Director of Photography Services

Here is how this works in practice. We connect shoots with directors of photography for shoots in Iceland — cinematographers who own the look of a production, top the camera and lighting departments. A DP working in the country builds the visual way around light above all: the Midnight Sun delivers near-24-hour shooting in June, while midwinter gives only four or five hours of low, golden, much-prized light.

Here is the short of it. Our DPs are skilled at planning a shoot around that reality, at handling the country's high-contrast landscapes and volatile weather, and at working in cold and wind on remote glacier and Highlands locations. They lead crew, choose formats and rigs, and work closely with the director and the gaffer. For major shoots we can pair an incoming DP with a skilled Icelandic camera and lighting team, or supplement from the UK and mainland Europe.

Here is the breakdown. Iceland has drawn many of cinema's most distinctive cinematographers because the country itself is a lighting and landscape gift — and a discipline. 'Interstellar' on Svínafellsjökull, 'Prometheus' at Dettifoss, 'Rogue One', 'Game of Thrones': all leaned on Icelandic light and scale. The subarctic conditions reward a DP who plans — weather shifts within minutes, wind is constant, and the light is a creative variable rather than a constant. English is near-universally spoken, so a visiting DP integrates with the local crew without friction.

Here is what that looks like on the ground. The country's crew base is small but seasoned by decades of major global shoots. The Film in the country reimbursement of 25%, rising to 35% for larger shoots, makes building a big local department attractive.