Take 03 · Literacy

Places to film in Orlando

A sidewalk, a city park, a special event, and a state park are four different rulebooks. Handheld walking video on a public sidewalk is one craft problem. A tripod, a tent, a drone, or a crowd of more than 100 people on city property is another. The pages below are the city’s, the Film Commission’s, and Florida State Parks’. Read them before treating a location as a set.

• City parks
• Events
• Film Commission
• State parks
• Drones

City parks that affect a camera

Lake Eola Park is the city’s downtown loop: a 0.9-mile sidewalk, the Linton E. Allen Centennial Fountain, and posted hours of 6:00 a.m. to 11:59 p.m. every day on the park page. City Code § 18A.03 states City Commons Plaza and Lake Eola Park are open 6:00 a.m. until 12:00 midnight. Presence after closing is prohibited.

The city’s additional park rules (Families, Parks and Recreation) are the ones that change a shoot:

• Tents or structures are prohibited without written authorization from the parks division manager or designee.
• Affixing anything to a tree or pole. Hammocks, strap lines, banners. Is prohibited without that written permission.
• Use of rockets, radio-controlled aircraft, cars, boats or similar devices is strictly prohibited without prior written authorization of the parks division manager or designee.
• Obstruction of monuments, tourist attractions, or designated rental areas is prohibited without prior written authorization.
• No person may place an object on the park hardscape without permission, unless it is inside a permitted event with the permit holder’s permission.
• Portable tables larger than 6 feet by 3 feet need permission.
• Selling anything needs an approved 18A permit plus parks-division approval.

Those lines are why a one-person handheld walk around the lake and a crew with stands, a pop-up, and a product table are different jobs. The park remains open to the public during rentals; pavilions that are not rented are first-come, first-served, per the city’s events-on-public-property page.

Sources: Lake Eola Park; City of Orlando Park Rules; Orlando Code § 18A.03.

Event-style filming and the 100-person line

The City of Orlando’s Events on Public Property page: a Special Event Permit is required when more than 100 people will attend AND the event is held on city property, or when the event on city property includes vending or alcohol regardless of attendance. The application must be submitted at least 60 days prior to the event. When the gathering is in a public park, a rental agreement is needed before other permitting applications. Email listed on that page: parkrentals@orlando.gov. Event insurance is required, with the city added as additional insured.

That is an event rule. Park-rental dollar amounts live on the city’s page and with parks staff for the park you actually booked.

Source: Events on Public Property. City of Orlando.

Orlando Film Commission one-stop

The Orlando Film Commission (Orlando Economic Partnership) runs a one-stop permit that covers most film locations in Orange, Seminole, and Osceola Counties. Most municipalities require a minimum of 5 business days to process. For a county, city, or state park, or any state road, the Commission page says to email film@orlando.org directly.

Minimum insurance the Commission prints for filming on public property: a general liability policy of $1,000,000 each occurrence, with the city or county named as additional insured. That is a certificate-of-insurance requirement, not a permit price.

City of Orlando notes on the same page: ordinance states 5 business days’ notice; noise ordinance 10 p.m. To 7 a.m.; when filming in a neighborhood, notices to surrounding neighbors at least two days before, and not after 7 p.m.

Orange County notes: 5 business days to process, 30 days for Orange County Parks. The Commission also prints: “NO PERMIT REQUIRED IF CAST + CREW = 3 OR LESS USING HANDHELD CAMERAS *DEPENDING ON THE CONTENT OF THE PROJECT*.” If over 100 people, complete a general assembly permit and contact film@orlando.org.

On charges: “Film permits are free in many jurisdictions throughout the Orlando region unless city, county or state services are required.” The Commission then lists jurisdictions that do charge a processing or daily fee. The City of Orlando is not on that fee list. Fees the Commission does print include Seminole County $75 per permit, Altamonte Springs $50, Winter Park $100 per permit processed and up to $500 per day to film, Windermere $100. Always read the live table, because municipalities change it.

If you are filming at a county, city, or state park, or any kind of state road, please email film@orlando.org directly for assistance.

Orlando Film Commission, One-Stop Permitting

Florida State Parks photography

Florida State Parks’ public FAQ states photography is permitted without fee for all purposes except where normal park operations are disrupted or for resource protection. A photography permit is required if the photo or film shoot will affect park visitors or resources. Allow at least seven days for processing; liability insurance is required. Photos must be taken within standard park operating hours unless other arrangements have been made with park management. Standard entrance fees apply. Do not mar, deface, or rearrange natural or permanently situated features, or disrupt wildlife habitat. Do not enter roped-off areas. Use of smoke bombs, fireworks, or pyrotechnics is not permitted. If other visitors must be excluded from an area during the session, arrange in advance for a photography permit. The FAQ points the form at the Florida Park Service communications inbox.

Nearby example: Wekiwa Springs State Park in Apopka is a Florida State Park. The photography FAQ is statewide; the individual park page still holds hours and entrance.

Source: Florida State Parks FAQ (photography questions).

Drones and radio-controlled aircraft

City of Orlando park rules: radio-controlled aircraft are strictly prohibited without prior written authorization of the parks division manager or designee. Florida State Parks FAQ: launching or landing a drone is prohibited within Florida State Parks except in very rare circumstances; Chapter 62D-2.014(15), F.A.C., treats drones as “other aerial apparatus,” and the Park Service states it does not currently have guest-accessible landing facilities. Nesting birds are the conservation reason they print.

FAA rules still apply in the air. City authorization is a second gate on city park property. Read both.

A practical order

1. Name the land manager

   City park, county park, state park, sidewalk, or private. Each has a different page. Lake Eola is city. Wekiwa Springs is state. Unincorporated Orange County parks use the 30-day Film Commission note.

2. Count bodies, stands, and structures

   Handheld, three or fewer, on Orange County public property is the exemption the Commission prints. With the asterisk on content. A tent, a large table, a drone, or 100 people on city property leaves that lane.

3. Read the park rules for the actual park

   No trees as grip, no blocking the fountain, no RC aircraft, hours as posted. Lake Eola’s page and the additional park-rules page are the text.

4. If it is a production, write film@orlando.org

   Five business days is the common floor. Parks and Orange County Parks are longer. Attach the $1,000,000 COI the Commission specifies for public property.

FAQ

What does a City of Orlando film permit cost?

Read the Film Commission table. It lists processing or daily fees for named jurisdictions and states that permits are free in many others unless city, county, or state services are required. City of Orlando is not on that fee list. Ask film@orlando.org.

Can a vlog walk Lake Eola at 7 a.m.?

The park page lists 6:00 a.m. Opening. Handheld walking video is a different case from tents, drones, or blocking the fountain. Read the additional park rules.

Where do live news streams play?

On each station’s own site. The almanac table cites those URLs.