The University of Wisconsin–Madison is a beautiful, historic campus located in scenic Madison, Wisconsin. The campus is home to some 40,000 students and 20,000 faculty and staff. Our physical environment and dense population result in many requests from non-university organizations to use campus for commercial purposes, such as photography, filmmaking, product promotion, fund-raising, marketing, and public relations.
Because UW–Madison is a state agency, specific rules govern the use of the physical environment and facilities. The majority of commercial use requests should start at the office of the vice chancellor for finance and administration, and the university’s established facilities use policies and guidelines, or via Campus Event Services, the university’s office charged with scheduling and reserving non-academic space.
However, if you are a film, television or photography production company, the Office of Strategic Communication can assist you with the commercial use of campus for the following types of productions:
- Feature length films
- Independent films
- Documentaries (special rules apply when filming events on campus, so documentary filming may not be allowable in certain circumstances.)
- Television or web series
- Commercials (still photography or film/digital production)
UW–Madison’s film/television/production use policy outlines the basic rules for production on campus. Please note that due to the high volume of requests they receive, certain campus locations such as the Arboretum or Allen Centennial Gardens have their own film and photography policies and requirements.