Last week a group of some of the most important UK-based location scouts in the international film, commercial and TV industry were on a familiarisation trip to Mallorca.
The tour, the first of its kind, was co-organised and financed by the Mallorca Film Commission, directed by Pedro Barbadillo, and the scouts toured the island, getting to know the vast selection of locations which could be used for future film productions. And they all left Mallorca extremely impressed.
The group of six was accompanied by Eduardo Rodrigálvarez from the Palma Pictures locations department. Mallorca, as a film location, is certainly going “to be in the mix” of future discussions with regard to shooting locations for some of the biggest film productions.
The group comprised David Pannington, location supervisor on Game of Thrones, Guardians of the Galaxy and Christopher Nolan’s recent Oscar-winning film Inception; Dee Gregson, location supervisor on films such as Wings of the Dove, Alex Rider and Chloe; Christian McWilliams, who has worked on World War Z, Mission Impossible, Mamma Mia!, Gladiator 2 and John Wick, among others; Mick Ratman, whose film credits include Welcome to Sarajevo and The Flag; Ben Macgregor, a location scout who has worked on projects such as Once Upon a Time in London, Blitz and RocknRolla; and Kay Ponting Wilson, location scout on Good with Wood, Casualty and Father Brown.
Vast potential
It was actually the first time in 30 years that Kay had returned to Mallorca since having spent her gap year working as a holiday rep in Puerto Pollensa, which was one of the locations they were taken to along with Palma, the Serra de Tramuntana, Andratx, Calvia, Soller, the Torrent de Pareis and the Nus de la Corbata, among others.
They also had the opportunity to get to know a number of maritime locations with boat trips from Andratx and Pollensa. And the vast potential the island has really caught the eye of Christian McWilliams, who has just finished work on Gladiator 2 in Malta with a crew of 550 people and 2,000 extras a day.
“I’ve been to Mallorca before, but on holiday and clearly never saw what I’ve seen on this trip,” Chris told the Bulletin.
“I remember seeing the great house (La Fortalesa) in The Night Manager and wondering where the hell it was. I had no idea it was in Mallorca until I saw it on this trip. You’ve had a few shows which have been made here recently that have been done incredibly well and have been incredibly well received and they - The Night Manager, parts of The Crown and Lioness for example - have really put you guys on the map.
“So the audience of those three shows has created a huge new interest in Mallorca and shooting here. And obviously, Palma Pictures has really become quite a famous outfit over the past 15 years. We’ve all heard of and met many producers who have worked with them, not only here but also on the mainland, so the word has gone out that Palma Pictures is based here and that it is one of the busiest and best production companies in Spain and Portugal - and they’re helping to fly the flag for Mallorca.
“We all know about Michael Douglas’s house and all the other famous folk who have landed here, but we didn’t know about what the island has to offer as a location,” Chris said. “One of the things we’ve been talking to Pedro about after one of the boat trips is the most amazing military base which is right next door to where The Night Manager was shot in Puerto Pollensa. And we all asked ‘why are you not using it for filming?’ That’s an asset which you’re not using, so it was interesting to see assets like that which are not being made the most of by the film industry. Another example is the number of abandoned farmhouses. For some people they may be an eyesore, for us they are locations, ideal for a CIA safe house. There is so much potential on this island which is not being used.
A film industry is a huge asset
“Having done five different films in Malta, I’ve seen how much islands are dependent on tourism in the key months. But if you were able to bring big productions here out of season, say between September and May, you would triple the island’s workload, not to mention revenue. What I’m saying is that the film industry is an asset which bring so much to a location, especially the larger and longer productions. Another plus is that apart from only being a two-hour flight from London and most other major European cities, it’s a safe destination, so friends and family can come and visit. And that’s also a big plus for production teams, they can get to see their family more often.
“Plus, with regard to the logistics of shipping equipment etc. it’s much easier to get here by ferry than it is the Canary Islands, for example. It’s also cheaper and that’s always a plus. Whatever the size of the budget, producers always want to save as much money as possible, so the quick and easy access to Mallorca is a huge bonus as well.
“So, if hotels and the like were open during the off season we would come and fill them. To be honest we’re all starting to get a bit bored of Malta,” Chris said.
“And another mystery is why you’re not making more of the sea. Everyone has a boat in Mallorca but you’re not using it for film - that’s my point.
“Having a water tank is all very well, but it’s not the same as actually filming at sea - that’s the whole thing. And even if you have a tank in the future, it’s got to be right by the sea like in Malta, you don’t want it inland. They are always built by the sea.
“On one my productions we spent nearly five weeks shooting at sea and three of those were in a sheltered bay. You’re never more than 100 metres away from the shore because you need to move equipment, crew, cast etc. and Mallorca’s got some of the most amazing bays to film in.
“So yes, as a location we’ve all been very impressed and Mallorca has a bright future in the film industry. The island is film friendly, there’s a film history here and filmmakers always go where other filmmakers have been. And at the same time you’ve got the basis of a crew here,. With Palma Pictures being based here you’ve got the infrastructure that is instantly accessible.
“Plus there’s a big connection between where people go on holiday to where people want to make pictures and that’s another wonderful benefit for Mallorca. It’s so comfortable - to come and work would be a dream. You’ve also got some great film festivals, so it’s coming together, it’s all there, it’s just that more needs to be made of it.
Extraordinary opportunities
“And if a production does well, comes in on budget and is a commercial success, it does Mallorca a favour because success means it works. Malta, which has half the population of Mallorca, had 26 productions last year. I don’t think Mallorca had as many but you’ve got a bigger population and a much bigger island and I just think the opportunities here are extraordinary. There’s so much more land, so much more coastline. But I repeat, it is not being used.”
Chris also said that they stayed in the most amazing hotels in Mallorca.
“The standard of accommodation here is outstanding, far higher than in many other countries, and that is something also that productions enjoy because film crews like to be in comfortable places. It’s the whole combination. Mallorca’s got it all and it’s great that Malta, for example, has now got some competition. It’s so nice to be able to go and work somewhere else,” Chris added.
“I talk to some 15 different location managers every week and I’m going to be telling them all about Mallorca once I get back. I’ll be telling them it’s amazing. And they’ll be asking if I saw a great harbour, a spectacular house, beaches, cliffs, mountains. We will all carry with us this great publicity campaign for the island. Now we can speak in an educated way about Mallorca and the opportunities which are here and these are the great things about trips like these.
“And you have to take into account that location managers are extremely important to productions. After the producer and director are on board and the production designer has been brought in, we are the next on the list, we’re the fourth person in.
“We’re the ideas people. We come up with the ideas for where things can and can’t be filmed. So while a producer will be looking at logistics and whether sets will have to be built on location, we come in with solutions which could save millions of euros by saying that we know of a real place and that nothing has to be built.
“So that is probably one of the things about us that is quite unique, that we all possess a knowledge of what is real. And now we have the knowledge about what is real in Mallorca and the options are endless.”