Music Video, Commercial and AI Director in Reykjavik

Reykjavik at a glance

Iceland's film commission, Film in Iceland, works out of Reykjavik as part of Business Iceland and lists 26 production service companies alongside casting, equipment rental, post, aerial filming, studio and VFX specialists. Those companies support film and TV but also music videos and commercials, and Film in Iceland says international productions come for the scenery, the crews and a reimbursement of up to 35%.

music videos in Reykjavik

Iceland Airwaves began in 1999 as a one-off show in an aircraft hangar and now fills downtown Reykjavik every November, in venues from record shops and churches to nightclubs; Of Monsters and Men, Kaleo, Björk and Sigur Rós are among the Icelandic acts that have played it. Harpa, the harbourside concert hall that opened in 2011, is home to the Iceland Symphony Orchestra, and Dark Music Days brings new Icelandic and international contemporary music every January.

commercials in Reykjavik

Commercials and music videos fall outside the film reimbursement, so ad budgets get no rebate here, but the same service companies that handle international film and TV take commercial work too. Separately, Record in Iceland refunds 25% of music recording costs incurred in the country.

locations and light

From mid-May to mid-August the sun sets for only around three hours, while midwinter gives about five hours of usable daylight, spring and autumn bring long low-angle twilight, and winter adds frequent northern lights. Black sand beaches, glaciers, lava fields, waterfalls and steaming geothermal ground are a short drive from one another.

working in Reykjavik

Filming on city land in Reykjavik needs a use permit (afnotaleyfi) from Reykjavík City, applied for through its online RoSy system, with processing time judged case by case and a fee charged. National roads inside the city need permission from the Icelandic Road Administration and harbour areas from Faxaflói Ports, and Film in Iceland's service companies include permitting in their work.

Film office: Film in Iceland (Business Iceland).

Iceland reimburses 25% of production costs incurred in the country for feature films, TV series and documentaries, rising to 35% for large productions and for children's and youth content, under legislation valid through 31 December 2028, but commercials and music videos are explicitly excluded.

Time zone: Greenwich Mean Time (UTC+0) all year, with no daylight saving time.

Keflavik International Airport is about 50 kilometres from central Reykjavik, and Air Canada flies non-stop from Toronto on a seasonal schedule.

AI-led and hybrid pieces can be developed remotely, with a live shoot in Reykjavik only where the idea needs one.