Video production company in Palm Beach, FLFilm the Island Without Disturbing It
Epic Wolf is a West Palm Beach agency that plans, directs and produces video for Town of Palm Beach businesses and nonprofits: brand films, hospitality and property films, event coverage and short social pieces. Crews and equipment come through vetted production partners. The schedule is built around the Town's filming ordinance, which sends every permit application to a public hearing before the Town Council and limits when, where and how often cameras can work.
Video Production in Palm Beach
Palm Beach re-enacted its filming rules in December 2024, and the article reads like a town protecting its quiet. An application has to reach the Town at least 20 business days before the Council meeting that will hear it. A permitted crew cannot work between 8 and 10 in the morning or between 3 and 5 in the afternoon, cannot set up on any street paved for vehicles and cannot block a sidewalk.
The scarcest thing is the calendar. The ordinance allows filming on no more than seven days in any one month across the whole town, and applications are considered in the order they were filed. If another production already holds those days, the next one waits. The county's film commission, which permits public property for more than 50 municipalities and agencies, says it does not issue permits for the Town, so the request goes to the Town itself.
The strongest island films are therefore written to need very little of the public realm. Interiors, courtyards, terraces and private commercial grounds carry the story with the owner's consent, and a permitted exterior appears only where it earns its place. The audience justifies the care. The Town estimates 15,000 seasonal residents join its full-time population from November to May, and a film finished in early fall is ready when they start making plans.
On the ground
What to know about video production in Palm Beach
- The clock
A completed filming permit application must be submitted no less than 20 business days before the Town Council meeting at which it will be considered. If the plan changes after approval, the applicant must file a new application showing the change and win approval at the next Council meeting before going ahead.
Source: Town Code Sec. 22-153
- Hours and streets
No permitted activity may take place between 8 and 10 a.m. or between 3 and 5 p.m., none may take place on a street paved for vehicular use and normal foot, bicycle and car traffic may not be impeded. Filming operations are capped at seven days in any one month, and once one applicant holds them no other permit is granted for that month.
Source: Town Code Sec. 22-154
- Drones and the Town
The Town's FAQ says no additional Town permit is required for a drone beyond what the FAA requires, and that drones must be operated and registered under FAA and State of Florida rules. The filming ordinance separately counts aerial devices as cameras, so a commercial shoot that uses Town property needs its filming permit however the camera is carried.
- The pilot
The FAA says that to fly a drone under its Small UAS Rule, Part 107, the pilot must obtain a Remote Pilot Certificate from the FAA, and that certificate holders complete recurrent training every 24 calendar months. Commercial flights legally require an FAA-certified remote pilot, and a certified pilot flies every job we produce.
- Privacy from the air
Florida law says a person may not use a drone with an imaging device to record privately owned real property, or its owner or occupants, with the intent to conduct surveillance in violation of a reasonable expectation of privacy, without written consent. On an island of hedged estates, aerial shots are framed on the client's own property.
Source: Florida Statutes Sec. 934.50
- Who is watching
The Town's annual financial report says it serves 9,191 full-time residents plus an estimated 15,000 additional seasonal residents from November to May. A film meant for that audience should be finished and published before they arrive, not shot while they are in town.
Source: Town of Palm Beach Annual Comprehensive Financial Report
How we run it in Palm Beach
Write for private ground
The script and the storyboard come first, and they are written to the locations the client controls or can borrow with a signature. Every scene that would touch a sidewalk, a park or the beach is marked, then kept, moved or cut on its merits.
File or stay inside
If a public exterior stays in, we prepare the Town's application, the insurance and the hold harmless agreement, and count back from the Council meeting. The person leading the shoot carries the permit on the day, as the ordinance requires. If nothing public remains, the schedule is the client's own.
Small crew and short days
Production partners bring the smallest crew that can do the work properly, arrive outside the restricted hours and leave no trace. The edit then yields the main film and the shorter cuts for the website, email and social from the same footage.
What it includes
Brand films
A short film that says who you are and why it matters, written to anchor the website and the pitch.
Commercials
Spots for broadcast, streaming and paid online placements, produced in the lengths each outlet requires.
Social video
Vertical and square cuts with captions, planned in the script so they are more than trimmed leftovers.
Testimonial and case study video
Client interviews filmed with signed releases and edited to honest claims a viewer can trust.
Event video
Coverage of openings, galas and conferences with a recap cut ready while the event is still news.
Real estate and property films
Walkthroughs and neighborhood films for residences, developments, hotels and commercial space.
Drone video
Aerial footage of sites, waterfronts and properties, flown by an FAA-certified remote pilot.
Editing and finishing
Edit, color, sound, music licensing, captions and exports sized for each platform.
Tell us the story and where it happens.
A partner will reply with which scenes can be filmed on private property, which would need the Town Council and what that does to the schedule.
Questions
Video Production in Palm Beach questions answered
Plan on more than a month. The Town requires a completed application at least 20 business days before the Town Council meeting that will consider it, and every application is set for a public hearing. The Council can approve, approve with conditions or deny. Because filming is capped at seven days in any one month for the whole town, an early filing also protects the dates.
No. The Palm Beach County Film and Television Commission, which handles free permits for public property in more than 50 municipalities and agencies, states that its office does not issue permits for the Town of Palm Beach and tells productions to contact the Town directly. A shoot that crosses the bridge during one day may therefore need two separate approvals, one from each side.
Yes, within federal, state and Town rules. The Town's FAQ says it requires no drone permit beyond what the FAA requires, and Florida law restricts recording private property and the people on it without written consent. If the production uses Town property, the filming permit applies as well. A certified remote pilot flies every job and checks the airspace before any flight is promised.
The Town's FAQ lists general liability of at least $1,000,000 per occurrence and $2,000,000 aggregate for a minor commercial filming permit, and at least $10,000,000 per occurrence for a large-scale one, with the Town endorsed as additional insured. Higher aviation or marine coverage applies when aircraft or watercraft are involved. The certificate is not due until the Town Council has approved the application.
Yes, inside the venue and with the host's consent. Event video on the island is planned around the guests: who has agreed to appear, which moments are off limits and where the film will be shown afterward. For charitable events, the Town's permit FAQ calls for trained crowd control managers who have no other duties, so the crew plans its positions with the organizer well before the doors open.
Keep reading
More for Palm Beach businesses
- Filming and Photo Permits in Palm Beach CountyWhen a commercial photo or video shoot needs a permit in Palm Beach County, who issues it, how the Town of Palm Beach differs and how far ahead to apply.
- Drone Rules for Commercial Shoots in Palm Beach CountyThe rules for commercial drone photo and video in Palm Beach County: FAA Part 107, airspace authorization, Florida privacy law, parks and local permits.
- Planning a Brand Photo or Video Shoot in Palm Beach CountyHow to plan a brand photo or video shoot in Palm Beach County: the shot list, locations and permits, releases, image rights, weather and a checklist.
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