Virginia's Explore Park - A "Natural Back Lot" 

Virginia's Explore Park is a "natural back lot" for video, film, and print media productions and welcomes the opportunity to work with artists and producers.  The Park, nestled in the Blue Ridge Mountains, offers 1,100 acres of land providing a natural environment for scenes requiring forests, rivers, creeks, mountains, and pastures. It has over ten miles of trails and roadways for easy access through the forest and along the Roanoke River at the head-waters of Virginia's largest lake, Smith Mountain Lake.

What makes the Park even more unique is its living history area with an authentic 17th century Native American Village with wigwams and palisade; an authentic 18th century frontier fort homestead with a palisade and log cabins; and a 19th century Blue Ridge Community with historic structures including a two-story log farmhouse, German bank-barn, livestock barn, blacksmith shop, grist mill, church, and a tavern. 

Modern facilities are also available. A 20th century barn and farm, a three story cape cod welcome center and a post and beam visitor center with a state of the art theater make the Park a perfect place for almost any type of production. 

Explore Park has been involved in more than sixteen productions since 2000, working with film makers with distribution by Lionsgate Films, Stormcatcher Productions, the Sci-Fi Channel, the History Channel, A & E, PBS, and Outdoor Living Network.  In 2010 the park was the major site for Mission City Productions' filming of "Alone Yet Not Alone", a feature-length film.

Alone Yet Not Alone is tentatively scheduled for release in spring 2012. 

Explore Park is in Roanoke, Virginia at Milepost 115 off the Blue Ridge Parkway, a 469 mile long National Park which provides additional opportunities for scene locations. The Roanoke Region has a commercial airport with 50+ arrivals and departures daily and access to three major interstates: I-81, I-581, I-64. 300,000+ people make Roanoke the fourth largest metro in Virginia making lodging, equipment rentals, caterers, and extras readily available. 

The Virginia Recreational Facilities Authority, a political subdivision of the Commonwealth of Virginia and owner of Explore Park, welcomes the opportunity to work with those producing films and print media and wants to be a "PARTNER IN YOUR SUCCESS".  The VRFA also has a close working relationship with the Virginia Film Office and the SW Virginia Film liaison Bootie Bell Chewing.

Check us out for your next project. www.explorepark.org or contact Debbie Pitts, Executive Director, at debpitts@b2xonline.com or 540.890.2195. You may also contact Bootie Bell Chewning, SW Virginia Film Liaison at 540.342.4171 or boo_tee@msn.com for information.