What filming in France costs
There is no price list for a shoot in France, but there are a handful of drivers that decide almost every budget. Know them before you bid and the number you approve is the number you pay. Here they are, with the levers we use to cut them.
01
The honest answer
It depends, on these thingsProducers ask us for a day rate for France. There is no single one, because a shoot here is priced by its parts. A one-day documentary shoot in Paris with a small crew and a multi-day commercial on the Riviera are different orders of magnitude, and everything in between depends on the drivers below. We will give you the figure for your dates.
We quote every job per project, line by line, in euros: crew at their real loaded cost, permits, locations, equipment, logistics and our production fee. You see what each item costs and why. As your production service company in France, we would rather show you the number early than defend a surprise later.
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The eight drivers
What moves a French budgetDriverWhy it costsWhat to watch
Crew loaded costThe biggest single surpriseFrench crew are usually hired as intermittents du spectacle, with social charges on top of the day rateNever budget French crew at your home day rate
PermitsFees often low, time cost highMany public-space permits carry modest fees; the cost is the weeks, the people chasing them and the shoot days lost to a late fileThe number of authorities, not the fee, drives this line
LocationsPrivate owners set their pricePublic space is regulated, private property is negotiated: villas, châteaux, shops, rooftops, restaurantsOwners price by demand, season and how much you disrupt
EquipmentCamera, lighting, grip, dronesRented from French rental houses and delivered to setDelivery distance from the rental house to the region
Travel and per diemsEvery person you moveFlights, trains, vans, hotels, meals for crew far from homeDriving a Paris crew to the coast costs more than hiring locally
SeasonDemand sets pricesMay on the Riviera (Cannes Film Festival) books out hotels, crew and vehiclesShoot before or after unless the event is the subject
Number of authoritiesEach desk is a separate fileA coastal sequence can touch up to six desks; a drone always adds oneFiled one by one it takes months and money; in parallel, weeks
Overtime rulesFrench working hours are regulatedLong days, night work, Sundays and holidays change crew costSchedule the day realistically, not optimistically
The headline day rate is not the cost
The most common budget error we see from foreign producers is the crew line. French crew are usually engaged as intermittents du spectacle, on specific contracts with social charges on top of the day rate. A budget built on the rate a technician quotes you is short before the first shot. We quote the loaded cost, so the crew line holds when the payroll runs.
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How we cut cost
Same shoot, smaller number01Structure the permitsWho holds the permits, in whose name, and which files can go together. Often the largest saving on a multi-location shoot.Permits
02Hire local crewCrew hired close to set in each region, instead of moving a Paris unit around France. Less travel, fewer per diems, people who know the desks.Crew
03Shoot off seasonOutside May and the summer season, the Riviera is easier administratively and cheaper for crew and accommodation.Season
04Say what will not clearMapping before the bid removes locations that cannot clear in your window, before anyone pays to scout them.Scouting
05Local kit, local deliveryFrench rental houses chosen by region, so the kit does not travel further than the crew.Kit
06Check the rebateFor eligible fiction and animation, the TRIP tax rebate can return part of the qualifying French spend.Rebate
Case: sixteen communes. A 2026 Riviera shoot (client under NDA): coastal travelling shots across sixteen communes, plus drone authorisation and heritage clearance at two stops. The first structure treated every commune as a standalone filing. We restructured so the permits were held under a single entity by power of attorney, and filed overlapping requirements (departmental road and drone airspace in particular) together rather than sixteen times over. Cost went from €29,900 to €12,900. Same shoot, same clearances.
04
Who builds the budget
Two producers, one quoteZacharie builds the crew, kit and logistics lines and runs them on the day, so the budget is written by the person who has to deliver it. Élie prices the permits and access, because he is the one who files them. There is no account manager in between, and the quote you receive is the one we produce against.
Cost is also a question of format. A commercial carries more kit, more people and more location fees than a documentary or a news crew. Regions differ too: compare Paris, the Riviera and Normandy and Brittany. For the full planning sequence, see the producer's guide to filming in France.
2026Riviera permit packageClient under NDASixteen communes, drone and heritage. €29,900 down to €12,900 by restructuring who holds the permits.Wrapped
2025Adidas × Edison ChenCannes & Monaco GPCampaign shot in the most expensive week on the coast, planned around it.Wrapped
Get a line-by-line quote
Send dates, locations and format. We send back a budget in euros with every line explained.
How much does it cost to film in France?
It depends on crew size, locations, permits, kit, travel, season and the number of authorities involved. A one-day documentary shoot with a small crew and a multi-day commercial are very different budgets. We quote per project, line by line, in euros, and give you the figure for your dates.
Why is French crew more expensive than the day rate?
French crew are usually hired as intermittents du spectacle, on specific contracts with social charges on top of the day rate. The loaded cost is what the production actually pays. Budgeting French crew at a home-country day rate leaves the crew line short.
Are filming permits expensive in France?
Many public-space permit fees are modest. The real cost is time: the number of authorities, the weeks of lead time, the follow-up, and shoot days lost when a file is late. Monuments and private locations are different, because their operators and owners set their own prices.
When is the cheapest time to film on the French Riviera?
Off season, outside May and the summer months, is the easiest administratively and usually the cheapest for crew and accommodation. May is the most expensive, because the Cannes Film Festival books out hotels, crew and vehicles across the whole Riviera.
How can we reduce the cost of a shoot in France?
Structure permits so that one entity holds them and overlapping files go together, hire crew locally in each region, shoot off season, drop locations that will not clear before scouting them, and check TRIP eligibility for fiction and animation. On one Riviera shoot, permit restructuring alone cut the cost from €29,900 to €12,900.
Tell us what you need to shoot.
Format, dates, locations, crew size. We come back within three hours with what is possible and what is not.