there’s always someone who will do it cheaper. People keep telling me to move to LA for the film jobs, but I am just stuck thinking NY still has something to offer me… but I think it’s time for me to move on from NY.
hard work pays off. Thank you and God is with you.
Congratulations on such a great opportunity! I’ve always enjoyed your posts about quirky little spots around NYC. I’m sad it’s coming to an end but best of luck with your new adventure!!
I hope you take this as the compliment it is meant as: I am trying to be happy for you but it’s hard! Because I will miss this blog so much.
But I’m really looking forward to seeing what you scout in LA. I fantasize pretty equally about moving back to my native NYC and living in LA, so it’s a decent trade.
Your posts and photos of New York have been some of my most favorite internet content. Looking forward to learning about the west coast. Best of luck with your next chapter. You may want to bring some rain with you.
All the best to you out west! And thanks for all the wonderful NY posts – your site was a treat and I’ll miss seeing updates. I hope you will still provide a link to your NY stories. Knock ’em dead out in LA!
I have tremendously enjoyed your work on that blog in the past years, so THANK YOU Nick! And good luck for the future!
A fan from Paris, France
Best of Luck to you and your wife!
Your website and Facebook updates were always a delight to come across!
Those updates are going to be missed, but alas, all god things must come to an end, as they say.
Follow your dreams and MAKE IT HAPPEN!
From one fellow New York explorer to another.
Good Luck and God Bless!
Your Scouting NY Interactive Map will continue to be a very fun resource for a long long time. Good luck!
Congratulations & good luck in the next adventure! I’ve been following along on your blog for years & since I made the leap to move out of state last year, it’s been my view back home to things that I miss. I know you’ll be a great success in NY & I cannot wait to see your film when it comes out!
Hell yeah! Best of luck! Thanks for all the great content!
Congrads and the best of luck to you Nick !!!!
Fingers crossed for your movie Scout! Can’t wait to see it : )
Good luck!
I’ve been following almost in a religious way your blog since 2009 and I must admit it made me daydream about New York. I’m from Spain, and since I was a little kid, I feel so attracted to The Big Apple that I collected EVERYTHING related to it. My dream was (and still is!) to live my life iin NYC. When I finally managed my way to visit NYC, it certainly exeeded my expectations. I was living in a dream. And your blog kept my dream alive, so THANK YOU for your job, Nick. I hope you find what you’re looking for in LA.
NY will miss you!
Thanks for all the work you’ve done on this blog, and best of luck with what you do over there.
Congrats and good luck on the big move! I’m glad to see you’ll still be blogging in LA. I’m looking forward to following you in your next big adventure.
Thank you so much for this website – for everything you have shared with us thus far! As a New Yorker, I have learned so much from you.
Thank you for everything and we wish you the best of luck moving forward!
Hey! I helped make it happen (and I have the magnets to prove it)!
Good luck in LA. Glad to see the site continue “west coast style.”
My best,
Jen
Way to go Nick! I have enjoyed all your posts and look forward to the new ones to come from L.A. Best of luck in your new direction. I started out working as an extra to see how sets actually worked while getting paid to wait around a lot and just watch lol. Ended up in the camera dept and it was the scariest, most exciting and sometimes boring job I have ever had. Best wishes from Oz.
Dear Nick, I’ll miss your introductions to parts of New York that I haven’t discovered yet, or may never have the privilege to see. Thanks for the gift you’ve given your followers already.
I look forward to the “eyes” and insights and insights you’ll be posting soon about the left coast.
May you and your family have great success and happiness in Los Angeles.
Continued success to you.
I must thank you for enriching my knowledge/love for NYC. Although I am a SoCal resident, my brief (8 days) visit to the ‘Big Apple’ made my family and myself fall completely in love with the city, the people, the energy one feels. Los Angeles has a different vibe, more laxed in comparison with NY. At any rate, I hope the Scouting NY site will stay up, as it is one of my best connections with the city I love and is a constant reminder of why I hope to one day move my family there.
Enjoy our West Coast. I definitely look forward to finding out more about my current back yard as you put together the Souting L.A.
Scout on!
Congratulations for taking this amazing leap of faith, and here’s hoping for every success to come your way. Please do not shut down your blog – but take us along on your new adventures!!!
Thank you for this blog! I will miss it, but certainly wish you the best of luck in LA. As a historic preservationist (also in NYC), I always felt that we shared a keen eye for quirky details in this city that often go unnoticed or unappreciated. I thank you for all that you opened my eyes to, and look forward to seeing what you find in LA.
Sorry to see you leave NYC, but congratulations for taking the leap! I have so enjoyed reading your Scouting NY stories. Living in New England the past 20 years, your site and photographs have reminded me of how much I miss NY! Best of luck on the other coast!!
Congratulations and good luck! Thanks for all the work you’ve put into this blog – as an architecture fan living in the city, I’ve found out about lots of fantastic places that wouldn’t have come to my attention in any other way.
Congrats. While LA is no where near as cool as NY and I will miss the amazing spots you find. You gave me another job to dream for! I think it would be an easy transition from Architectural Historian to Location Scout. 🙂 Best wishes and KNOCK EM DEAD!!
Hi Nick,
Congratulations, best of luck and thank you for the amazing treasury of knowledge. I hope you’ll keep the archive online alongside Scouting Los Angeles.
I wish you the best of luck with your script and the new site.
You taught me how to write about boring stuff in a particular way that makes people interesting in them, because you make it appear an adventure with you and the reader. You’re both intrigued and you both are trying to discover the reasons behind the facts. All I try to do on my blog (http://amanrp.blogspot.pt) is to reach the appeal, the usefulness and the accuracy you present in this site. Thank you.
Mazes Tov! And how awesome to follow your dream. I’ve been visiting this website for years and I hope to visit it for many years to come, and I also look forward to reading about your new adventures! It’s been mentioned, but you should definitely consider making all of this into a book. That’s something I would most definitely buy.
Mazel* Damn typos.
Nick, I wish you the best of luck! Thank you for all the Scouting NY posts and for teaching me more about my great city!
Thanks for all of your posts, I’ve loved reading them for so many years. Mazel on the move and new endeavor, I wish you the best.
Good fortune to you and yours, Scout. I’ve enjoyed your take on NYC and wish you the best.
I don’t even remember now how I stumbled across your blog, but spending many long summers in NYC with my aunt and uncle every year gave me a great love for the city and surrounding ‘suburbs’ and your blog brought back a lot of memories.
I know nothing about LA other than I have a friend who lives out there who I email back and forth with every day. She mentions areas and I’m lost. I’m looking forward to finally ‘finding my way around’ the city.
As to your goal of screenwriting/directing, I hope every good thing that can, comes your way out there! Congrats and good luck.
Congrats, Nick. Such a heartwarming post. New York’s loss is LA’s gain. Break a leg out there! Can’t wait to follow along with ScoutingLA — until you have to quit it to make your film(s).
I could not be happier for you and your next adventure! I have so enjoyed this blog and all the examined details of this great city and I shall sorely miss it. I grew up in Southern CA and left to find civilization in NYC or San Francisco, or anywhere else, but there are still times I visit LA and wonder at its unique history and the umbilical cord it shares with the film industry. American Weirdness abounds there. You are going to have a great time. Congratulations!
Nick,
Thank you for all the energy, information and education you’ve put into this site. I don’t think any of the other similar NYC sites hold a candle to ScoutingNY. You make it all feel very personal and intimate in a way NYC often doesn’t feel, even to a native like me.
Wishing you much success in LA-LA. Can’t wait to see your name on the big screen; above title, of course.
Happy Trails To You!
Sean
Nick, wishing you the very best on the next phase of your life. I know that you will succeed. I will miss Scouting NY like crazy but am cheering you on from Arkansas. You CAN do this. Cheers, Rocks
Good luck to you Nick and family. I send you blessings and thanks for the wonderful website that you created. It seems to me that you are a kind and gentle soul and I wish you success in L.A. Thank you!
Bernie Clyne
Damn!!! I’m torn between celebrating your hard work paying off in such good fortune and mourning the loss of one of my fave blogs about my fave city…
Please, tell me it will still be accessible–that you’re not taking it down or renting the domain out to a used pet shop site or something… I truly hope I can log on and read (and reread) many of your posts….
Best wishes for a meteoric career…
(And if a script of yours ever calls for an older character actor…well, you know you can find me at the same old location, scout!!!)
Thanks for the wonderful time….
Best regards and sincere congratulations,
Michael Karp
Yes; its definitely a blog I want to come back to when Im looking for info for my next trip! And having a book with your blog posts would be cool too!
I’ve only been reading for about 2 years but I really enjoyed your blog. You introduced a lot of great places that I never thought about looking into even though I’ve lived in NYC for 8 years. Good luck with your screen writing and good luck with your scouting of Los Angeles – a place I’ve yet to ever visit! 🙂
DON’T FORGET THE LITTLE PEOPLE!
I lived in NY, in Brooklyn and on the island until I was ten, and I still visit regularly. Your website has shown me a side to the city that I never knew existed. Thank you for what you’ve done. Good luck on your new gig.
Best of luck Nick, and many thanks for all these years posting.
Best wishes in lala land. I loved the this site!
Thanks for the years of helping me rediscover NY. Best of luck in LA!
I don’t always comment on your posts, but I have been reading them for a long time.. I lived in New York (Saratoga Springs, relatively close to the race track) for a short time while I was a kid, and have been back a couple of times to visit. I really enjoy your posts, all the pictures, and reading your thoughts on the things you have found – some of which I knew about, and most of which I didn’t.
And while I will be sad to see the Scouting NY end, I wish you all the best with the new endeavors! How exciting to be going out to LA and starting this new part of your life! I hope you and your family will find everything out there that you are looking for.
And yes, I will be looking forward to Scouting LA posts 🙂
I moved to Florida in 1993 and your website always brought back the fond times I had there . Best of luck in your new work.
P.S. I owned the “scariest house in Brooklyn” 1305 Albemare Road
Long time reader, first time commenter. Thank you for the NY version, and can’t wait for the LA version. Just please keep writing. Good luck with your project.
Being an urban exploration fan, I have loved your blog, and am sorry to come to the end of the NY stories but congrats on your new adventure! And when y’all get settled in L.A., I totally see a script being written that requires scouting in and shooting around San Francisco… for which of course you’ll need local union actors… who are urban exploration fans… (ahem). 🙂 Travel safely.
Thanks for the memories! I’ve based a few NY trips off your tips and history. Maybe your new adventure will inspire some of your readers like me to visit LA. Best of luck!
Good luck out west!
Bummed for the end of the NY scout, but having never lived in or near LA it will be a totally new experience. Looking forward to what you encounter.
I do hope you keep the NY stuff available, and for the occasional new post on your visits back to the east coast.
Your blog is one of the consistently best written and most interesting ones I read! Despite not being a New Yorker for six or so years, your excitement in the writing was palpable. Good luck on the new ventures and glad you get new things to discover.
congratulations on the next big thing! been reading scouting ny for about four years now and i can’t wait for scouting la. thanks for the lovely posts.
I have enjoyed your posts for years. I’m sad that they will end, but happy for you to take that next step. Please tell us you’ll be sharing your movie making adventure.
Congratulations Nick! I’ve been following you, since LiveJournal. So excited for this adventure you’re about to take. Can’t wait to see your name in lights!
Nick,
First time posting on this and the last time since the site is coming to an end. I’ve always enjoyed your posts while going through my reader and being a New Yorker all my life I always found something new about new York through your posts. It’s pretty sad that you’re leaving the concrete jungle for the LA traffic!! Hope it goes well in LA and that screenplay gets rolling. The archives are great and I’ll probably visit it when I feel a little adventurous in expanding my borders in NY. ( Queens, all day! ) Enjoy LA and keep working hard. The best is yet to come.
PS I’ll be subscribing to ScoutingLA. Can’t wait to see the adventure!
I’ve followed this blog for years and am so happy for you! Can’t wait to follow your adventures in LA!
Good Luck in L.A. I hope one day to see your movie on the big or small screen. Enjoy the city of Angels
One of my favorite websites since I can remember. Every city in the world should have a site like this, but none would ever be as amazing as yours. Looking forward to the LA version. Thank you so much!
Hey! I’m going to miss reading about NYC here, and even though we don’t know each other personally I’m here to tell you that I’m really happy for you and wish you nothing but the best! Your deserve it man!!!
Best wishes on your new move! I will miss this blog but very excited you are still doing one for LA. It will be different but its got a lot of cool old Hollywood history so will be fun to follow along.
Congratulations! And thank you for the ride (so far ;D)
Long time reader, first time commenter. Just wanna add my congratulations as well. I’ve enjoyed this blog very much and I’ll miss it. Good luck to you in making that movie.
Nick,
Good Luck. Fingers crossed for you.
And THANK YOU for all your efforts with Scouting NY
Congrats and good luck!
I can’t imagine that LA will have nearly the scouting blog interest that NY has, just from sheer lack of history, but I’ll be reading just in case.
K
Congratulations man. For me, this site is right up there with Forgotten NY. I will miss it 🙁
NY loss is LA gain. I ❤️ your posts. I hope keep it up as a hobby in LA. even thou we are such a young city.
Cheers
Enjoyed all of your posts, good luck in LA!
Nick,
I’ve been a reader from the very beginning and will miss this site greatly! Thanks for the many years of incredible posts and the vacation suggestion (St. John 4ever)!
Wish you the very best, and can’t wait to see what you come up with in LA.
Nick… FUCK YES!!!! I was so disappointed when I read the title, but then I read your post. I am so fired up for you!!! This is how it happens, you’re living the dream and you have no idea how incredibly envious I am of you.
I’ll make sure to support anything you do and I hope I get to keep reading about your adventures in LA. I wish you nothing but the BEST.
Sorry to see you go – but excited for you and your next move!
I’ll see you over at scoutingla.com
ed
Hi Nick,
I’m a bit sad over losing your site/blog, well not having new stories to read and inspire me. That makes me sad, but I’m really happy for you, cause it could be your big break.
Good luck!
PS. I hope scoutingny.com will be online for a long time so I can always look old posts up.
Hey Nick,
I have to say, I am sad to hear I will no longer be able to see and read about your interesting view of a city I’m in every single day. I have loved your blog so much, it inspired me to do something total unexpected for me and start my own blog http://therandomcompass.com.
Thank you for posting such a creative look at the world and for inspiring my own creative side. Best of luck in LA and I look forward to reading your new blog when you get there!
Hello Nick:
I wish you much luck and wish I could travel around NYC and do some scouting. You have a very good website and I hope you keep the website up.
Good luck to you and your wife – I must admit to not wanting you to leave. I am a native NYer, born and raised in NYC – you’ve shown me things that have been around forever yet were unseen to me, you’ve handled this city with great love and respect – more than anyone I know… damn, this is hard… I will miss you, Nick, you crazy guy you… have a great time out there (I did what you are doing – twice – lots of fun in LA getting a film made and all the schmoozing, hot tubs, and great weather)… best to you always! RM
All the best for the move (location and hopefully career!)
Thanks also for giving this UK based writer an exciting link back to the magic of NYC.
scoutingla.com is already bookmarked!
I’ll miss this blog, thanks for all the posts over the years!
Onward and upwards!
PLEASE CONTINUE WITH A SCOUTING LA THAT WOULD BE THE BEST! (seriously like a dream come true since I live here)
ALSO, BEST OF LUCK TO YOU IN YOUR ENDEAVORS!!!