Camera rental and crews for international productions shooting in France
SPHERE Cameras is a Paris-based camera rental and multicamera company. We equip and crew foreign productions in Paris and across France: Sony Burano cameras, ARRI Ultra Prime and Fujinon lenses, control rooms, and operators who have filmed concerts and operas from Paris to Singapore.
The French tax rebate for international productions (TRIP)
France offers a tax rebate to foreign productions that shoot or produce in the country. It is managed by the CNC, the French national film centre.
- 30% of eligible spending in France, raised to 40% when French visual effects spending exceeds €2M.
- Minimum spend in France of €250,000, or 50% of the budget if the total budget is lower.
- At least 5 shooting days in France for live-action projects.
- Capped at €30M per project.
- The project must pass a cultural test, with elements linked to French or European culture, heritage or locations.
- The rebate is claimed by the French production services company you hire, which manages your shoot in France.
Eligible spending includes payments to specialised French companies for technical goods and services. Renting cameras and lenses from a French company such as SPHERE Cameras is therefore spending in France. Your production services company and the CNC confirm what counts for your project.
Source: CNC, Tax Rebate for International Productions. Rules can change: check the current conditions with the CNC.
What we bring to a foreign shoot
- Sony Burano full-frame cinema cameras, alone or as a matched multicamera set.
- ARRI Ultra Prime lenses and Fujinon cinema zooms, with focus and zoom controls.
- Tripods, dollies, a Litecam crane, monitors, recorders, wireless video and intercom.
- Delivery to your location in Paris and France, and setup by our team on request.
- Camera operators and a director for concerts, operas, live shows, documentaries and interviews, with twenty years of work for major broadcasters.
- An English-speaking team, quotes in euros, prices per day excluding VAT.
Concerts and operas we have filmed
Avishai Cohen at the Olympia in Paris, filmed on seven Sony Burano and told in a Sony case study (the story of the shoot). Turandot at Torre del Lago and Tosca at Masada for Mezzo and Medici. Jazz festivals in Sofia, Malta, Singapore, Monaco and Ljubljana. Martha Argerich and Gidon Kremer in Hamburg, Renaud Capuçon and Maria João Pires in Gstaad, Zubin Mehta with the Israel Philharmonic.
Questions
- Do you rent to foreign productions?
- Yes. We rent cameras, lenses and support to productions from any country, with or without crew, and deliver in Paris and across France.
- Can camera rental count toward the French tax rebate (TRIP)?
- The TRIP covers spending in France, including payments to specialised French companies for technical goods and services. Rental from SPHERE Cameras, a French company, is spending in France. Your French production services company and the CNC confirm eligibility for your project.
- Can you provide a crew as well as the equipment?
- Yes. We provide camera operators, a director and a control room for multicamera shoots, or a single operator with the camera.
- How do I book?
- Write to sphere@spherecameras.com with your dates, location and the equipment you need. We answer with availability and a quote.
Book or ask for a quote
Rue de la Villette, 75019 Paris. Metro Jourdain, line 11.