Film Permit

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Discover Fremont's filming opportunities! Located within Silicon Valley in the San Francisco Bay Area, Fremont offers a variety of locations:

Historical districts
High-tech industries
Picturesque lake
Numerous parks

Please note that certain areas within City limits are managed by other jurisdictions, such as the State of California, Alameda County, Fremont Unified School District, and East Bay Regional Parks Districts. You would need to contact those jurisdictions directly to obtain permission or pay them any applicable fees. At least 10 business days prior to the filming activity, you need inform the City of Fremont Police Department regarding such filming activities by calling 510-790-6947 or by email.

Submit Your Film Permit Application

Permit Requirements

It is unlawful to conduct commercial still photography or commercial film activity within the City of Fremont without obtaining a film permit (exceptions to the City's Ordinance shown below). Please see Chapter 5.50 of the Fremont Municipal Code for additional details.

Film permit application must be submitted at least 90 calendar days in advance of the first day of filming for major productions and 30 calendar days for small productions.

A complete Film Permit Application packet includes the following:

Film Permit Application Online Submission;
Complete and signed Indemnity and Hold Harmless Form;
Complete Insurance Certificate ($1,000,000 General Liability insurance naming the "City of Fremont, 3300 Capitol Ave., Fremont, CA 94538" as additional insured);
Additional Insured Endorsement. Note that the "Additional Insured Endorsement" page is separate and in addition to the "Complete Insurance Certificate." The page must name the City of Fremont, 3300 Capitol Ave., Fremont, CA 94538 as additional insured. Sample Additional Insured Endorsement;
Applicant must obtain and provide a copy of the owner's written permission and/or lease for filming private property not owned by the City of Fremont; and
If filming takes place at a private residence or a business, a notification must be sent to the immediate/adjacent neighbors regarding the filming activity, except when the residence or business has no immediate neighbors within the same block. The date and copy of the notification must be provided as part of the application. The notification should include:

Location of filming
Date/Time of filming activity
Individual/Company organizing the filming activity
Types of setup - if noise will be noticeable or other equipment are being used
Possible impact to parking or traffic in near vicinity
Contact information on date of filming activity

If filming requires road closures in a residential area, approval from all residents within the anticipated closure area must be obtained prior to issuance of a filming permit. Road closures in a commercial or industrial area will be evaluated by the City. Upon approval, notification must be sent two weeks in advance of the filming activity to all nearby residents and businesses within 0.5 mile radius of the road closure.

Fees

No Application Fee.
Filming on City sidewalk - free unless city services required.
Filming in City Parks - commercial still photography $200/day, video $400/day. The video permit fee is inclusive of still photography.
Additional fees and charges may be required for filming on City property, such as on City Plazas, rental or facilities fees for reserving specific areas within Park property, use of City equipment, Patterson House at Ardenwood Historic farm and for City Staff. Fees TBD.

Submit Film Permit

To submit an Film Permit Application, please either complete the online application and attach all relevant documents during the submission process.

Film Permit Exemptions

If your film activity includes one of the following, a permit is not required:

Film activities conducted for the purpose of reporting on persons, events or scenes which are in the news for newspapers, television news and other news media;
Film activities conducted at a Fremont film studio, where film activities are the sole purpose of the establishment;
Filming activities for use in a criminal investigation or civil or criminal court proceeding;
Non-commercial filming activities conducted on private property solely for private or family use;
Commercial still photography, or staging thereof, when conducted to the exclusion of other filming activity when the photography will not take place on City property and will not require the parking of more than two motor vehicles on any public street within the City of Fremont;
Film activities conducted by or for the City of Fremont.

Wedding, Graduation, & Personal Photography

We frequently receive inquiries regarding permit requirements for wedding, graduation, and personal photography, especially for shooting inside a City park. Here are some general guidelines:

For commercial photography on public property a film permit is required. Commercial means a professional photographer/crew is hired or the photographs and/or videos are used for business purposes. The film permit itself is free, however, there is a fee requirement per day if the filming location is inside one of the City Parks or Plazas (e.g. Niles Plaza, Ardenwood Historic Area, Lake Elizabeth and Central Park). The commercial still photography fee is $200/day or video at $400/day. The $400 video permit fee is inclusive of still photography. This fee is in addition to any parks facilities rental or service fees in the event you want to reserve a specific area within the park.
For personal wedding or graduation photography (e.g. the photographer does not receive any compensation) there is no film permit requirement. Certain services fees or facilities rental fees still apply if you would like to reserve or close off a specific public area for your exclusive usage.
Certain park areas in Fremont, such as Lake Islewood, Decoto Marshlands, Mission Peak, etc. are actually the jurisdiction of East Bay Regional Parks and not managed by the City of Fremont. If you choose one of these locations, you do not need to obtain permit from the City of Fremont and no park fee will be required. However, you would need to contact East Bay Regional Parks for permission and to confirm the parks' open hours.

Film Permit Terms and Conditions

The Fremont Police Department may condition the issuance of a film permit by imposing reasonable requirements concerning the time, place, manner and duration of filming activities as referenced on the terms and conditions attached to the Film Permit, including but not limited to, the following:

Requirements for the presence of employees of the City at the applicant's expense, when required for the particular filming activity
Requirements concerning posting of no parking signs, placement of traffic control devices, and employment of traffic and crowd control monitors at the applicant's expense
Requirements concerning posting of the outer boundaries of the filming activity, and providing advance notice to affected property owners/businesses which shall include the name and telephone number of the representative of the applicant who can then respond to complaints and inquiries
Requirements concerning the cleanup and restoration of public streets and City property employed in the filming activity including the posting of cash bonds when necessary
Restrictions concerning the use of City employee services, vehicles, and other equipment in the filming activity
Requirements that the applicant pay all fees, and obtain all permits and licenses required for the filming activity under local, state, and federal law
Restrictions on the use of firearms, explosions, and other noise-creating or hazardous devices which disturbs the peace
Restrictions on the use of stunts involving pyrotechnics, open flame, vehicle crashes or other hazardous materials
Requirements concerning cover-up of police, fire, and other official uniforms worn by actors, when the actors are not on camera
Restrictions concerning the use of City logos, insignias, badges, or decals for filming purposes
Restrictions on the daily hours the filming activity may be conducted within the City
Requirements concerning the City's receipt of proper acknowledgement for any assistance provided in making feature, television, or commercial productions
Requirements concerning affirmative action and non-discriminatory practices for employment

More Information

For more information or to email additional documents after the initial submission process, contact Aly Wilson at the Fremont Police Department at 510-790-6947.

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