Drone video production in Palm Beach CountyAerial Footage With a Reason to Be There
Epic Wolf is a West Palm Beach agency that plans, directs and produces drone video across Palm Beach County for properties, waterfronts, construction sites and brand films. Commercial drone flights legally require an FAA-certified remote pilot, so a certified pilot engaged through our vetted partners flies every job. We plan the shots, confirm airspace authorization and permits and edit the footage into the finished film.
Drone video
Aerial footage became cheap, and it shows. The same rising shot over the same roofline opens half the videos in South Florida. A drone earns its place when it shows something the ground cannot: how a property sits on the Intracoastal, how close a site is to the highway, the scale of a marina or a finished community.
It is also the most regulated part of a shoot. Flying for a business falls under the FAA's Part 107 rule. The pilot must hold a Remote Pilot Certificate, the aircraft must be registered and broadcast Remote ID and flights in controlled airspace near airports need authorization first. Parts of Palm Beach County sit inside controlled airspace, so the check comes before the quote.
Epic Wolf does not own drones or employ pilots. We plan what the aerial shots are for, engage a certified pilot suited to the job and direct the flight alongside the ground crew. The footage is edited into the film it was planned for, not handed over as a folder of clips.
What it includes
Aerial shot plan
Each flight path chosen for what it shows, drawn on a map before the pilot is booked.
Certified pilot
An FAA-certified remote pilot engaged through vetted partners for every flight, with the certificate on file.
Airspace check
The location reviewed against FAA airspace maps and authorization requested where it is required.
Permits and property consent
County film permit paperwork when public property is involved and written permission from the owner.
Directed flight day
Flights scheduled for light, wind and tide and directed with the ground crew so the footage matches.
Edit and delivery
Aerials graded and cut into the film or delivered as finished clips in each format you need.
Send us the address you want filmed from the air.
We will check the airspace and tell you what can be flown there and what approvals it takes.
What to know
The rules behind drone video
- A certificate is required
The FAA says that in order to fly a drone under its Small UAS Rule, Part 107, a pilot must obtain a Remote Pilot Certificate from the FAA. Certificate holders must complete online recurrent training every 24 calendar months to keep their aeronautical knowledge current.
- Remote ID
The FAA says drones that are required to be registered, including those flown for business, must comply with its Remote ID rule. Remote ID is the ability of a drone in flight to provide identification and location information that other parties can receive through a broadcast signal.
- Controlled airspace
The FAA says drone pilots planning to fly under 400 feet in controlled airspace around airports must receive an airspace authorization before they fly. Its LAANC system lets Part 107 pilots submit a near real-time authorization request through approved service suppliers.
Source: FAA: UAS Data Exchange (LAANC)
- What the county film office asks for
The Palm Beach County Film and Television Commission folds Part 107 into its permit process. For commercial drone filming it requires the drone's registration certificate, a copy of the remote pilot's certificate and a copy of any LAANC approval, and it limits flights to daylight or twilight.
Source: Palm Beach County Film and Television Commission: Filming With a Drone
- The Town of Palm Beach
The Town of Palm Beach says no additional Town permits are required to use a drone beyond what the FAA requires. Drones operated within the town must be operated and registered in accordance with FAA and State of Florida rules, which the Town attributes to Section 14-35 of its code.
- Privacy under Florida law
Florida Statute 934.50 says a person may not use a drone with an imaging device to record privately owned real property, or its owner or occupants, with intent to conduct surveillance in violation of a reasonable expectation of privacy without written consent. The statute presumes that expectation when a person is not observable from ground level.
Source: Florida Statutes 934.50
How the work runs
Check the sky first
Before anything is promised, the address is checked against the FAA's airspace maps and local rules. If a flight needs authorization or a permit, we request it. If it cannot be flown legally, we say so.
Fly with a purpose
The pilot arrives with a shot list. We direct a handful of deliberate moves at the right hour and keep the aircraft over the subject property, away from neighbors and crowds.
Put it to work
Aerial footage is color matched to the ground cameras and placed where it explains something. You receive the finished film and its versions, with the flight records kept on file.
Questions
Drone video questions answered
Yes. The FAA requires anyone flying a drone under Part 107, the rule that covers work and business flights, to hold a Remote Pilot Certificate. A hobbyist flying a company's video without that certificate puts the company at risk. Epic Wolf holds no pilot certificate of its own. A certified remote pilot flies every job we produce, and we keep a copy of the certificate with the project.
It depends on where the drone takes off and what is underneath. FAA rules apply everywhere, and controlled airspace needs FAA authorization. Filming from public property generally goes through the county's Film and Television Commission, which asks for the pilot's certificate and the drone's registration. The Town of Palm Beach says it requires nothing beyond the FAA's rules. Private property needs the owner's permission.
The contract says who owns it, and ours covers aerial footage in the same terms as the film it belongs to. Because the pilot is an independent professional, the agreement with the pilot has to pass the necessary rights along in writing. We arrange that before the flight, so the footage you receive is clear to use in the ways the proposal describes.
Shorter than most people expect. Aerial shots are strongest as a few seconds inside a film, where each one answers a question about location or scale. A piece made only of drone footage rarely holds attention for long. We plan three or four distinct moves and use them where they explain something.
Yes, one flight can serve all three when it is planned for them. A widescreen aerial rarely crops well to a tall screen, so the framing has to leave room for both. We ask the pilot to repeat key moves for vertical versions. People who are recognizable from the air should have agreed to be filmed, the same as on the ground.
Keep reading
Go deeper before you decide
- 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.
- 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.
- 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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