When producing top-notch photo and video projects, several factors may lead to shooting abroad. It’s important to consider how scouting and planning for a global production could impact your resources, budget, or aesthetic. Luckily, through our years of experience, we’ve identified a few tips to help you plan for an international production.
Our team and collaborators CoPilot Productions, a Canadian production company who assisted with local crews and logistics for the arctic shoot.
1. Consider the intricacies of shooting abroad
Before you commit to shooting abroad, it’s essential to consider the nuances of a global production. Global locations could result in drastically different resources or requirements. Here are just some of the considerations to evaluate:
Will the cost of travel or currency exchange rate work for or against the budget?
How will another time zone impact production planning?
Will there be access to the same or similar resources for equipment?
What type of talent pool will be available?
Are reputable connections on-site to help navigate unique requirements like permitting, language barriers, or cultural etiquette?
Will we need additional travel documents like a visa or carnet?
2. Plan around the right season
Understanding your international production destination is critical, specifically how the seasons will impact your visuals and other requirements. For example, seasons are flipped in the southern hemisphere, meaning the ideal production season is October through March. You’ll also want to research any seasonal travel restrictions that could impact the timeline.
On a shoot for Canada Goose in Iqaluit, we had to stay in town one more day and there were no hotel rooms left. Thanks to our local handlers, Arctic Kingdom, we were able to stay the night in an aircraft hanger in Iqaluit.
3. Work with a domestic team with global expertise
Not all production companies are the same, especially when planning an international production. While hiring solely a team abroad may seem appealing, there are some potential downsides to weigh, the biggest being communication, either due to time zone differences or language barriers. Rather than gambling on this, we recommend the best of both worlds: working with a domestic producer or production company that has deep expertise in global production and planning who can coordinate and oversee the local production company and their efforts.
Need international production support?
With more than two decades of experience producing photo and video projects for diverse global brands worldwide, our team brings flexibility and nimble creativity so you seamlessly get the imagery you need on time and within budget. We also have a multi-lingual background in our toolbox and are fluent or proficient in English, Swedish, French, Italian and Spanish.
Call us at (401) 225-3743 if you’d like to bounce around ideas.