Filming on location in Ethiopia – Land of Plenty
Ethiopia is a place where you won’t find a lot of average but a whole lot of extraordinary.
It’s the birthplace of coffee! As legend has it, Kaldi the goat herder was the very first person to predict this now-famous bean’s potential after he discovered it in the ancient coffee forests of the Ethiopian plateau.
When talking about Ethiopia, you will come across many more sentences that are loaded with superlatives. The hottest place on Earth is here – Erta Ale is an active volcano in the north-east. It is surrounded by barren deserts that are sometimes referred to as ‘the gateway to hell’. Here, temperatures regularly soar far above 50 degrees. Dallol holds the record for the highest average temperature for any inhabited place on the planet.
Then, in south-central Ethiopia, lying in the Great Rift Valley, you will find the deepest lake on earth, Lake Shala. In parts it is found to be deeper than 260 metres (850 feet). Shala is surrounded by boiling hot springs and sulphur springs on the lake bed, which create a mystical misty atmosphere and is believed to have healing powers. The islands of the lake are inhabited by great white pelicans and flamingos and the earth around the lake is cracked due to years of erosion and earthquakes. Such a singular yet versatile landscape is every DOP’s dream for film shooting on location.
Ethiopia boasts of an extensive range of wildlife too. There are 22 000 butterfly species and moths to be found and an extremely rich and diverse bird population. Nile crocodiles, African bush elephants, various snake and monkey species plus a large number of endangered animals species are but a few categories in Ethiopia’s extensive fauna index.
From a historical viewpoint, Ethiopia is once again set apart from the rest. It is the only country on the African continent that has never been colonised. Palaeontological findings have elevated the importance of Ethiopia as a player on the world stage of science and the origin story of Homo Sapiens. The very oldest anatomically modern skeleton known, Omo Kibish, was found in southern Ethiopia.
If you wish to film in Ethiopia, a written application to the Ministry of Information must be submitted before your arrival. There are permit fees payable, visas to be obtained, country specific Covid protocols and more; these are the areas where Hoodlum Film Fixers will step in and take any concerns and logistics from your hands. You can focus your time and energy on creating your masterful new film project and leave all the legwork to us. We have a highly experienced local crew here in Ethiopia that knows every loophole and pitfall to look out for in every aspect of your production process. Everything you can think of will be taken care of by our local expert film producers who have years of experience and know-how about the country’s specific regulations and requirements.
The optimum film crews, film equipment and film locations will be secured by us and any security or transportation for your film production needs will be expertly fulfilled by our local team who has tried and tested an extensive database of service providers. We understand that film crew and talent also need to rest well and eat well and that kind of finer considerations are why we love go the extra mile to make every last detail of your film production as seamless and professional as possible.
Ethiopia has so much to offer a filmmaker – breath-taking scenery, ancient origins, beautiful and diverse people and cultures. When you want to tell your story from a beautiful and authentic point of view – let The Hoodlum jump through all hoops on your behalf. You can welcome the world, through your lens, to picturesque and unfailing Ethiopia. Meet you in Addis Ababa.
