Location Scouts Guild of Germany

On the 3rd of September 2010 the Location Scouts Guild of Germany (BVL) was founded in Berlin. The BVL is a professional organisation of location scouts who provide their services to feature films, television productions as well as photographic and commercial productions.

The guild serves as an information platform for location scouts, media productions and property managers.

The BVL acts as an interest representation body for location scouts as opposed to other professional organisations in the media industry and in politics. It is the aim of the BVL to enhance recognition and respect for the location scout profession in both the media industry and public sphere.

The guild is currently campaigning for location scouting to be officially recognised as a creative profession, with the objective that location scouts will no longer be required to pay business tax and IHK (Chamber of Industry and Commerce) dues. A ‘creative’ classification would also qualify location scouts to apply for Künstlersozialkasse (artists’ social insurance) membership.

The BVL represents the interests of its members by working in cooperation with federal film subsidy boards and film commissions, thereby generating synergies that allow productions to find locations in the respective funding region more effectively. .