AFCI’s Locations Show brings the global stage to L.A.

Film commissioners from Indonesia to Uruguay to New Orleans will converge on the Los Angeles Convention Center today for the annual Locations show.

More than 200 exhibitors from 40 countries will attend the two-day event, which is expected to draw 2,500 film industry executives, producers and location scouts eager to find the latest information about where to shoot their projects and what kind of incentives they can fetch.

Hosted by the Assn. of Film Commissioners International (AFCI), this year’s event marks the trade group’s inaugural offering of speakers and panels on production trends, tax credits, film financing and other topics.

“It’s the first time we’ve had a dialogue with ourselves about things we wanted to talk about,” said AFCI Executive Director Martin Cuff. “This allows us to have a different conversation about what film commissions are and to attract people who might not otherwise come to the show.”

It’s also the first time AFCI has held the event downtown. Last year, the Locations Show commissioners gathered at the Burbank lot of Walt Disney Studios in conjunction with the Producers Guild of America. The show was previously held in Santa Monica.

One reason for the change in venue was because organizers wanted to hold the show concurrently with the opening weekend of the Los Angeles Film Festival, which is being held at nearby L.A. Live and runs through June 24; LAFF is produced by the nonprofit arts organization Film Independent and sponsored by The Times.

The Locations Show is free and open to the public.

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