Estonia
Film Locations. Windy roads, farmland and fields, lakes and
forests, seaside and beaches, old world
architecture, industrial estates, Soviet architecture, castles and palaces, impressive modern architecture such as the KUMU museum.
Tallinn is the main production centre and all needs to travel from there.
Permits. Estonia is a very film
friendly country. There are no official regulations and permits take usually no more than a week.
When to shoot? Estonia has
a typical four-season climate - warm summers,
colourful leaves in fall, white winters, and spring in full bloom. June-July has up to 17 hours of sunlight. December-February has as little as 6 hours of sunlight.
For monthly weather statistics please see here.
Please contact us for more specific weather and sunpath information.
Costs. On average Estonia is
about 40% cheaper than Czech. Estonia is one of the most cost competitive service centres in Europe.
Estonia is a member of the EU. It has not taken on the EURO yet giving it a competitive exchange rate advantage.
Talent is non-union and buyouts are negotiable.
Estonia mainly offers a depth of Scandinavian and Slavic looking featured talent. Most other talent looks are available but are best suited for background roles. Talent is often sourced from across the Baltic states. Estonia's close
proximity to major European production centres allows easy access
to those pools of talent should you ever need to look further.
To view an example of local talent looks please see here:
2B Model Agency
Dandy
Vacatio Model Agency
Creative talent. Estonia has a limited local pool of directors, directors of photography and stills photographers. Its close proximity to major European production centres allows easy access to those pools of creative talent should you ever need to look further.
Please contact us for recommended directors, DoP's and photographers for your project.
Crews are also non-union. Estonia
has a basic standard of local crews. Crews are often sourced from other Baltic countries giving the region a depth of 5-6 good crews. Department heads all speak fluent English. It is recommended to bring in a 1st AD and on big art department jobs an art director.
Fringes. Crew
members are independent contractors. As far as crew fringes are
concerned there is no workers compensation or payroll tax.
Premiums. Negotiable. We package deals based on the needs of the project. Crews typically work a 14 hour day. No weekend, night or holiday premiums.
Equipment. Estonia has some basic equipment available locally. Most equipment is brought in from Latvia and Finland. Latvia is Arri based
and has all the latest 16 & 35 mm cameras, Sony HD 900, RED CAMS, Panther & Magnum dollies, a variety of cranes including a technocrane and contemporary lighting kit. More specialized equipment is brought in from Germany or Finland.
Art department and set construction is of an international standard and is very cost efficient to do in Estonia. There are at least 4 very good art department teams. Of the Baltic states Estonia is traditionally the busiest with commercials whilst Lithuania does films and Estonia shoots the least of both.
Studios. No film studios in Estonia, only photographic studios.
Backlots. No backlots in Estonia.
Tax Incentives. At present there are no
tax incentives for foreign feature films or commercials shooting in Estonia. It is possible to have VAT returned on feature film projects but the process takes 6 to 12 months.
Film Stock. Both Fuji and Kodak are available locally.
Post Production. At present there is no lab anywhere in the Baltic countries. Closest place to process in Helsinki or Berlin.
Visas and Work Permits. Estonia is a member of the EU. Only certain countries need visas and there is no need for work permits. Contact your local Estonian embassy / representative for more information.
Transportation Infrastructure is all up to known and expected world standards. Estonia is well serviced by several international and budget airlines.
Accommodation. Recommended hotels in Tallinn include:
Hotel Schloessle
Hotel Telegraaf
Swissôtel Tallinn
Please contact us for corporate rates.
For longer stays we can also organize serviced apartments.
Communication. Web posted casting, scouting and videoconferencing.
Safety. Estonia is a very safe and reliable filming centre.
Projects. For an example of TV commercials, online advertising, corporate videos, stills campaigns, feature films, TV series and documentaries shot in Estonia, please see below:
Our production service companies, line producers and fixers have serviced TV commercials, online advertising, corporate videos, stills campaigns, feature films, TV series and documentaries for:
AXA Belgium, BBC UK, Canon Singapore, Coca Cola Indonesia, Concord Canada, Dove Malaysia, Deutche Bank Germany, Dressman Sweden, Evian France, HBO USA, Heineken Ireland, Hyundai Korea, Intercontinental Hotels Global, ITC India, Kirin Japan, Kraft USA, Landrover UK, LG Korea, Meunil China, McDonalds Australia, MUFG Japan, Nikon Hong Kong, Nokia China, Orange Moblie Slovakia, Philips Netherlands, Proctor & Gamble USA, Chery Riich China, Rimowa Germany, Samsung Korea, Sinoland Hong Kong, Skipper Italy, Smirnoff USA, Sony United Arab Emirates, Stella Russia, Telefonica Spain, Vidal Sassoon China, Virgin Media UK, and much more.
If you are looking for a film or photographic production service company, line producer or fixer in Estonia, please contact us.
We are able to provide you with answers, references and bids quickly.
