Thailand Film Permit Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)
WHAT IS A GENERAL FILMING PERMIT?
– In the Kingdom of Thailand you are required to have filming permit first before shooting. The film permit is ONLY to approve the content of the film or video being shot. This is NOT a blanket permit that covers locations. All location permission depend separately upon who oversee and manages them
WHAT'S A TYPICAL LOCATION FEE AND PROCESS FOR SECURING LOCATIONS IN THAILAND?
– Securing locations is done between your local production services company and the location manager or owner. For public locations, it will depend upon the scale whether or not we need local jurisdiction permission. In the event that your production is large enough, then the local jurisdiction is contacted as well as any other private businesses that are in the location area that we will need to be shooting and working in. The cost of each of these locations will depend upon each individually and what is negotiated between the owner and the local Production services company.
DO I NEED A WORK PERMIT TO SHOOT IN THAILAND?
– Yes. You always need a work permit unless you are a Thai Citizen. If you, your talent or anyone else working in your crew is not a citizen and does not possess a work permit, they are not allowed to work in Thailand. There is sometimes confusion between a work permit and a Work visa. You work visa DOES NOT give you legal work status, only your work permit does. In order to apply for this, your local production services company would apply for this AFTER your film permit is granted.
WHAT ARE SOME THINGS TO KEEP IN MIND WHEN FILMING IN THE ISLANDS SUCH AS PHUKET AND KRABI?
– Phuket is a very large island, the largest in Thailand. Some of the best private and public beaches can be found here. It has an international airport and easy access to all amenities and many hotel options. Major shopping malls and restaurants remind you of how much infrastructure there really is available at all times, while being able to film beautiful “deserted” beach scenes. Phuket is great for beaches, Scenic Ocean, Boat to Boat shooting, Sunrise Sunset shots.
– Krabi is an area located on the mainland, across the Phuket bay. Krabi has some of the most amazing rock formations, sticking straight out of the water as high as several hundred meters. It is world-famous for this very landscape. Alongside some of the most amazing water landscape is also amazing Jungles, waterfalls, boat only access beaches, islands, forests, and emerald colored pools dotting the jungle map. Krabi is extremely diverse and an amazing place to shoot.
– If you are interested in shooting in Phuket, Krabi, or any other island, even small and unknown, please contact a local Production Services company to arrange scouting and shooting.
– Filming in Chiang Mai and Chiang Rai
ARE TAX INCENTIVES AND REBATES AVAILABLE?
– Yes, Thailand now offers tax incentives for feature length movies being shot in Thailand. There are several different options and plans to choose from for this, dependent upon the budget spend inside Thailand, the amount of local Thai crew being hired, and what services and equipment companies are being hired in Thailand. To learn more about this, please have your local production services company apply for more details.
WHAT LOCAL CREWS ARE AVAILABLE IN THAILAND?
– Thailand is the central hub for South East Asia, a film industry that rivals other major markets in the world. Thai crews were originally trained by the American and European crew heads, resulting in some of the most efficient and professional crews available. Lighting, Grip and Camera Crews in Thailand work directly for the equipment vendors, so you always have a team that works together daily and know each other’s Work practices and habits. Gaffers and Focus Pullers are among the most common English speaking technical crew, and they are usually also freelancers. These crews were originally employed by Camera and Lighting houses and went freelance as they are more in demand.
WHAT EQUIPMENT IS AVAILABLE FOR RENTAL IN THAILAND?
– Thailand has many major equipment vendors. For grip and Lighting, Thailand will have available all major makes and models of Lighting that you would find all over the world, ranging from small lights up to 18/24k HMI, generator trucks, technocranes, Bolt High Speed Motion Control For cameras it is very common to find any major brand and model of motion cinema cameras; ARRI Alexa Mini, ARRI Alexa SXT, ARRI Alexa LF, ARRI Amira, RED Epic Dragon, RED EPIC Helium 6k and 8k, Sony Venice, Sony FS7, Phantom Flex 4k and more. Lenses range from still photo to Zeiss Super Speeds, ARRI Master Primes, Hawk Anamorphics, Cooke S5/S7 and more…
WHAT POST PRODUCTION IS AVAILABLE IN THAILAND?
– Thailand is a very large destination for post-production. Ranging from Dolby sized Sound mix theaters, to cutting houses, finishing, grading, flame, CG, Animation and more. Thailand is a very common place to finish your film or commercial. For more information please contact your local Production services company.
IS THERE LOCAL LOCAL DIRECTORS AVAILABLE IN THAILAND.
– Yes, there are many different directors to choose from in Thailand. Thailand is a very common place for regional directors to base themselves out of. The directors based in Thailand have an extensive portfolio ranging from Feature Films, TVC, online, Music videos and more. Please contact your local Production services company for more information on getting in touch with a Thailand based director.
CAN WE HIRE LOCAL DOPS IN THAILAND?
– Yes, Thailand has MANY DOPs available, foreign and Thai. Ranging also from commercials, features, music videos and more. There are also many foreign DOPs that speak Thai and Work Day in and out with Thai crews, they are a great asset to have on set as they can help to bridge any technical areas.