Filming Abroad during COVID-19 Pandemic
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Live action filming is underway in most major film hubs worldwide. Directors, producers, stakeholders, and talent are traveling to select foreign film sets, often with work permits facilitated by PSN Partners. Remote streaming workflows with low latency are further enabling the creation of content with our boots-on-the-ground production service in 50 territories.
Click to listen and read about positive producer takeaways of working during the pandemic in a Screen Daily webinar.
Click to read about remote shoots that don't look it - all executed by our PSN Partners during the pandemic.
Click to consult budgetary considerations when preparing a production brief and bid to film abroad during the pandemic.
Click to review safety measures PSN Partners are taking to uphold client, talent, and crew confidence in live action filming.
Click / scroll to view and up-to-date list of major film hubs where cameras are rolling and within what parameters.
Stay healthy, be innovative, work together!
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Where cameras are rolling now - updated April 18, 2021 |
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| Territory | Live Action Filming from | Covid-19 Experience | Crew/cast pax limit | Studio shoot | Location shoot | Remote streaming |
Domestic Travel | Foreign inbound travel | Contact |
| Argentina |
Now |
Pharma film | 30 pax indoors. No limits outdoors. |
Yes | Yes | Avatar director on set and remote stream to director / agency / client (25+ people connected) |
Open | Open to travelers with work visa, Covid neg test result w/in 72 hours before arrival and Covid medical insurance. |
Mauro argentina@productionservicenetwork.com |
| Australia |
Now |
Domino's / |
None where social distancing and PPE are in place |
Yes | Yes |
Domino's / |
Open | Closed to all, including foreign nationals. |
Andrew australia@productionservicenetwork.com |
| Austria | Now | L'Oreal Women of Worth / IQOS- Philip Morris branded content. |
None where social distancing and PPE are in place |
Yes | Yes | 1 x stream to director and stakeholders. 1 x stream to stakeholders w/ director on set. |
Open | Open to business travel from AU, FI, IE, IS, JP, KR, NO, NZ, UY, and the Vatican. Covid-19 neg. result req of others. Ban on fligths from BR, UK, ZA. |
Ivan austria@productionservicenetwork.com |
| Brazil | Now | Visa UK / Pearson / Corona beer film / Wooshii / Impact |
20 pax on set. Others in rotation & holding space. |
Yes | Yes | Corona beer, Lego, Pearsons. | Open | Open with Covid-19 neg & Ancine permit requiring 5 working days. Closed to travelers from (or having spent past 14 days in) UK, ZA. |
Daniel brazil@productionservicenetwork.com |
| Bulgaria | Now | TVCs for 2 Heineken brands | None | Yes | Yes | Tech ready & tested |
Open |
No restrictions |
Christopher bulgaria@productionservicenetwork.com |
| Now | 9 US client TVCs for car, food, homecare, and pharma products. Also episodic series. |
50 | Yes | Yes | 6 with director onset and agency/client remote +3 with director/agency/ client remote. |
Open | Yes for US director & producer with 14-day quarantine at arrival in Canada. Restrictions vary for other countries. |
Mathieu canada@productionservicenetwork.com |
|
| Now | Bid & Prep | 50 pax on set with space. Others in rotation & holding space. |
Yes | Yes | Tech ready & tested |
Open with restrictions to select destinations. |
Closed until end of April 2021. |
Ana Luz chile@productionservicenetwork.com |
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| China | Now |
Canada Goose TVC / |
None | Yes | Yes | Canada Goose / Oppo Reno 4 | Partial | Closed | Tiger china@productionservicenetwork.com |
| Colombia | Now | Corona beer film / Banco Popular / Alpina / ETB / Didi |
50 | Yes | Possible | Corona beer film streamed to director/agency/ client. ETB streamed to agency/client. |
Open | Open | Juan Pablo colombia@productionservicenetwork.com |
| Costa Rica | Now | Bid & Prep | 50 | Yes | Yes | Tech ready & tested |
Open | Open w/ Covid medical insurance (locally available) |
Luis V. costarica@productionservicenetwork.com |
| Croatia | Now | TVCs x 6, incl Starodvorie |
None | Yes | Yes | Tech ready & tested |
Open | Open | Ivan P. croatia@productionservicenetwork.com |
| Cuba | Now | Bid & Prep |
50 |
Yes | Yes | Tech ready & tested |
Open | Open w/ 5-day hotel quarantine. PCR testing done on arrival. |
Luis L. cuba@productionservicenetwork.com |
| Czech Republic | Now | Bid & Prep | None | Yes | Yes | Tech ready & tested |
Open | Open to Covid-19 negative |
Petr czechrepublic@productionservicenetwork.com |
| Denmark | Now | Carlsberg, Mercedes, Audi TVC / HBO doco |
Varies | Yes | Yes | Director on set. Streaming to client. |
Open | Open to Covid-19 negative + 4-day quarantine. |
Mikkel denmark@productionservicenetwork.com |
| Egypt | Now | Cono Snacks / Rusky |
None | Yes | Yes | Cono Snacks stream for EU director & post |
Open | Open, PCR test w/in 72 hours of arrival. |
Amin egypt@productionservicenetwork.com |
| France | Now | Bid & Prep | None | Yes | Yes | Tech ready & tested |
Open | Schengen closed. 7-day quarantine and Covid neg test result required for all travelers.. |
Nico france@productionservicenetwork.com |
| Germany | Now | 12+ TVCs & 2 feature films |
None | Yes | Yes | Tech ready & tested |
Open |
Open with |
Helmut germany@productionservicenetwork.com |
| Greece | Now | TVC for BT Sport / UNICEF |
1 pax per 4 m2 |
Yes | Possible | Remote stream to director, producer, agency, and client. |
Open | Open w/ 7-day quarantine. Click here for details. |
Andreas greece@productionservicenetwork.com |
| Hungary | Now | Bid & Prep |
None |
Yes | Yes | Tech ready & tested |
Open | Open to business visa holders. Persons with symptoms may face 10-day quarantine upon entry and require double Covid-19 neg. results. |
Zoltan hungary@productionservicenetwork.com |
| Iceland | Now | HP TVC + 3 x drama series |
50 pax on closed set. Others in rotation & holding space |
Yes | Yes | HP TVC | Open | Open w/ test-driven quarantine. Covid-19 test upon arrival & 5 days later. Double neg result lifts quarantine. |
Beggi iceland@productionservicenetwork.com |
| India | Now | Durex TVC 3 x TVC: Unilever and Marico home products, ITC food product. Snapchat. |
None | Yes | Possible | Snapchat streamed to director / producer & agency / client. TVC streamed to agency / client. | Open | Neg. Covid test req. for entry. Quarantine of 7-14 days. |
Roopak india@productionservicenetwork.com |
| Ireland | Now | TVC for global alcohol brand / Covid lead for The Last Duel, Ridley Scott feature film. |
None | Yes | Yes w/ some restrictions on private, indoor spaces, |
Live stream to agency and client. Director on set |
Open for filming. |
Covid neg req'd w/in 72 hrs prior to arrival. Open to EU 'green zone' w/out restriction. 14-day quarantine for UK, ZA, and many LATAM countries. 5-day quarantine for others w/ Covid neg result to lift restriction. |
Dara ireland@productionservicenetwork.com |
| Israel | Now | Industrial |
None |
Yes | Yes | Tech ready & tested |
Open to production with permit. |
No quarantine for fully-vaccinated travelers. 2 Covid neg & individual permit service company processes with authorities req. |
Meirav israel@productionservicenetwork.com |
| Italy | Now |
Film & stills |
None | Yes | Yes | Stream to EU director, DOP, agency, client for supermarket and household product TVCs / US stream for Nike |
Open |
Business travelers |
Luca italy@productionservicenetwork.com |
| Jordan |
Now |
Feature film |
None |
Yes | Yes | Tech ready & tested |
Open |
Special permit req |
Johnny jordan@productionservicenetwork.com |
| Lithuania |
Now |
Bid & Prep |
None. |
Yes | Yes | Tech ready & tested |
Open | Open to all EU & EEE countries. Some restrictions for BE, NL, UK. Others 14-day quarantine |
Ramojus lithuania@productionservicenetwork.com |
| Malaysia |
Now |
Bid & Prep | 20 | Yes | Indoor only | Tech ready & tested |
Open to filmmakers |
Open with 10- to 14-day quarantine |
Pete malaysia@productionservicenetwork.com |
| Mexico |
Now |
Random House / Stella Artois. 31+ days filming in total. |
Varies | Yes | Yes | Stream to director/agency/ client for Stella TVC |
Open | Open by air | Ari mexico@productionservicenetwork.com |
| Netherlands | Now | Bid & Prep | 100 | Yes | Possible | Tech ready & tested |
Open | Closed | Maarten netherlands@productionservicenetwork.com |
| New Zealand | Now | Bid & Prep | None | Yes | Yes | Tech ready & tested |
Open | Open to filmakers with 14-day quarantine |
Iris newzealand@productionservicenetwork.com |
| Norway | Now | Oreo | 50 | Yes with 10 pax limit | Yes with 10 pax limit |
Tech ready & tested |
Open | 10-day quarantine |
Eirik norway@productionservicenetwork.com |
| Peru | Now but limited to 10-hr day and only talent aged 18-65. |
Bid & Prep | None | Yes | No | Tech ready & tested |
Closed | Closed | Alejandro peru@productionservicenetwork.com |
| Philippines | Now in provinces with low virus spread. |
Bid & Prep | 50 | Yes | Yes | Tech ready & tested |
Open | Open only to Philippine resident or w/ business/work visa issued before pandemic. Exceptions possible for large-scale, weeks-long productions allowing 30+ days for gov't approval |
Stefano philippines@productionservicenetwork.com |
| Poland | Now | 8 foreign and 4 domestic client shoots Swisscom. |
None | Yes | Yes | Streaming in most all projects during pandemic. |
Open | Open with 10-day quarantine for EU travelers. Other nationals req work permits w/ excessive processing time. |
Julia poland@productionservicenetwork.com |
| Portugal | Now | Toyota commercial / 3-week feature film shoot. |
None | Yes | Yes | Tech ready & tested | Partial |
Open to EU/ |
James portugal@productionservicenetwork.com |
| Romania | Now |
Xiaomi / Penny / Emag/ |
None | Yes | Yes |
Streaming to |
Open |
Special permit |
Giuliano romania@productionservicenetwork.com |
| Serbia | Now | None | Yes | Yes | Deliziosa TVC | Open | Open | Georgiana serbia@productionservicenetwork.com |
|
| Singapore | Now | Lego film | 30 | Yes | Yes | Lego | Open | Closed | Pete malaysia@productionservicenetwork.com |
| South Africa | Now | TVCs for Coca-Cola / Unilever product / food product |
75 | Yes | Possible | Stream to UK director and Chicago agency for Unilever. Stream to SE director and NL agency for int'l beverage. Stream to UK director and US agency for food product. |
Open | Open | Jon southafrica@productionservicenetwork.com |
| South Korea | Now | Instagram influencers / Shopee boy band film. |
None | Possible | Possible | Korean boy band | Open to filmmakers |
Open with special permit approval and 14-day quarantine |
Kimi southkorea@productionservicenetwork.com |
| Spain | Now | TVC for Mastercard / American Airlines, Ford, Robitussin, Captain Birdseye, Sensodyne, Doritos, Abbott. Stills & online for Camper. BTS iviews of Below Deck series. German TV series Love Island w/ 350 crew & cast - no Covid cases. |
None. Bubbles and rotation on set the norm. |
Yes | Yes | Stream from set to director in US for 1 x TVC and 1 x BTS iviews. Stream to agency/client in the US / UK for 7 TVCs. |
Open to |
Open entry |
Lyndsay spain@productionservicenetwork.com |
| Sweden | Now | Volvo TVC | Varies | Yes | Possible | Director on set. Stream to TVC client. |
Open | Open to Covid negative. |
Joakim sweden@productionservicenetwork.com |
| Thailand | Now | Diesel, Vodafone, & Trocaire TVCs/ Doco shoot / 3x studio features in production. |
None | Yes | Yes |
The 5th Wave |
Open | Fully vaccinated people quarantine 7 days upon arrival. Authorities may remove this req soon. Incomplete or unvaccinated quarantine 10 days upon arrival. |
Fred thailand@productionservicenetwork.com |
| Turkey | Now | Unilever TVC/ pharma TVC / Belgium series |
None | Yes | Yes | Remote stream to agency & client |
Open | Open | Chad turkey@productionservicenetwork.com |
| UAE | Now | LG / EXPO / Emarate |
None | Yes | Yes | Stream to director for EXPO film |
Open | Open to Covid-19 negative |
Shane uae@productionservicenetwork.com |
| UK | Now |
Motion & stills |
Varies | Yes | Possible | McDonald's / Puig / XTB |
Commercial production continues. Productions feasible in a tier 1, 2, 3, 4, or 5 zone. |
All incoming |
Carly uk@productionservicenetwork.com |
| Ukraine | Now | Kaspi Bank | 50 | Yes | Yes | Stream to agency / client in KZ |
Open | Open | Dmitry ukraine@productionservicenetwork.com |
| Uruguay | Now | Toyota stills | Varies | Yes | Possible | Tech ready & tested |
Open | Partial | Andres uruguay@productionservicenetwork.com |
| USA East & West | Now (pause recommended in LA County) |
Porsche / Stella Artois |
Varies | Yes | Possible | TVCs streamed to director/agency /client |
Partial | Open to travelers with a work visa that have not been in countries on the exclusion list 14 days before entry. |
Eric usa-eastwest@productionservicenetwork.com |
| USA Florida | Now |
TVCs for gaming, banking, and retail. |
Varies | Yes | Possible | Director on set w/ stream to agency & client. |
Open | Open to travelers with a work visa that have not been in countries on the exclusion list 14 days before entry. |
Michael S. usa-florida@productionservicenetwork.com |
| USA Hawaii | Now | Project with drone | None | Yes | Yes | Tech ready & tested |
Yes. Must board with Covid neg done w/in 72 hours of departure or quarantine 10 days. |
Open to travelers with a work visa that have not been in countries on the exclusion list 14 days before entry. |
Ric usa-hawaii@productionservicenetwork.com |
| Vietnam | Now | TVCs for Unilever / P&G / Mead Johnson / Airis |
None | Yes | Yes | 3 x TVC remotely streamed to director, agency, and client in multiple countries. |
Open | Closed | Chi-Minh vietnam@productionservicenetwork.com |
PSN Partners update this table regularly. Reach out to discuss with Production Liaisons in your time zone or directly to our production service Partners for more details on their latest. We’re here to provide you with the ground truth from the production trenches in 50 major film hubs worldwide. And execute your project safely in the most suitable locations.
Industry organizations on COVID-19 measures, impact, and relief
- Association of Independent Commercial Producers (AICP)
- Advertising Producers Association (APA)
- Producers Guild of America (PGA)
- Producers Alliance for Cinema and Television of UK (PACT)
- The Production Guild
- Location Managers Guild International (LMGI)
- Association of Film Commissioners International (AFCI)
- Independent Film and Television Alliance (IFTA)
Media coverage and industry webinars
- KFTV - Covid Alternatives and Doubling Locations
- Little Black Book - Pause or Pivot: Productions in Southern California
- CNBC - What will happen to your favorite shows? PSN provides industry insights for an in-depth report
- KFTV - From jungles to outer space: How PSN productions have filmed during Covid
- Little Black Book - Lockdown But Not Out: How Work Visas Are Keeping Production Going
- Little Black Book - 2020 Trends: The Year Production Service Pivoted
- Little Black Book - Moving Mountains: How 2020 Accelerated Virtual Production's Challenge to the Green Screen
- Produzen - Foreign Production Services: Shooting Around the Global Pandemic
- Little Black Book - Industry Upended: How Creative Is Adapting to Production
- PACT - Filming Abroad During the Covid-19 Pandemic
- Screen Daily - Production experts talk new Covid-19 realities, pushing shoots to 2021
- Shots - The advertising industry's clash with coronavirus
- Shots - Five Questions from Quarantine - Michael Moffett
- Little Black Book - The Show Must Go On: Don’t Let Coronavirus Put the Brakes On
- The Location Guide - Coronavirus pandemic affects productions
- KFTV - Production Service Network MD’s work tips during COVID-19
- PSN Blog - Coronavirus Boost to Remote Film Production