Set Scouter, a Toronto-based marketplace akin to an Airbnb for the production industry, is expanding to New York.

The platform connects producers and brands with residential location owners, and aims to make searching for the right film, TV and commercial location easier. “What we’re trying to do is make the process of finding locations faster,” Alex Kolodkin, CEO and founder of Set Scouter told Playback Daily. 

Launched in 2013, the platform was previously available in Toronto, Miami, Austin and Chicago and has now expanded to include residential spaces in Manhattan, Brooklyn and Queens.

Set Scouter has been used for commercials for brands like Visa, Coca Cola and McDonalds, said Kolodkin, and has also been used for promotional content for TV as well, but Kolodkin added the platform is ideal for smaller film and TV productions as well.

“Our niche is mid-tier producers who aren’t producing feature length films. We’re working with productions that don’t have the resources of [scouts or location managers],” said Kolodkin. He added the platform is, of course, also open to scouts as a tool to help them find locations faster.

Set Scouter doesn’t reveal how many locations it offers in each jurisdiction it serves, but those it does offer are upwards of 60% cheaper than what’s found in traditional location catalogues, said Kolodkin. The platform gets paid a percentage of the total rental cost, though it doesn’t dictate pricing or minimum hours.

“If you have a budget of $5,000 per day or if you have a budget of $500 per day, there are homeowners [on the platform] that can accommodate you.”