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Policy for Commercial Filming on Campus

Statement

The University of Louisiana at Lafayette is dedicated to learning and the advancement of knowledge. It has an obligation to provide an appropriate campus environment for its students, faculty and staff. UL Lafayette will consider requests to film on its campus or other university-owned property for commercial purposes, as long as those activities do not disrupt academic pursuits, student life or day-to-day university operations.

Permission to film on campus is at the sole discretion of UL Lafayette.

Definitions

For this document only, the following definitions apply.

Unless otherwise specified, “film” and “filming” refer to any moving image capture for a commercial purpose, such as movies, music videos, commercials and television shows.

  • “Filmmaker” refers to any individual or company representative who is responsible for filming.
  • “Commercial purpose” refers to filming for any use that could directly generate revenue for a person, company or business. It does not refer to news photography, in-house filming projects or class assignments for UL Lafayette students. Nonprofit organizations that would like to film public service announcements on campus must follow the protocol specified in this policy. However, the university has the right to waive location fees and any fees for use of university facilities for nonprofit organizations that are allowed to film public service announcements.
  • “Campus” encompasses any UL Lafayette-owned property or university-leased property or facility, regardless of location. It also encompasses property owned by the UL Lafayette Foundation, UL Lafayette Alumni Association and the Paul and Lulu Hilliard University Art Museum.
  • “Production” refers to the activity involved in filming, including site preparation and striking the site.
  • “Communications and Marketing” refers to the university’s Office of Communications and Marketing, not UL Lafayette’s Department of Communication and/or Department of Marketing and Hospitality.

Responsibilities

Role of UL Lafayette Office of Communications and Marketing

  • Handles all requests for scouting visits or filming on campus;
  • Must approve – in advance – any filming on campus, with the exception of filming for class projects, personal use or in-house use; 
  • Coordinates production activities with any UL Lafayette offices or departments directly affected by filming on campus; and
  • Assesses UL Lafayette’s campus before and after any filming for commercial purposes to ensure that no university property is permanently altered and that no university property is even temporarily damaged.

Role of UL Lafayette Facilities Management

  • Generates a contract between UL Lafayette and a filmmaker or production company that will film on campus;  
  • Assists a filmmaker or production company that UL Lafayette allows to film on campus; and
  • Assesses UL Lafayette’s campus before and after any filming for commercial purposes to ensure that no university property is permanently altered.

Role of UL Lafayette Athletics Department

  • Determines – and communicates to Facilities Management – whether athletics facilities will be filmed.

Protocol

All requests related to filming on campus – including requests for scouting athletics facilities – should be referred to Communications and Marketing. That office coordinates production activities with Facilities Management and any other UL Lafayette offices or departments directly affected by filming on campus.

Before a scouting visit for a specific project will be scheduled, a filmmaker must submit a copy of a proposed script to Communications and Marketing for review. Within two regular working days after receipt of a script, Communications and Marketing will determine whether a scouting visit will be set up and will notify the filmmaker.

Permission for a scouting visit does not constitute approval by UL Lafayette for the use of university property and/or facilities. And, substantive script changes – as determined by Communications and Marketing – could cause UL Lafayette to withdraw its permission.

Communications and Marketing must have at least 24 hours’ notice to schedule a scouting visit. A representative of Communications and Marketing and/or Facilities Management must accompany any filmmaker who is scouting locations on campus, preparing to film on campus, filming on campus and striking any sets.

When Communications and Marketing approves the proposed script, the filmmaker must submit a completed Application for Permission to Film on Campus – along with a nonrefundable $100 administrative fee – to the director of Communications and Marketing at least 15 regular working days (Monday through Thursday, 7:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. and Friday, 7:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m.) before the anticipated start of a production. The university’s academic calendar can be viewed at www.louisiana.edu/academics/academic-calendar. The Application for Permission to Film on Campus can be accessed at http://ocm.louisiana.edu/campus-filming-permission. Or, Communications and Marketing can provide a printed application by fax or mail.

Approval of an application will be based on several factors, including any potential impact on the university’s reputation as determined by Communications and Marketing.

A copy of a completed Application for Permission to Film on Campus will be submitted by Communications and Marketing to UL Lafayette’s Facilities Management division. Facilities Management will determine the availability of university-owned and university-leased locations and establish what access to property and services UL Lafayette can provide. Facilities Management will rely on UL Lafayette’s Athletics Department to ascertain the availability of university athletics facilities.

Before filming can begin, the university and filmmaker must execute a Lease of University Facilities provided by Facilities Management. Facilities Management will negotiate the terms of that lease.

The filmmaker is required to reimburse UL Lafayette for the hourly rate of a university employee, plus 36.16 percent to cover employee benefits provided by the university, who must be present when filming is done outside of the university’s official normal hours of operation (Monday through Thursday, 7:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. and Friday, 7:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m.).  If UL Lafayette contracts with an individual who is not a university employee to accompany the production crew, the production company must reimburse the university $15 per hour, with a four-hour minimum.

Representatives of UL Lafayette’s Facilities Management or Communications and Marketing must inspect filming locations after filming is complete. Any damage to university property caused by filming shall be paid for by the filmmaker upon presentation of a detailed invoice from the university.

Guidelines for Filming on Campus

General

  • No aspect of filming can interfere with the normal operations of the University.

Branding & Licensing

  • No filming will be allowed that advertises or promotes products, services or programs that are inconsistent with UL Lafayette’s values and traditions, as determined by Communications and Marketing.
  • No filming will be allowed that contains visual images, dialog or voice-overs that are inconsistent with UL Lafayette’s values and traditions, as determined by Communications and Marketing.
  • No film will use the university’s name, nicknames, logos or symbols, likeness, or any university building names, without prior written consent from Communications and Marketing.
  • A filmmaker must seek and receive prior permission to use UL Lafayette apparel, flags, pennants, etc., for costumes and set dressing.

Campus

  • No university-owned or university-leased property can be relocated, altered or otherwise disturbed to accommodate filming without prior written approval specific to such modification from Communications and Marketing.
  • Research laboratories are off limits for filming. Any exception must be approved in advance by the director of Communications and Marketing and the university’s vice president for Research.
  • Any filming can be suspended – without notice – in the event of an emergency, such as a fire or bomb threat, at or near the filming site. The university’s Environmental Health and Safety Department or University Police Department would make such a determination.

Endorsements

  • The University does not endorse candidates for political office and will not allow any filming on campus that is related to any political campaign.
  • The University will not approve filming for any purpose that conveys or implies any endorsement by the university, its faculty, staff or students, as determined by Communications and Marketing.

Athletics

  • Any filming or references related to UL Lafayette’s sports teams or student-athletes must comply with all NCAA regulations and must be approved by the university’s director of Communications and Marketing, Athletics  director and its NCAA compliance officer.
  • A filmmaker is responsible for any costs incurred – prior to filming – to cover any images, wording, names, logos or references to the university, UL Lafayette’s sports teams or former student-athletes that appear on any UL Lafayette athletics facilities.

Faculty & Staff

  • Any UL Lafayette faculty member or staff member conducting commercial filming on campus is responsible for complying with applicable university intellectual property rules and guidelines, as well as this Policy for Commercial Filming on Campus.

Location Fees

A location fee must be paid by a filmmaker to conduct filming for commercial purposes on UL Lafayette’s campus. Additional fees for specific university facilities or services may apply.  The university has the right to waive fees for nonprofit organizations that it permits to film public service announcements on campus.

Fees will be assessed from the time production equipment arrives on campus, not from the time that actual filming begins.

Purpose Location Hours Regional/National Louisiana
Shooting Indoors 6 hours or less $1,250 $625
Shooting Indoors 6-12 hours $1,500 $750
Shooting Outdoors 6 hours or less $1,000 $500
Shooting Outdoors 6-12 hours $1,250 $625
Set/Strike   6 hours or less $250 $125
Set/Strike   6-12 hours $500 $250

Adopted by University Council Oct. 22, 2012.

Revision Review and Approval: This policy will be periodically reviewed and updated as appropriate.