Dublin film fixer for city shoots.

A Dublin fixer, in plain terms.

Dublin is the most-shot city in Ireland and the default base for most international productions on the island. Two reasons. The crew base lives and works here, so call-time logistics are cheaper and faster. And the city's permitting system runs through a single front door at Dublin City Film Office, which makes most public-realm filming workable inside reasonable lead times if you brief it correctly.

The Dublin permit landscape.

Dublin is covered by four local authorities. Dublin City Council covers the central city and runs Dublin City Film Office as a one-stop shop for filming in its boundary. The other three authorities each have their own film offices and processes: Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown County Council (the southeast coast, Sandycove, Dalkey, Killiney), Fingal County Council (the north of the county and the airport corridor, Howth, Malahide, Skerries), and South Dublin County Council (the west and southwest). We handle which authority issues which permit by location and shoot type.

Permit timelines are realistic, not heroic. Light-impact filming in the public realm can move quickly. Anything involving a road closure, lane closure, footpath closure or parking suspension needs lead time and, in the case of statutory road closures, can sit at 21 days under road traffic regulations. The Garda Síochána Commissioner is the authority on Garda involvement, and Garda costs sit with the production. We work back from your shoot date and tell you what is and is not possible inside the window.

Where productions actually shoot in Dublin.

Georgian Dublin is the postcard. Merrion Square, Fitzwilliam Square, Henrietta Street, Mountjoy Square and the south Georgian core deliver tall sash windows, fanlights, terraces and broad pavements. Trinity College, with its cobbles, Front Square and Long Room, is the most-photographed academic setting in the country and operates under its own filming protocol. Temple Bar gives nightlife, cobble, signage and the loud-and-busy version of central Dublin. Dame Street, Grafton Street and the College Green corridor are heavily-permitted but workable on the right brief.

The Docklands run from Grand Canal Dock east along Sir John Rogerson's Quay to the Point Village. Modern glass, working water, Samuel Beckett Bridge, contemporary corporate Dublin. Dublin Port beyond that is genuine industrial: cranes, container yards, the Pigeon House chimneys at Poolbeg. Phoenix Park, on the city's west side, is one of the largest enclosed urban parks in Europe and is OPW-managed, so it needs OPW permission and conditions. The Docklands and the Docks-to-Park belt cover most of the contemporary Dublin look.

Outside the centre, Howth on the north peninsula gives a harbour and cliff walk inside a 30-minute drive. Dún Laoghaire and Sandycove to the south give pier, Joyce-tower, sea. Killiney and Dalkey go full coastal villa. These all sit inside Dublin commute, which keeps unit transport sane.

Crew and supplier base.

Dublin's crew base is deep and works internationally. DOPs, ACs, gaffers, sparks, key grips, art department, hair and makeup, costume, sound, runners, drivers, location managers, production coordinators, accountants, all sit here. Lighting and grip hire houses operate in the city, plus camera houses for ARRI, Sony Venice, RED packages and lens hire. Post and VFX houses run a meaningful share of international features and series. We pull from the working contact base daily and tell you what is genuinely available on your dates.

The Wicklow advantage.

Most "Dublin" shoots in the Section 481-funded TV drama world actually live in Wicklow. The studio base at Ardmore (Bray), Ashford and Greystones is in Wicklow. Wicklow Mountains National Park, Glendalough, Powerscourt, the Sally Gap and the Wicklow coast are all inside an hour of Dublin city. For an international producer, "Dublin shoot" often means a Dublin city day or two plus a Wicklow run, which is exactly the corridor IrelandFixer works.