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BURBANK — Members of the entertainment industry and community voiced their concerns Tuesday night about proposed changes to the city’s film ordinance, as the City Council considered a plan that would change the permit rules for small-scale filmmakers around the city. Under the proposed ordinance, filmmakers using hand-held cameras would not need to obtain a filming permit to operate on private or public property. As long as the camera operators do not impede access to public property, a permit would not be required.

The prospect of a dwindling California entertainment industry at the hands of runaway production is especially daunting for Assemblyman Paul Krekorian since the local economies in his district, which includes Glendale and Burbank, lean heavily on film and television. As part of his effort to combat the economic problem, Krekorian chairs a select legislative committee on preserving the state entertainment industry, and he’s pushing policy measures that would crack down on intellectual property theft.

Moviegoers who enjoy a good old-fashioned monster movie will definitely get a jolt out of the visually stimulating new release, ?Cloverfield.? It?s a throwback to the heyday of Japanese Godzilla movies, minus the obligatory happy ending. ?Cloverfield? follows a group of hip twentysomething adults in New York City as they celebrate a friend?s going-away party. While one of the partygoers shoots footage of the event, gigantic creatures attack the city. People panic, but the camera never stops rolling, and the entire 84-minute movie is seen from the perspective of a main character?

It’s been a long time coming, but Mark Helfrich has finally hit the big time. The Burbank resident and A-list movie editor landed his first gig as a director this year for the major motion picture “Good Luck Chuck,” starring Jessica Alba and Dane Cook. The film, which hits theaters Friday, is about a man who seems to carry both a blessing and a curse in that any woman who sleeps with him seems to find their true love right afterward. “It’s the best,” Helfrich said, standing in front of a poster for the film at a bus stop at Buena Vista Street and Burbank Boulevard.

BURBANK — High school students began living an examined life Monday as they started the semester with the addition of surveillance cameras in their common areas. Over the summer, 32 cameras were installed at John Burroughs High School and 38 at Burbank High School, said Chuck Colgan, district facilities compliance manager. The cameras will be used mostly as a deterrent for vandalism, theft and other crime on campus as well as a fact-gathering tool for crimes already committed, school administrators said.

HILLSIDE DISTRICT — Stone-throwing students are the impetus for the installation of security cameras at John Muir Middle School. Administrators hope the cameras' presence will curb rock chucking that has resulted in property damage near the campus for as long as anyone can remember, Principal Daniel Hacking said. "This has been sort of simmering for a while, but nothing too serious," Hacking said of the incidents of rock throwing from the schoolyard, which is rich in rocks from the quarry the campus was built on. In the last eight years the district has paid out a total of more than $1,000 in reported damages to neighbors, Hacking said.

BURBANK — The Burbank Unified School District Board approved the installation of security camera systems at Burbank and John Burroughs high schools, citing the need to prevent campus theft and vandalism and to protect high-priced modernization projects. "They've given me the go to go ahead and bid this and ask for approval," said Craig Jellison, the district's chief facilities officer. Trustees approved the projects, including any additions for surveillance, on Jan. 18. An outside consultant will walk the grounds of Burbank and Burroughs to give estimates on costs of installing the digital- camera security systems.

The following items were taken from Burbank Police Department reports:   BURBANK VILLAGE DISTRICT 300 block of East Magnolia Boulevard: An 18-year-old Glendale man was arrested Tuesday on suspicion of assault and battery.   The man allegedly assaulted a 31-year-old Panorama City man, who suffered minor injuries to his neck and earlobe. HILLSIDE DISTRICT 800 block of East Angeleno Avenue: A 46-year-old Burbank woman reported a burglary at her residence on Tuesday.

BURBANK ? The school board will put off making a decision on the long-awaited installation of security-camera systems at Burbank and John Burroughs high schools Thursday. The purpose of the delay is to further evaluate the systems' cost and possibly find other sources of funding. Board members were concerned about the cost for the project, which would be paid for from Fund 40, district funds set aside to complete the modernization projects. "I'm tired of approving things that go in the Fund 40 budget when we don't have funds for the schools," board President Ted Bunch said.