In September 2008 the London Local Authorities (LLA) and Transport for London (TfL) Act became a fully-fledged law, addressing what had previously been a grey area for filming in the capital. The new law has made it easier to close public roads for the purpose of filming, alleviating considerably the complexity of location shooting and allowing film-makers to achieve much greater levels of authenticity under a controlled environment.

Thrilling car chases and spectacular crashes on location are a just a couple of the possibilities made a reality by the new legislation, which pioneered the practice and has forged a path for other authorities to follow suit. Kent recently announced it had passed a law to enable the temporary closure of public roads to shoot. The legislation, approved unanimously, is a bid to maximise the local revenue of an industry which has reportedly generated £14million in the four years the Kent Film Office has been running and which has seen films such as the Natalie Portman-starrer The Other Boleyn Girl, Vanity Fair and The Golden Compass shooting in the area.

"This is really exciting for Kent. We can now offer film-makers a real flexibility to meet their needs and that's going to make us an even more attractive prospect. I think our county is set for stardom that will benefit everyone", said Tanya Oliver, Director of Strategic Development and Public Access at Kent City Council.

Paving the Way

Kent is part of the Filming Partnership: London and the South East, a joint initiative between Film London and Screen South to offer streamlined and centralised support to productions in both regions. The expansion of the road closure legislation beyond the capital's borders comes as great news for the Partnership and the industry as a whole, and it hints at a growing engagement with film and the spread of a film-friendly attitude amongst authorities and communities.

Over the past two years, the law for road closures in London has substantially eased the process of filming and it has, as a direct effect, grown the ability of local authorities to attract productions to their area.

The London Borough of Southwark, for instance, uses a standard road closure notice for around 12 productions every year. One of the most illustrious film-makers to require use of the legislation was Clint Eastwood, who shot scenes for his latest film, Hereafter, in the streets of Southwark last year - including a spectacular car crash.

Around the same time, Nigel Cole's Made in Dagenham, the anticipated dramatization of the 1968 strike at the Ford car plant, which is due for theatrical release in October, was underway in Havering. The film made use of the borough's South Street for some of the scenes. "Using the legislation meant it was much faster and cheaper for us to be legally able to close it. [The legislation] aides film-makers and boroughs alike and will help keep filming in London" said a spokesperson for the county council.

Other roads recently used for filming include Bloomsbury Square in Camden, which was temporarily restricted for traffic to allow Christopher Nolan to shoot part of sci-fi megahit Inception, and Shaftesbury Avenue, closed for scenes in the upcoming cop thriller Blitz, starring Jason Statham.

To learn more about road closures and how legislation affects filming, refer to the London Code of Practice or visit the Planning Your Shoot in London and the South East section of Film London's site. You can also find out more about how the new law affects film-making in the South East on the Kent Film Office website.