Showing posts with label Pravesh Sahni. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Pravesh Sahni. Show all posts
Coming soon: A ton of foreign films and series shoots in India
8:44 AM
To push India as a shooting hub for foreign projects, Film Facilitation Office (FFO),which comes under the I&B Ministry, has been ensuring timely permissions for film shoots. In fact, this year, at Cannes, the India Pavilion will focus on positioning India as the ‘Content Hub Of The World’
Niharika Lal (BOMBAY TIMES; May 16, 2022)
Over the last few years, the I&B Ministry’s efforts to make film shooting an easier and more seamless experience for foreign filmmakers seems to have paid off, with India becoming an increasingly popular shooting destination with foreign filmmakers. Even as the Film Facilitation Office (FFO) — which comes under the ministry — collaborates with states and central agencies to ensure timely permissions for film shoots of foreign projects — this year, at Cannes, the India Pavilion will focus on positioning India as the ‘Content Hub Of The World’ and establishing international partnerships in film shooting, distribution, co-production, and more.
As a result, while the pandemic may have put a temporary pause on foreign shoots, post reopening, several series and movies from across the world are lined up for shoot in India in the coming months. In addition to this, post-July, over 10 Hollywood and other foreign projects will be shot in India, say line producers.
KASHMIR AND VARANASI TO KARNATAKA: FOREIGN FILMMAKERS SHOOT ACROSS THE LENGTH AND BREADTH OF INDIA
Rahul Singh, a line producer who recently shot the Czech film Two Words As A Key in India, says, “We filmed in Varanasi, in hilly areas, at railway platforms and in trains. Broadly, for foreign filmmakers, prime Indian locations are — Varanasi, Delhi, Haridwar, Rishikesh, Spiti, Jaipur-Jodhpur and snow-capped mountains of Kashmir.”
A producer adds, “A few upcoming projects will also be shot in cities such as Kanpur and Bhopal, where foreign filmmakers intend to create the Bombay of 60s-70s. While metros have undergone massive changes, these small towns have retained that look, so they are preferred for such projects.”
Deborah Benattar, Indian producer of several French films such as The Best Is Yet To Come, Animal (a French documentary, shot in Mumbai, which was one of Cannes Film Festival 2021’s selections), Fahim (shot in Kolkata), Maya (in Goa), says, “We just completed the shoot of a French film, The Braid, in Uttar Pradesh and Karnataka. As far as we know, it was the first foreign feature film shot in India after foreign filmmakers were allowed to shoot in India amid the pandemic, and we had around 120 cast and crew members. The film has been shot at three railway stations. A special train was also booked for the shoot. Before the pandemic hit, the Swiss film And Tomorrow You Will Be Dead was filmed in Rajasthan in February and March 2020. We created Pakistan in Rajasthan.”
Tanvi Gandhi, an independent film producer, who recently finished an Estonian production, Wait Of Light, a film on ragpickers in Delhi, says, “I took permissions through the FFO and was pleasantly surprised by how smooth it was. I was getting follow-up emails and calls from Delhi Tourism, and it was quite a great experience. When foreign filmmakers come to India, their shoot is specific to the script. Often, they want to show locations that the global audience can identify India with — be it backwaters, rural spaces and places through which they can show the beauty of the country.”
TIBET, AFGHANISTAN, PAKISTAN: FILMMAKERS RECREATE FOREIGN LOCALES IN INDIA
Indian producers point out that foreign filmmakers, be it big-budget producers or those with modest budgets, have always been inclined to shoot in India as the country offers a variety of shoot locations. And now, with a relatively easier process, they are also recreating other foreign locales, like Tibet, Afghanistan, Pakistan and Bangladesh, in India.
Tanvi Gandhi, an independent film producer, says, “The sand dunes of Afghanistan can be recreated in Rajasthan’s deserts. If shot smartly, some areas of Himachal and Kashmir can be shown as European countries. The rough terrain of Ladakh can be recreated as Tibet, as in the case of the French film To The Top. Even the dense forests of the northeast can be shown as southeast Asia.”
Pravesh Sahni, Indian producer of several international projects, adds, “We have recreated Pakistan in Chandigarh and Patiala for films like Zero Dark Thirty, where we even recreated US Embassy’s building in Pakistan. In recent years, for Chris Hemsworth’s Extraction, Bangladesh was recreated in Ahmedabad. Our job is to find identical locations, and then the art department creates signage and the look.”
‘RAILWAY PERMISSIONS HAVE BECOME SO EASY NOW, TOO’
Line producers point out that while airport permissions remain a bottleneck for foreign projects, filming in India has become easier even in areas where permissions were difficult earlier. Back in 2011, a train sequence — which included a scene on top of a moving train — for the James Bond film Skyfall couldn’t be shot in India because of issues between the production team and the Indian Railways.
Pravesh Sahni, Indian producer of several international projects, says, “The Indian railways is a unique entity in itself, and foreign productions often want to include a few shots of railways. Lately, the permission in railways has become quite easy, which was not the case before.”
A red carpet has been rolled out for foreign films in India-Tenet line producer Dileep Singh Rathore
8:07 AM
Niharika Lal (BOMBAY TIMES; October 16, 2019)
Capturing ‘the flavour of India’ has been one of the main agendas of most foreign films and TV shows shot in India. However, till around a couple of years back, delays in getting visas for foreign crews, the red tape stretching the permissions process to three-six months sometimes, and hassles in the temporary import of shooting equipment, among other issues, meant very few foreign projects were actually shot here. The India producers of international projects say that whenever the script has an India connect, foreign filmmakers want to shoot in India. However, when shooting here seemed impossible, the makers would either scrap the India portion of the shoot or recreate it in another country.
But now, with an easier permissions process, thanks to the Film Facilitation Office (FFO), and a special visa category for foreign crews filming in India, the number of projects being shot in the country has gone up. From three-four projects in a year, the number has gone up to over 10 projects in 2019 alone till now, including Christopher Nolan’s Tenet, which he shot in Mumbai last month.
Currently, five major foreign projects are being shot in different parts of the country. Line producers and India producers of foreign projects tell us what has changed in the permissions process and what more can be done to attract foreign filmmakers to India.
CHRISTOPHER NOLAN’S TENET GOT SHOOTING PERMISSIONS IN A WEEK
A foreign filmmaker, on an average, has to get over 31 licences to shoot a film in India. However, in the last four years, the I&B ministry, through FFO, has worked to reduce the time taken to procure permits for foreign crews.
Pravesh Sahni, India producer of films like Slumdog Millionaire, Lion, and Hotel Mumbai, says, “The FFO has smoothened the process for international projects and it has helped more international filmmakers shoot in India. After getting permits to shoot in India, we have to apply to local agencies for shooting at that particular location. The facilitators and infrastructure scenario is improving in India. These days, the permits are being issued faster. In the last couple of years, they’ve brought tremendous change in the filming for international films in India.”
Last month when Christopher Nolan came to shoot his upcoming film Tenet in Mumbai, he got the permission within a week. Dileep Singh Rathore, the India producer of Tenet, says, “I recently completed a seven-day schedule of Christopher Nolan’s Tenet in India, and it was only possible because we got the permissions in time. As someone who has faced a lot of trouble in getting permissions in the past, now, it feels like a red carpet has been rolled out for foreign projects in India. I have four other international projects in the pipeline to shoot in India, but I can’t disclose their names.”
As foreign filmmakers often want to capture aerial scenes, a separate department has been introduced to cater to these requests. The Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) provides permission for aerial shootings in the country. Dileep Singh Rathore adds, “A few years back, to get permission to shoot a helicopter scene for Nolan’s The Dark Knight Rises (which had some scene shot in Jodhpur), I had applied five months in advance, but I never got permission. But for Tenet, we got the permission to use a helicopter very quickly.”
The crew shooting a scene of Garth Davis’ Lion , starring Dev Patel, in India
NO VISA ISSUES FOR FOREIGN CREWS NOW
In 2017, the I&B ministry consulted the MHA and the MEA, and introduced a special visa category for foreign filmmakers.
Alan McAlex, the India producer of two international projects, one being shot in UP and another film scheduled for shoot in Ahmedabad next month, says, “Quick visa clearances for the foreign crews is one of the reasons why more foreign filmmakers are coming to shoot in India. For shooting in India, foreign filmmakers have to get clearance from the I&B Ministry. The ministry officials coordinate with the Indian embassies abroad, and help in getting visa clearances faster.”
For foreign filmmakers, getting the permission to shoot in India used to take five-six months, which has now reduced to three-four weeks.
TEMPORARY IMPORT OF FILMING EQUIPMENT AT CUSTOMS USED TO BE A HUGE PAIN
For foreign filmmakers, the biggest hurdle to shooting in India is customs clearance because they have to import film shooting equipment temporarily. Dileep Singh Rathore says, “For Tenet, we had to bring IMAX cameras and other equipment as filmmaking process abroad is more advanced. When foreign filmmakers bring equipment to India they have to spend a lot of time in getting customs clearance. While this time the process was very smooth, the temporary import of filming equipment has been a big problem area for us.”
‘ASI, DGCA, RAILWAYS CAN FURTHER IMPROVE PERMISSION PROCESS’
When we asked India producers of foreign projects about the departments where the permissions process can be improved, the most common reply was the airports, the ASI and the railways. Pravesh, who has also worked on Homeland, and is currently working on two international shows, says, “We have been discussing the timelines of shoots with the ASI. The official time is from 6 am, but to capture the sunrise at 6 am, the crew needs to set up at 4 am. Similarly, for airport shoots, the permissions process takes weeks to months. Another problem that we face is that multiple permissions are needed from railways because it is divided into different zones — a centralised system will help filmmakers.”
To shoot at a railway station or on the railway tracks, permission is needed from the zone the station or the track falls in. For some areas, permission is needed from two zones which doubles the fee. During the shooting of Lion at Khandwa, the producers had to get permission from two zones. A security clearance from the Railway Board in Delhi is also needed.
Talking about incentives, Pravesh Sahni says, “Countries like Malaysia, Thailand, Singapore and Sri Lanka offer incentives, but we don’t have as many incentives in India. I have been discussing it with the I&B officials that if a filmmaker is spending over Rs 2 million in India, he/she should be offered some incentive to shoot here.” The production houses say that incentives also help in attracting a number of independent foreign filmmakers who submit their work to film festivals, and it can position India better on the map of shooting locations.
IS INDIA A DESTINATION FOR FOREIGN FILMMAKERS?
Alan McAlex says, “We can definitely say that more foreign filmmakers are interested in filming in India, but India is still not a shooting destination. One of the reasons is that international filmmakers won’t get extras here. They can easily go to East Europe and replicate New York there, and they will get a crowd of 2000 extras, but if they want to do it in India, they’ll have to bring those extras along with them.”
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MAKING SHOOTING IN INDIA AN EASIER PROCESS FOR INTERNATIONAL FILMMAKERS
Myriad clearances would often scare, confuse, or simply tire out international filmmakers looking to work in India. To remove the red tape involved in obtaining filming permits in India, the Film Facilitation Office (FFO), operated by the National Film Development Corporation (NFDC), which is the single window clearance system for international film shoots in India, subsequently went online. In 2017, at the Cannes Film Festival, India specially focused on promoting film tourism and encouraging international studios to shoot in the country.
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PREVIOUS PROJECTS WHICH EARNED INDIA A BAD REPUTATION
In 2012, the Ministry of Railways did not give permission to shoot an action sequence on top of a moving train for the James Bond movie, Skyfall, because they felt that India would be shown in a poor light. The 2018 release, Mission: Impossible - Fallout, the sixth in the series, which opens with a scene in Kashmir and ends with it too, didn’t get the required permissions to shoot in the valley. So director Christopher McQuarrie created Kashmir in New Zealand. He was quoted as saying, “It was a pretty crazy sequence. People were very nervous about us coming there and doing that. So while we were shooting in New Zealand, we still had this (feel)... We liked the flavour of India, so (somehow) we managed to put it in (the film).” Line producers tell us that for every film which doesn’t get permission to shoot in India, or its shooting gets disrupted, it stops five other filmmakers from shooting in the country.
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PERMISSIONS PROCESS SMOOTHER BUT MORE CAN BE DONE, SAY INDIA PRODUCERS OF FOREIGN FILMS
From three-four projects a year to over 10 international projects being shot in India in 2019 alone, an easier permissions process has boosted India’s image as a shooting location. While the Film Facilitation Office is giving shooting permissions faster, a special visa category has been introduced for foreign crews filming here and customs clearance of filmmaking equipment is also a smoother process. From five-six months, the time frame of getting permissions has now reduced to three-four weeks. However, line producers say that the permissions process in departments like the Indian Railways and the ASI, and in airports could be further improved, along with offering incentives to foreign filmmakers.
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