Written by on Feb 24, 2014. Posted in On Location

South Africa organises 10-day location filming scout for US studio bosses

South Africa has begun a ten-day location filming scout for executives from several of the top US studios. Filming locations and production infrastructure will be showcased as South Africa aims to attract more shoots on the scale of Black Sails.

The US delegation includes executives from Paramount, Warner Brothers and Disney, plus representatives from the Producers Guild of America, reports the Weekend Argus.

“(The visit) affords them an opportunity to see for themselves what makes South Africa tick,” said Cyril Ndaba, South Africa’s Consul-General in Los Angeles, in comments to the outlet: “We will be welcoming them not only in their capacity as executives, but we are also here to promote South Africa. They will see what South Africa is all about - that we can deliver the potential that is already there.”

Added Cape Film Commission Chief Executive Denis Lillie: “[South Africa delivers] by means of technical ability, budget, time and quality on screen. We know we can achieve this and have already proved it. They will also be looking for talent, production companies to partner with and locations.”

South Africa offers a base 20% filming incentive and has had a thriving production industry for years but its international profile has been boosted recently by Cape Town Film Studios. The filming facility has hosted international features such as Dredd and Safe House, and currently hosts pirate miniseries Black Sails (above).

The US delegation arrives as American productions are stepping up their interest in South Africa’s filming locations. Rescue drama SAF3 (pronounced ‘Safe’) recently doubled Cape Town for the Malibu coastline and upcoming supernatural TV drama Dominion is set to double the region for a dystopian Las Vegas. In addition, Marvel picked Johannesburg for second-unit filming on The Avengers: Age of Ultron.

To read more about the Black Sails shoot at Cape Town Film Studios click here.

(Black Sails photos: Starz)