As people begin to assess what they lost in the Los Angeles wildfires, producer Amanda Rohlke and production designer and art director Amelia Steely encourage industry colleagues to work with Owners share images to aid insurance claims and provide sentimental value.

The idea came to Roelke and Steely on Monday while texting with a friend whose family lost their home in the Palisades. Rolke suddenly remembered that she had filmed a movie in this house in 2013, and the crew took many photos. She contacted the art department on set to try to find the photos, and when Rolke updated her friend, Steely realized she had photos from a different location, too.

“It suddenly occurred to me, wow, there are so many resources out there that homeowners may not know about,” Steely said. "Homeowners are often absent and unaware that hundreds of photos have been taken of their homes." She estimates she has documented 50 homes in Los Angeles, five to 10 of which are in fire-affected areas.

Stilley said the photos go beyond wide shots and exterior shots. They are also "reset" photos, detailing exactly how the item will look so staff can return the item after it has been moved or if it is damaged.

After that initial conversation, Rock and Steely decided to spread the word among their industry circles. Rohlke posted on Instagram: "Things that might work for film crews and especially the art department: Have you shot at a business or home in Palisades or Altadena? Do you have photos from the scout and shoot? Compiled for Homeowners them. This can help them with insurance claims/inventory and provide sentimental clean images that they might never take themselves.”

Rohlke, whose producer credits include Apple Docs Now we have a deaf president!The film will be screened at this year’s Sundance Film Festival, and the post also included a message to homeowners: “If you have lost your home and have hosted the film at some point, please reach out to your contact on the team. They may still have photos.”

Word spread quickly through the Hollywood production community. Among those who responded to or retweeted Rohlke's call to action on Instagram were writer-director Ally Pankiw and filmmakers Kelly May and Marissa Nodar , who have worked on location crews for: Oppenheimer and No.

“I recently did a scouting trip to Altadena last year, so it was very sad because I met a lot of these people,” Nordahl said. "But I didn't think of the connection, that we could use these photos for potential insurance claims or just for sentimental value."

When Nordahl saw the article, she realized how helpful it would be. “With our records, we have a complete picture of the condition of the home,” she said.

Nordahl said she has since been reaching out to colleagues to figure out the best way to contact property owners, since some may be represented by location service providers.

May also responded to Rourke's post, saying she visited Altadena last November and has been contacting the filming locations to see if they could use the photos. She's been comparing digital maps of where the photos were taken to wildfire maps on the Watch Duty app. At least one owner responded that a cabin in Altadena has disappeared.

As of Wednesday afternoon, the Palisades Fire, which has burned more than 23,000 acres, was 19% contained, and the Eaton Fire, which has burned more than 14,000 acres, was 45% contained. According to official estimates, more than 12,000 buildings were destroyed in the two fires.

Images can be helpful as owners consider next steps. While Google Maps may offer street and satellite views, documentation from a filmmaker or crew member can go much further.

“Our department is full of meticulous visual recordkeepers, it’s part of the job,” Steely said. "We are indeed prepared to provide information to those who need it."

Roark said that aside from an insurance claim, having "images of their furniture and all their belongings, I think it would be incredibly sentimental."

On Wednesday, Rohlke and Steely didn't know yet how many production staff and owners had been connected. Rolke said they are working to set up a "hub," possibly through Google Forms, to help make those connections, and they are considering privacy concerns.

“They are very personal photos,” Steely said. "It wasn't just a wide shot of a grand piano in someone's house. People in our department would stop by and photograph every book on the shelf. They would photograph people's closets."

One center is already online. Inspired by Rohlke's post, DPs Eric Hernandez and Chris Fenner launched SafeFrame, a site for people to upload photos of fire locations or search for photos by location platform. Hernandez and Fenner were not immediately available for comment.

For those in the industry eager to help, this seemed like a way to help, even if the sources were limited, Rolke said.

"There's a lot of people in the film industry, obviously location managers, talent scouts and people on the artistic team, but even producers, directors, we're all doing scout photos," she said. “Even if we don’t end up shooting in these locations, we have thousands of photos of strangers’ homes and all their belongings.”