Featured Location Society Hill by Horse and Buggy by B. KristPolice assistance is available to production companies for traffic and crowd control during a production. Police generally do not provide personnel for security. Please refer to the Guide’s Services Tab for private company listings. As of September 1, 1998, the Philadelphia Police department agreed to provide up to two police officers for traffic control and security as needed for filming activity, subject, however, to the discretion of the Greater Philadelphia Film Office, the Managing Director's Office and the Philadelphia Police Department. For further details, contact the Film Office. A representative of the Police Department is available to meet with the production company to provide assistance and advice regarding police related information during pre-production stages. The Film Office will arrange pre-production meetings with all departments affected upon request. TRAFFIC CONTROL- Depending on the location and time of the shoot, traffic officers may be requested or required. If you are filming interiors and have only one or two vehicles, police assistance is generally not necessary. If you are filming exteriors and have a small number of vehicles, one or two officers are sufficient. If your shoot requires parking of vehicles in a running traffic lane, restricting or detouring traffic and/or the closing of a street, the number of police officers required will be determined by the Police Department. If three or more officers are required, it is Police Department policy that a supervisor also be assigned to the duty. Depending on availability, that supervisor will usually be a Sergeant. Production companies also pay for the supervisor’s services. All officers have an eight-hour minimum call. Cancellation of requests for police assistance must be made to the Film Office by 9:00 AM the day prior to the shoot to avoid charges. Requests for additional manpower once a shoot has begun must be made to the Commanding Officer by 11:00 AM the day prior to the need. Decreases in manpower necessary at a location once shooting has started will be determined by the Commanding Officer. RAIN DATES- During months of frequent rain or snow it is strongly recommended that the production company select an alternate or “rain date” for all productions. A production company will not be charged for police assistance if a shoot is canceled due to rain or snow IF: the production company indicated a rain date at the time of the INITIAL request and if the production company notifies the Film Office of a cancellation at least 8 hours before call time. The responsibility for canceling due to rain is solely that of the production company. If the production company has not canceled yet and it is raining the day of the shoot, they should always call the Film Office to either confirm or cancel the shoot at least three hours prior to call time. If it is during regular business hours (Monday - Friday; 8:30 AM - 5:00 PM) the production company should call the Film Office at 215-686-2668. If it is before or after regular business hours or on a weekend, the production company should call a designated Film Office representative at home by calling the City Hall operator at (215) 686-1776. STREET CLEARANCE AND ON-LOCATION PARKING- For lane closure and closing of streets see Streets Department. For on-location parking please see Parking Authority. Once arrangements for the above have been made, the Police Department will post the appropriate signage. Posting of signs is gratis. If barricades are needed for traffic restriction, the production company will be billed accordingly. Traffic cones, sawhorses and other miscellaneous traffic control items are not provided by the Police Department. TOW TRUCKS- If your production will restrict public parking in any way (reserved parking, clearing lanes, closing streets), it may be necessary to arrange for a Police Department tow truck to move vehicles which are parked in violation of the posted signage. You may request a guaranteed tow truck and pay a four-hour minimum charge. Charges for all tow trucks will include 1/2 hour before and after the detail for travel time. Requests for tow trucks require 24-hour notice. MARINE UNITS- The Police Department operates a harbor, 5 types of marine craft and 2 inflatable boats that are available for filming. Details are available through the Film Office. POLICE CARS -Police cars may be used as props but not for racing and/or stunt driving. The cars must be operated by police personnel. Productions requiring a police car for more than one day or for stunts, (as the same car cannot be guaranteed for every day) MUST secure a surplus vehicle (rent, lease or buy) that must be marked. Permission is required when using Philadelphia Police Department insignia or likenesses on uniforms or vehicles. An agreement may be necessary for the City’s Law Department for such representation. UNIFORMS- Photographs are available depicting official police attire, vehicles, and insignia. Please contact the Film Office for further information. FACILITIES- The Police Department has 23 district offices, a traffic office and a special unit office which may be available for filming, depending on the scope of the production. Police Department holding cells are not available for filming. BILLING- Productions requesting the hire of one or more Philadelphia uniformed police officers are required to complete a “Request For Services” form. An authorized signature from the production company is required. Please contact the Greater Philadelphia Film Office for all requests. For larger productions, see Managing Director’s Office. In order to ensure continuity in billing, it is strongly suggested that the production company review the day’s use of manpower and equipment with the police officer on duty or the Commanding Officer at the end of the day. The hiring of police officers will be billed at the following rates and are subject to change.
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