Montenegro
Montenegro offers unique, beautiful and undiscovered locations. The country is known for its rugged mountains, canyons, national parks, vineyards, beaches, azure seas, snowy peaks, forests, glacial lakes, rivers, waterfalls, cobblestone streets, monasteries, fortresses, castles and palaces. Montenegro’s rich architectural heritage has influences as diverse as Roman, Ottoman, Venetian, Brutalist, and Baroque. Montenegro is an ideal location for car commercials with narrow, winding mountain roads and dozens of tunnels. Being a small country, locations are a relatively short drive from each other.
Cost & Rebates
Locations, local talent and support crew are inexpensive but since little to no filming infrastructure exists all key crew and equipment must be brought in from abroad. Montenegro charges a 19% VAT. Crews are typically brought in from nearby Serbia which is also cost efficient. Montenegro trades in the EURO but it does not have the high local costs that you would typically find in the Eurozone.
Montenegro offers a cash rebate of 25% for international or co-produced feature films, documentaries and animations, as well as TV films and series that meet the minimum local spend. Projects will undergo a cultural test and must make use of Montenegro’s crew, talent and production capabilities.
When To Shoot
Montenegro has a transitional climate from Mediterranean to continental. The summers are hot and dry and the winters are mild on the coast and snowy in the mountains. April through to September is the best time to film for long, sunny shoot days.
Visa Information
Montenegro is not a member of the Schengen Area. Visiting crews entering on Western passports can enter visa-free for periods of up to 90 days. Work permits are not required to film in Montenegro.
Cast, Crew & Equipment
Montenegro has a small pool of local directors, videographers and stills photographers. Some supporting crews are available locally. Rates and hours of work are negotiable and always flexible to budgetary requirements. Experienced, English speaking key crew can easily be brought in from Serbia. Specialist technical and creative crew can be brought in from nearby major European production centres.
Talent is non-union and buyouts are negotiable. Day rates are very reasonable and negotiated on a personal basis.
Montenegro offers mainly Montenegrin, Serb, Bosniak and Albanian looks. Its close proximity to major European production centres allows you easy access to those pools of talent should you ever need to look further. Montenegro has a small pool of camera, grip and lighting equipment available locally. Additional equipment can be easily brought in from nearby Serbia and more specialist equipment such as helicopters with camera heads are best brought in from Italy or other major European production centres. For productions looking to bring in film equipment Montenegro is an ATA carnet country.