Beyond Blighty: When Does It Make Sense To Film Overseas?
ReadyAimFire was born in the UK, but we’re world travellers.
We love shooting in the UK, of course, but sometimes, when we're planning the next big project, the most important part of our arsenal is a passport. Here are a few of the reasons why it might be better for your production to pack a suitcase...
TALENT
The most obvious reason for a shoot abroad might simply be that the person(s) we need to film live and work somewhere else. After all, game development happens on almost every continent on Earth (still waiting for the next killer title from Antarctica). For something like a dev diary, our approach is to assemble a small core crew who can travel light and be agile. We work with experienced local producers (a.k.a. fixers) who can help our core team with research and pre-production, hiring heavy or unique kit locally (to avoid issues with customs, keep transit costs down, etc), or supplement our team with specialist local crew.
WEATHER
Over the last 18 months, the UK has seen more rainfall than at any other time since 1836 (fittingly, that’s the same year that Texas was founded, birthplace of ReadyAimFire’s Co-Founder, Frank Tamburin ?? GDC ??????? ). But we understand that sometimes the wet look isn’t always needed.
Luckily, when it comes to location shooting, there are loads of options for guaranteed sunshine. Just last year we were approached to film a large-scale live-action trailer. One of the key requirements was that we shot outside on a sunny day. To avoid the capricious British weather, we immediately started thinking about this as an international shoot. Our network of contacts meant that we could very easily port the entire production to foreign soil, with minimal impact on the overall budget. The result was a beautiful sunny shoot over one day in Sofia’s South Park.?
ENVIRONMENT
Your project might require us to film a famous landmark, or a particular type of landscape. VFX or virtual production is an answer, but can often be prohibitively expensive, and might overcomplicate a shoot. If you need a rainforest, sometimes it’s easier to just take a camera to the rainforest. We’ve yet to shoot in a rainforest, but we have shot in (deep breath):
领英推荐
That said, you might need to us to film somewhere that doesn't exist any more. That means we either need to build a set (again, a very involved process), or we can go to a backlot. Despite what you might think, not all the backlots are in California, and they're not exclusively for feature films!
If that's still not what you're after, there are even a number of locations around the world that can stand in for another, more expensive location.
COST
This is perhaps the least obvious reason to shoot abroad. Instinctively you’d assume it must be more expensive to shoot abroad. As soon as you start thinking about flights, hotels, and other travel expenses, the numbers can start adding up. But sometimes, this can be a false economy. Production happens all over the world, and often at a much more cost-effective rate than you might find at home (especially in the UK). What you spend on travel will often be won back (and then some) by keeping the overall budget lower.
CONCLUSION
Keen followers of our socials (hi, Mum!) will have already seen the map below, but we’re so proud of the global range that we offer our clients, we're going to show it you again:
At ReadyAimFire, we’re always thinking about the best way to bring your ideas to life in the most efficient way possible. Our team is fully remote and has access to the best film crews and the most technologically advanced facilities across the globe. When it comes to production, we have the knowledge, the experience, and the contacts.
Get in touch at [email protected] to speak about your next project.