Submit Your Property as a Production Location

The Houston Film Commission maintains a free database of greater Houston area locations that are available for use in films, television shows, commercials, music videos and digital media projects.

We receive requests from media industry professionals seeking a wide range of locations including: ranches, farm houses, small towns, courthouses, parks, dancehalls, restaurants, and small businesses. If you own or manage a property in Houston that you would like to be considered as a production location, we welcome your submission for inclusion in our locations database.

Table of Contents

• How To List Your Property
• What To Expect After Listing Your Property
• If Your Property is Selected for Filming
• Maximizing Your Location's Potential
• Additional Questions

HOW TO LIST YOUR PROPERTY

To add your property to our library, please click the button below for instructions on digitally submitting photos.  

Upload Your Property

For an example of the types of photos to submit, read the tips below and view these sample galleries for houses, businesses and downtowns.

PHOTO TIPS & REQUIREMENTS

• Filmmakers like to see the ‘big picture,’ so think wide angle and panorama shots. No close ups or detail shots, please. 
• Take photos of all structures on your property to provide filmmakers with an idea of everything the location has to offer. This includes multiple shots of interiors, exteriors and any additional or unique features of the property, even if they aren’t traditionally aesthetically pleasing. You never know what a production might need.
• Include at least one shot of each interior room. It may be helpful to stand in the corner of a room with the lens adjusted to the widest angle setting, or using the panorama feature on a smartphone.
• Take photos during the day for the best lighting. Dark, out-of-focus or outdated photos may not be accepted.
• When photographing interiors, turn on lights to help brighten up photos. 
• Include the property address and contact information (name, email address and phone number) for the owner and / or manager. For rural properties, please include basic directions such as ‘iron gate entrance 8 miles east of Loop 610.’
• Please do not overlay any digital watermark or include filters/effects that distort the picture in any way. If you would like to include a photo credit, please do so in the assigned text box when submitting.
• Please note submitted photos are not typically accessible to the general public and can only be changed by Houston Film Commission staff once submitted. 
• We do not accept hard copy photographs, videos or 35mm negatives. 

MAILING YOUR PHOTO PACKAGES

If you prefer to send photos on a CD / flash drive, please send to: 

Houston Film Commission
701 Avenida de las Americas, Suite 200
Houston, Texas 77010

WHAT TO EXPECT AFTER LISTING YOUR PROPERTY

Once reviewed and approved, your photos will be added to our secure locations database. Approved photos are then available for viewing by media industry professionals seeking Houston locations for their projects on a case by case basis, depending upon their specific location requests. 

Please note that while our office will share photos of your property (along with similar locations) with industry professionals, we cannot guarantee that your property will be selected as a production location.

Being Contacted About Your Property

If a production company is interested in your property, initial contact is generally made by a Location Scout or Location Manager hired by the production company. If you are contacted, it will likely be to schedule a preliminary location scout. A location scout does not obligate either party; it is simply an in-person visit to see if the property might work as a potential location for the project.

IF YOUR PROPERTY IS SELECTED FOR FILMING

The Houston Film Commission provides location services to a wide range of projects - from student films to studio features and digital media projects. As each project varies in size and scope, there is no industry standard for location fees and pricing. Every project has different location needs and varying budgets for locations.

If your property is selected for filming, keep in mind: 

• The production company will make an offer for compensation based on how long they need access to your property and how much they have allocated in their budget to spend.
• Industry standards and best practices encourage securing a written location agreement document executed between the production company and the property owner, outlining the agreed upon dates, rates and terms of use for any production activity taking place on your property.
• Industry standards and best practices encourage working with projects that have production insurance policies in place. Production Insurance is an industry standard that protects filmmakers, production companies and property owners supplying a location for production purposes.
• All terms and conditions for location use, rates, and so forth are negotiated between the production company and the property owner, not the Houston Film Commission.

MAXIMIZING YOUR LOCATION'S POTENTIAL

The Houston Film Commission’s locations database is powered by Reel-Scout, which also has a public-facing website called LocationsHub. This allows the general public to view locations at their leisure, increasing the chances of properties and businesses to be seen by production personnel (*photos of private homes are not made public, they are shared on a project-by-project basis with productions). There is no cost to list in the Reel-Scout/LocationsHub databases.

Please also consider adding your property to the Texas Film Commission's statewide locations database, you can find detailed information here.

ADDITIONAL QUESTIONS

Many people are not familiar with on-location production, so the Houston Film Commission staff is here to help with any questions you may have. Please contact our office by e-mail or call 713-853-8986.