Josep Maria Gibanel: “Managing shootings in Barcelona is one of the most laborious procedures”

07/24/2015

Josep Maria Gibanel is Head of the Information and Procedures’ Office of Guardia Urbana. 

In this office he is in charge of coordinating and managing the safety and mobility of Barcelona. He personally coordinates the administrative and human resource management. Among other things, he is responsible for processing the occupation of public roads to make commercials, films, photographs.

 

- What are the main objectives of your office?

The main objective is to become a customer service office specialized in Management of Prevention and Safety (local police, fire departments…).

 

- What are the permissions that are processed?

They are very diverse and different from each other, even though they have a connection among them: they are all related to local police. We handle arms’ cards, accident’s reports, and of course we coordinate the occupation of Barcelona’s public spaces (for shootings for commercials, films, photographs…).

 

- In this regard, what is easier to manage? And the most difficult?

I think that the easiest thing to manage is administrative procedures (taxes, charges...), everything is bound and tied well, and there is no scope to turn up or make a mistake. And… the most complicated? Human resources management, with no doubt. But it is also very difficult to manage the use of public spaces in Barcelona, in connection with shootings. Dealing with applications of shootings of movies in Barcelona, photo sessions… this is really painstaking work.

 

- What is the most often applied procedure or permission in your office?

I would choose the basic accident procedures, followed by the rights and permissions to filming in Barcelona.

 

- Do you remember any anecdote or curiosity of your work?

I am pretty new in this team... Now, for me, everything becomes a curious anecdote because everything is very new and my previous place of work had nothing to do with my current position. Now I have meetings, for example, to organize a mock electrical emergency in Barcelona. And after this meeting I have to focus on preparing a calendar of shootings in Barcelona, ​​without forgetting a single report of a traffic accident... At first glance, all these tasks have nothing in common, but they do have: all happen in the city of Barcelona.

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