Orkney Marketing offers a free and confidential advice service to film and TV productions looking to work in the islands.
We have extensive experience of facilitating everything from feature films to documentaries and factual TV, assisting crews from around the world.
Orkney Marketing worked with the production team behind The Outrun film and assisted with the Leonardo DiCaprio produced Ice on Fire climate change documentary. In addition, we helped facilitate Britain’s Green Islands for ITV, BBC’s Britain’s Ancient Capital, US TV series, Expedition Unknown, several episodes of the BBC Travel Show, Channel 5’s Secret Scotland, James Martin’s Great British Adventure series, and the BBC documentary Captain Jack and the Furious Few.
It might be you have a project in development and you’re keen to explore what the islands can offer in terms of locations and support services. Or perhaps you’re advancing an Orkney focused production and need permissions assistance (or a steer to a good GV spot) at short notice. Either way, we’re happy to advise on how best to proceed.
Our colleagues at Screen Scotland also offer expert advice on filming in Scotland.
Orkney Marketing’s input, from the earliest stages in production through to completion of filming, was crucial for us. Without their advice and practical support, and the willingness of local people, businesses, agencies and organisations in Orkney to accommodate the often rapidly changing needs and requirements of a film production, our project would have proved significantly more challenging.
Our locations
Orkney is rich in cinematic locations, with everything from dramatic cliffs, bays and coves to stunning beaches, open moorland, towns, villages, harbours, and everything in between. We even have some woodland areas!
Properties range from traditional stone-built cottages and farmhouses to modern dwellings, shops, offices and historic buildings/sites.
A good first port of call is the Orkney Marketing Image Library where you might just spot a location you’re interested in exploring.
Or you can just give us a call or drop us a line, describe what you’re looking for and we’ll see what we can find for you.
Permit requests
We don’t issue blanket permits for filming in Orkney but instead will work with your production to identify what approvals/permissions might be required for particular locations.
Working closely with colleagues from Orkney Islands Council, Historic Environment Scotland, the RSPB and other key agencies, we can help ensure you’re speaking to the right people for clearance.
And our list of local contacts is extensive, so we can usually find out who owns a property or area of land you’d like to use for filming.
In some circumstances, we can liaise with land or property owners to help explain the production process and what will be involved with your project.
Equally, we’re committed to ensuring productions working in Orkney are respectful of the community and the local environment and will act as a point of contact for the resolution of any issues which might arise during filming.
Production resources
We can assist you with locations recces/scouting missions to identify potential locations and will be on hand to advise as your production progresses.
Orkney is a highly resourceful community, with a huge variety of skilled people and businesses to call upon for production assistance, from experienced and fully certified boat operators and skilled drone pilots, to tradespeople, contractors, car, van, RV and plant hire companies and caterers. If you don’t have it, we usually know someone who does!
And, if you need some local talent for your production, we have a thriving creative and theatrical community that’s always keen to get involved! We can usually find you production runners and crowd marshals, too.
Transport and accommodation
Orkney is well served with regular ferry and air links to and from the Scottish mainland, and beyond.
We have a range of accommodation available in the islands, but as a popular destination for visitors, forward planning for productions is vital.
We can assist with identifying suitable accommodation and advise on logistics and travel.
'Orkney: Britain’s Green Islands' was a key part of ITV’s output around COP26, so while we wanted to deliver big onscreen, we were a small crew and wanted to keep our environmental footprint even smaller. Orkney Marketing helped us to meet this challenge by providing invaluable local knowledge, connecting us to Orcadian crews and contributors and pointing us towards spectacular viewpoints. The team were friendly, efficient and passionate about helping us to capture Orkney in its full glory.
Contact
If you’d like to discuss filming in Orkney, please get in touch with:
David Flanagan, Press and PR/film officer
Orkney Marketing
Tel: 07768 651 802
E: dave@davidflanaganmedia.com
