Singapore Film & Photography Production Services & Camera Crews

Are you a media company, brand, ad agency or production company looking for film / photography production support or shooting crew in Singapore? Contact us for trusted fixers, producers, directors, DoPs, videographers, photographers, and full shooting crews tailored for the specific needs of your project.

Filming in Singapore

For an introduction to shooting in Singapore see below notes on film locations, permits, when to shoot, unique local stories, costs, tax incentives, crews, talent, fringes, premiums, equipment, communications, art department, studios, post facilities, visas and work permits for filming, transport, film-friendly accommodation, and safety advice.

Singapore Film Locations

Singapore is a small island city-state in Southeast Asia. Film locations include an ultra-modern city skyline, bustling downtown business district, unique contemporary architecture, modernist buildings, British colonial architecture, Buddhist monasteries, Hindi temples, entertainment venues, shopping streets, city parks, beaches, and vibrant colourful night markets.

Agrotechnology parks grow flowers, durians, rambutans, and mangosteens. Singapore has one of the world’s busiest container ports. The country is a regional centre for wealth management. High-tech factories produce biotechnology, electronics, and chemicals.

Singapore has hosted productions such as Crazy Rich Asians (2018), Independence Day: Resurgence (2016), The Amazing Race 25 (2014), The Amazing Race 16 (2010), The Amazing Race 3 (2002), Rogue Trader (1999), and Paradise Road (1997).

Film locations can be divided into the following regions: Central Region, East Region, North Region, North-East Region, and West Region.

Given its small size, most locations can be reached within a 1 hour drive.

Marina Bay Sands Resort, designed by Moshe Safdie, is known for the SkyPark Observation Deck and rooftop infinity pool, which overlook the Gardens by the Bay, ArtScience Museum designed by Moshe Safdie, Helix Bridge, Singapore Flyer ferris wheel designed by Kisho Kurokawa, Esplanade Theatres on the Bay, and The Float at Marina Bay Stadium.

Reflections at Keppel Bay was designed by Daniel Libeskind.

Marina Bay Street Circuit hosts the Singapore Formula One Grand Prix.

Other city parks of note include Singapore Botanic Gardens, Jurong Lake Gardens, East Coast Park, and Mount Faber Park which offers shots of the Singapore city skyline.

Raffles Place is a small park with close-up downtown business district views.

British colonial architecture of note include Raffles Hotel, Fullerton Hotel, Fort Canning, National Museum of Singapore, Victoria Theatre and Concert Hall, National Gallery Singapore, Asian Civilisations Museum, Peranakan Museum, St Andrew’s Cathedral, The Istana, and Parliament House. ATLAS Bar has beautiful art deco interior.

Hawkers centres of note include Telok Ayer Market, Maxwell Hawker Centre, Newton Food Centre, Makansutra Gluttons Bay, Chinatown Food Street, Chomp Chomp Food Centre, and Tekka Centre.

Orchard Road and Bugis Junction are popular shopping streets.

The luxurious high-rise Reignwood Hamilton Scotts building has apartments that come equipped with sky garages.

The Interlace building is an impressive apartment building.

Sky Habitat apartment building was designed by Moshe Safdie.

The Gateway building was designed by I. M. Pei.

CapitaSpring was designed by Carlo Ratti.

Henderson Waves is a pedestrian bridge that looks like a series of undulating waves.

People’s Park Complex is a unique 31 story modernist apartment building.

The Old Hill Street Police Station is a unique historic building.

House of Tan Teng Niah is a colourful historic villa.

Kwong Wai Siew Peck San Theng is a religious complex built in a traditional and modernist style.

Kong Meng San Phor Kark See Monastery is Singapore’s largest Buddhist monastery.

Buddha Tooth Relic Temple is a Buddhist temple located in Chinatown.

Sri Mariamman Temple is Singapore’s oldest Hindu temple in Little India.

Other religious buildings include Kwan Im Thong Hood Cho Temple, Sultan Mosque and St Joseph’s Church.

Kampong Lorong Buangkok is Singapore’s last traditional village.

Sentosa Island is known for Tiger Sky Tower, Universal Studios Singapore, Adventure Cove Waterpark, iFly Singapore, Palawan Beach, Tanjong Beach, and Siloso Beach.

Pulau Ubin Island is the place to go to film village life.

Chinese Garden is a park in Jurong East.

The Marina Barrage is an impressive dam.

The Port of Singapore is the world’s busiest shipping port.

Changi Airport is one of the largest transportation hubs in Southeast Asia. Jewel Changi Airport was designed by Moshe Safdie.

Singapore Film Location Permits

Shoots that require exclusive use of public space, including something as simple as setting up a tripod, need to have permits. Traffic control, large setups, and drone filming is possible with enough lead time. As an example, shooting on a sidewalk with lights and dolly setup takes about a week to permit. Low footprint handheld shoots can generally get away without permits. Commercial shoots at the Gardens by the Bay are possible, although location fees can be very high and permitting takes at least 10 days for basic shoot approvals. Please contact us for location specific information.

When To Shoot?

Singapore has a tropical climate with high year-round humidity and rainfall. Singapore has two distinct monsoon seasons; December to March and then June to September. Given high rainfall throughout the year, there isn’t really a reliable month to film for weather. For monthly weather statistics please see here.

Filming schedules are often connected to local festivals and events such as:

• Chinese New Year celebrations in January / February.
• Dragon Boat Races in May / June.
• Singapore Formula One Grand Prix in October.
• Divali Festival “festival of lights” in November.
• Singapore Garden Festival held once every two years in December.

Singapore has a diverse population. Many Singaporeans are non-religious. Buddhism is the largest religion. Many people also practise Christianity, Islam, Taoism, and Hinduism.

Public holidays may affect timing, availability and costs. See here for public holiday dates in Singapore.

Unique Local Stories

Brands are looking for local stories that match their brand narrative. Our local teams are a great lead for sourcing those unique stories and characters.

If you are looking for stories for your next shoot, send us your brief and we will pitch you ideas.

If you have a unique story you would like to pitch to a brand anywhere in the world, pitch us your idea. We have well-established processes to ensure that your ideas are properly seen and protected.

Costs & Tax Incentives

Costs. Singapore is a major business centre, and as such is one of the more expensive places to film in Asia. Our local producer / fixer is very cost competitive in their approach and will package deals that meet your budget requirements.

Tax Incentives. At present there are no tax incentives for foreign commercials shooting in Singapore. MDA offers qualifying projects 40% cash rebate of total Singapore spend and a further 10% grant of the Singapore spend of current project can be used for next project.

Film Crew & Talent

Crews. Singapore offers a good pool of Singaporean and international directors, directors of photography and stills photographers. Crews are very experienced, hard working and speak fluent English. There is usually no need to bring in crew from abroad. Best to bring in Steadicam operators from abroad. Crews are non-union.

Contact us if you are looking for a director, DP, photographer, videographer (cameraman / camera operator), camera assistant (focus puller), sound operator, grip, gaffer, stylist, hair and makeup, PA / runner, production driver, or any other film crew for your shoot in Singapore.

Talent is non-union and buyouts are negotiable.

Singapore has four official languages: English, Malay, Mandarin, and Tamil.

Much like Hong Kong and Tokyo, Singapore offers a good depth of local and international talent looks. The majority of the local talent looks are South East Asian, Chinese, Indian and Eurasian. There are many talent agencies providing talent of all looks and levels.

Fringes & Premiums. No hidden extras. Singapore works on a 10 hour day with overtime charged at time and a half. Work after midnight is also charged at time and a half. There are no weekend or holiday premiums.

Singapore Film Equipment

Equipment. Singapore offers a wide range of camera, grip and lighting equipment you would expect to find in any established service centre. RED, Alexa, and Blackmagic cameras are available, as are a range of drones and rigs. More specialised equipment such as Technocrane, Motion Control and Steadicam can also be rented locally. For drone aerial filming see Precision Art Systems. For productions looking to bring in film equipment Singapore is an ATA carnet country.

Communications. Communication is key. Our agility and global experience allows us to customise the right communications systems for every shoot.

Web posted casting, scouting, and videoconferencing.

For clients that are unable to attend set we offer a virtual video village solution. This dedicated and secure high-resolution video streaming platform allows clients from one or multiple timezones to view setups without compromise and to participate in real-time with the team on set. Separate systems can be set up for the discrete conversations that are required to make a job run right. Working remotely with our local teams reduces your content production costs, turnaround times, carbon footprint, and risks associated with unpredictable global events.

Art Department, Studios, Backlots, & Post Production

Art department and set construction is of a high international standard. To give you an example of the standard of local art department the films Krrish and Dance of the Dragon were shot in Singapore.

Studios. Singapore offers several fully equipped studios. As an example see Famegate Studios.

Post Production. Singapore has modern post and VFX facilities.

Visas & Work Permits

Entry is subject to regulations from country of origin. Crews travelling on Western passports can enter Singapore visa free for stays of up to 90 days. Contact your local Singaporean embassy or representative for more information.

Transport & Accommodation

Transportation Infrastructure. Singapore has a highly developed, well-maintained road and highway network. Changi Airport is a major airline hub servicing flights from many international carriers. The Singapore to New York route is the longest direct flight in the world.

Accommodation. Contact us for recommended film friendly hotels in Singapore. For longer stays we can also organize serviced apartments.

Final Notes

Safety. Singapore is a very safe and reliable place to shoot. See here for up to date travel advice.

Down time. Eat at hawker stands. Visit Gardens by the Bay by night.

Projects. For an example of TV commercials, stills campaigns, online content, corporate videos, virtual reality 360 content, feature films, TV series and documentaries shot in Singapore, please see below:

Hire Singapore Production Support & Shooting Crew

If you are looking for a film or photographic production service company, line producer or fixer for your shoot in Singapore, please contact us.

If you are looking for a shooting crew for your shoot in Singapore, such as a director, DoP, photographer, videographer (cameraman / camera operator), camera assistant (focus puller), sound operator, grip, gaffer, stylist, hair and makeup, PA / runner, production driver, please contact us.

We are able to provide you with answers, references and bids quickly.