Comment Deadline For NYC Photography Permits

DrNibbler writes "August 3, 2007 is the deadline for submitting comments on the proposed permit requirements for photographers in New York. Here is a sample submission."

Comments

i am making a low budget horror movie in nyc

[circletimessquare]

And I have some experience with this. I'm done filming (just editting), but I had a run in with the cops in the Fall of '06.

So it was a nice October night and I had a few scenes I wanted to knock out, I was almost completely done with principle photography. I had made the fake newspaper headlines in Word and Photoshop, blew them up on the copier, then transferred them at Kinkos to the newsprint I bought at the specialty art supplier. Lot of bullshit just to make a fake newspaper. Anyways, I had arranged with the Bangladeshi dude at the deli around the way to use their newsstand for 15 minutes.

I showed up with my actors at the deli, dropped a $20 for the dude, and placed out fake newspapers over the real ones. Then I had my lead and his dead girlfriend walk by the deli, the lead glanced over at the newsstand, saw the headlines about various gruesome attacks in Manhattan, pause, stop, pick one up, look over at his dead girlfriend, and change his mood, she showing no affect whatsoever the whole time.

It went fine. I thanked the Bangladeshi deli dude, and went around the corner to shoot the scene that would preview that: the lead and his dead girlfriend walking down the street, him happy, her... well, what she is supposed to show the whole time: no affect.

That was easy, wham bam, thank you ma'am I was whipping through these scenes just fine.

Now I wanted to film a scene of him walking with his dead girlfriend after reading the headlines, to show the change in his level of concern about his place in everything at that moment. To show his happiness being replaced with worry. To establish the conflict in the next scene, which I shot weeks before.

Anyways, so I went around the corner again, completely oblivious about where I was, just looking for something with enough lighting and no obvious commercial street signs. I found a secluded spot and had my actors wait around the corner.

I steadied the camera, yelled action and gee, look at that in the viewfinder... flashing lights. That will ruin a shot.

I was on the midtown tunnel access road. Oops.

Yes officer, sorry officer.

No officer, I didn't know it was a misdemeanor. I'm deeply sorry officer. I had no intention officer.

Sure, here's my license... No, that's not my address, in fact I live right over there now.

No officer, sorry officer, I didn't know I had 10 days to report to DMV my new address when I moved or I was breaking the law, again.

My footage? Sure (bzzz... rewind...)

Here is a scene I just shot...

Yes, that's over on 3rd Avenue. And...

What? Fast forward through this?

WHAT? YOU DON'T LIKE MY F**ING MOVIE YOU F**ING... ;-)

I mean, yes officer, right here, this is the final shot of your cop car pulling up. Last shot.

Yes, that's all I had shot, nothing more.

Yes officer, I'll go away I won't come back here, sorry officer for the misunderstanding...

(PHEW)