Securing Location?

[thatguywiththecamera]

So I'm trying to organize my first music video shoot, and the main location I need is a local roller rink. The band has a very indie-90's sound, so I thought it was a good fit.
Sooner or later I'm going to have to actually call these people (the owners) and see if they'll even consider letting me use their location. But before I did that I wanted to ask some of the more experienced members of the forum what I should even ask/say?
What information should I give the owners? What questions should I ask them/expect them to ask me?
Basically, what's the most professional way to approach them in an attempt to secure a shooting location?

Any and all help would be greatly appreciated.

 

[finderskeepers]

Good stuff! Just curious, what's the lowest daily rate you ever got on LA based studio space?

I was right here in L.A. wondering why you didn’t contact me.

I used Jillian’s Bowling on CityWalk for a shoot two years ago. I
know they do private parties, but rather than bait and switch I
just set an appointment with their event manager and told her
what I was doing. A private party was $250 for four hours on a
mid weekday. I got three days from 1AM until 8AM (a total of
21 hours of facility time) for $350. They required a location
babysitter at his overtime wage so I talked to the guy. He was
an aspiring actor (no surprise in L.A.) so he agreed to be there
on his own time. I threw him $100 and gave him a small part
with three lines. Total of $450 or about $22 per hour. Yes, I
spent $200 more - I got 21 hours instead of 4.

I suspect if I had signed for a party and then presented them with
a location release I would not have gotten the deal I got. For me
being up front about business has worked.

I got a restaurant for a day in Aberdeen WA for free. The deal was
we would feed the cast and crew two meals at their employee discount
rate. In the end they comped all the meals because they were so
fascinated by the process.

 

[thatguywiththecamera]

...If you've a DSLR with crap attached to it, it will not work.

I've a DSLR with crap attached to it.
I'm just going to call the people and be up front about it, maybe they'll throw me a discount. Party rentals there are for only 2 hours and I would need significantly more time to film everything. The owners live on property so maybe they'll let me shoot on a day they're closed or something.
I'll let you all know how it goes.
Thanks for the advice.

 

[knightly]

Hope this goes well for you... offer to put a 10 second card in the credits... it's advertising, it's cheaper than newspaper, tv or radio... and it'll go to an audience that is more likely to support businesses that support local artists. Then arrange some local screenings to make good on that promise. (after the screening, you're not responsible for actually making people go there, just putting the ad in front of eyeballs).

 

[MONKPRODUCTIONS]

I would be as upfront as necessary don't hide the fact that you will be filming at there location. Find out what there off hours are and if any of them would work for your schedule. If not I would think outside the box can you shoot there while it's open without comprimising your work. With a music video it could work since you dub in the music later if you can avoid people in your shots that you don't want there. If that won't work then you may have to pay. Something that we can't afford to do on our stuff. We have though worked deals with locations for product placement depending on the business (local beer breweries) or shooting a little commercial for them. This is a creative business and sometimes people fail to see that when it comes to pre-production. I take great pride in pitching locations on letting us shoot there. Last bit of advice be upfront about what you want and what you need to shoot there if you need the a/c unit off and only half the lights on and a place to store food for your crew say so don't ever assume anything. If you do that you'll be suprised how much people will try to help you out.

 

[mlesemann]

Also, if you know anyone who skates regularly at the place, consider involving them in the discussions. Or even try skating there a couple of times yourself and chatting up the owner/manager ahead of time, then come in with your off-hours rental proposal.

I've gotten my best rates and co-operation from places with whom I have a pre-existing relationship (local bar that I drink at, restaurant that I've eaten at many times, etc).