Behind the camera
at Film Albany
ALBANY — To the audience, it’s the background for the scene to play out against; to the characters, it’s their entire world; to the thousands of cast, crew, residents, and behind-the-scenes figures involved, filming on location is sheer innovation. Creativity, coordination, and endless work come together in an attempt to make what should be impossible, possible.
“We’re all behind the scenes, making sure that they [the film productions] are the ones who are shining,” said Albany County Film Commissioner Deborah Goedeke.
As another limb on the tree of Discover Albany, Film Albany works to market and attract film productions to Albany County and the Capital Region. Once the productions are on site, their role is to connect them with any resources they need and ensure that the filming goes smoothly.
Film Albany is not a funded film commission, unlike others in the state. While working alongside the teams in Discover Albany, the staff at Film Albany itself is small; Goedeke is a team of one and just celebrated her career’s 20-year anniversary in July.
Goedeke admitted that she “fell into her career by accident” and was told her work would mostly involve commercials. However, she saw the potential of what could be done in the Capital Region. “I put my efforts into it every single day,” she said, and the results have been collaborative and expansive.
In 2008, Goedeke faced her first ambitious film production. The production team behind the Japanese film “Last Operations Under the Orion” (2009) was hoping to film aboard the USS Slater, a ship that had last appeared on film in 1961.
Despite the challenges of coordinating resources for a production of this size, Goedeke was confident: “I knew that we could get it done.” The production shot aboard the ship for almost a month, utilizing a regional workforce and actors.
“It was our first big film that we’d had here in Albany when I was here,” said Goedeke. “That was my first introduction to film. I’ll never forget it; they were so wonderful to work with. That’s always been special in my heart.”
Over the years, the Capital Region has been used as a filming location, from the 1987 film “Ironweed,” based on the novel by Albany local William Kennedy, to Martin Scorsese’s 1993 film, “The Age of Innocence,” filmed in Troy.
Siena College’s website highlights the numerous films and television shows produced in the Capital Region, including “Salt,” “The Place Beyond the Pines,” “Scent of a Woman,” “Seabiscuit,” “The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel,” “Succession,” “White House Plumbers,” and “The Punisher.”
Whether it’s the background doubling as Central Park or Washington, D.C., Washington Park Conservancy President Jeff Crumpton emphasized the region’s variety in these films and shows as “an amazing backdrop.”
“The fact that the city of Albany and other cities around us in many ways can step in for sets from the Victorian era— that’s what really makes it a special place and why we love working with someone like Debby and Film Albany,” said Crumpton.
Washington Park has served as a background in numerous productions, from serving as a stand-in for Central Park in Amazon’s “Modern Love” to transporting viewers back to the Victorian era in HBO’s “The Gilded Age.” For many of the residents, the manicured green spaces are their front and backyard.
From changing traffic flow to noise, Film Albany has to consider every effect that a film production has on daily life for the community, and collaboration is an essential component. “The people that live there or are part of the association have a different set of eyes and are looking at it differently. You bring all of that collaboration together, and what one doesn’t think of, the other one does,” said Goedeke.
As part of this collaboration, Film Albany coordinates with local organizations and departments that would be affected by filming, such as the Washington Park Conservancy, neighborhood associations, businesses, the Mayor’s Office, local fire departments, and more.
“I think it’s important that the community is involved in everything that we do as far as film production goes, so that they’re in the know and can plan accordingly,” she added.
Before filming even begins, efforts are made to lay groundwork for the community. “Our community is here long after they’re gone,” said Goedeke. “We want to come to a common understanding and framework that we all work together during this time period.”
“Collaboration for anything that we do is vitally important,” said Crumpton. “That also helps the film companies when they come in to understand expectations and us set expectations with the residents.”
At Washington Park, from the set pieces to how the community is viewed and how a filmmaker may use the park to their best advantage further “cements why we do what we do,” he continued. “It’s a special place for folks who live here, but it’s also a great representation of classic New York and classic Albany.”
“The work that we do by way of preservation and advocating for proper uses of the park just fits really well with how the director of a film company would want to use the space, too,” he added. “The fact that they’re here means that they really appreciate the historical view of what an area would look like.”
He noted that their preservation work is never intended to attract film productions, but it has been an unexpected result. “I think it is a very interesting byproduct of the work that we do that these directors, these organizations, look for these unique places that represent something in time,” he said.
“The different productions that have come through were also incredibly generous to the organizations, the conservancy, and the neighborhood associations, too,” said Crumpton.
This generosity allows the Washington Park Conservancy to amplify their investment back into preservation. “When someone else is out scouting, they really benefit from the type of investments that can be made,” he said. “This continues to be something that, as people look to the future, they continue coming back to as an opportunity for future productions.”
The future of film productions remains a challenge as filmmakers face the COVID-19 pandemic, the SAG-AFTRA and WGA strike, and changing film tax credits and incentives. Goedeke expects it will take another year or two before the region’s local film scene fully recovers from these impacts.
Despite setbacks, Goedeke remains optimistic about the local film scene’s future. She has seen firsthand film crews’ initiatives with the local workforce, and even brought a film class from a local school to the set of “The Gilded Age.” “These high school kids were over the moon,” she recounted. “They were completely engaged with everyone on ‘The Gilded Age.’”
“Everybody is very engaged in what we do,” she added. “That excites me that we can make an economic impact, create jobs, and provide a tourism boost every single time we work with a film production. That excites me every single day.”
The post Albany’s thriving film scene bolsters economic growth and community collaboration, despite industry challenges first appeared on Spotlight News .
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