Do I need location permits?
Short Answer:
Usually, yes — unless you own or fully control the space. Filming on public land, streets, or in council areas typically needs a permit, and specialist or private sites need the owner's permission. Whether you need one depends on the location, local rules, road use, and how much space and crew you require.
Our Experience
On one international shoot, permit conversations ran through the client, the agency, and a local fixer. We pushed back when a requested road was unsafe or unshootable, and moved those setups to controlled dawn windows instead.
Director Quotes
On handling a location that could not be permitted as requested, the director explained their controlled workaround:
"When permits and traffic block the obvious road, we film controlled dawn windows on quieter one-way streets — with proper safety cover, not guerrilla filming."
— Joey, Director, Kelham Productions
Overview
Location permits protect the shoot legally and practically. Public space is never simply "free to shoot", and international jobs add language, local fixers, and requests that may not match what is physically possible on the ground.
Detailed Explanation
When permits are needed
Private venues: formal access agreements, especially for event-linked filming.
Public streets: council or authority permits, and often notice to residents or businesses.
Roads and vehicles: traffic management or closures for vehicle sequences.
Drones: airspace clearance and landowner consent alongside operator certification.
Different jurisdictions: councils, landowners, and transport bodies each have their own rules — and these differ by country.
Permits belong in a proper quote as line items, not afterthoughts — and part of a production company's job is challenging requests that are unsafe or unshootable, and proposing alternatives that still deliver the story.
Example
When a client wanted a hero driving shot on a location that was unworkable for permits and traffic, the team documented the problems and moved the shot to a controlled early-morning window on quieter streets — delivering the same story beat, legally and safely.