Video production company in Birmingham
Corporate films, brand films and adverts, shot in Birmingham.
Birmingham crews, booked by our producers. We come up with the idea, shoot it anywhere from Colmore Row to Digbeth, and cut, grade and mix it with our own post team.
500+ productions for brands, broadcasters and institutions
Who we are
A video production company, making films in Birmingham
Here Now Films is a video production company making corporate videos, brand films, documentaries and TV commercials in Birmingham and across the West Midlands, from the first idea to the final grade. We’ve made 500+ productions for brands, broadcasters and institutions, in sixteen countries.
One of our producers runs every Birmingham shoot, our own post team cuts, grades and mixes every film, and you deal with one company from the first call to the final files.
How a Birmingham shoot runs
The Library of Birmingham. Photo: Mike Hindle on Unsplash.
In numbers
Productions made for brands, broadcasters, charities and institutions.
500+
Freelance crew on our books, across the UK.
2,800+
London Euston to Birmingham New Street on the fastest trains (checked October 2026).
1h17
Average rating across 54 Google reviews.
5.0
Featured case study · London and British Columbia
All case studiesToast: customer stories in two working restaurants
Customer-story films for Toast, shot inside two working restaurants: one in London with our own crew, one in British Columbia with a crew we booked there and directed from London.
- Client
- Toast
- Format
- Two 90-second customer stories
- Filmed
- Liverpool Street, London, in May 2026, and Burnaby, British Columbia, in June 2026
- Crew
- Ours in London; Cinematix Media, booked by us, in Vancouver
Toast wanted restaurant stories, not product demos, from a partner it could trust to run them without Toast’s team in the room. We found the story in each restaurant, pre-interviewed the owners and managers, wrote the questions and booked the crews. Mr Fogg’s is one drink order, from the handheld to the table in under two minutes. Bin 4 is a founder’s story, told with the kitchen line running behind him.
Bin 4 is how a Birmingham shoot runs: our producer and director, a crew booked where the story is, and a plan detailed enough to brief them properly. In Birmingham the director is on the 1 hour 17 minute train from Euston, not on a video link.
- 2 Restaurants, two countriesA Victorian tavern at Liverpool Street and a family-run burger lounge in Burnaby.
- 90 SecondsEach hero film, built around the Toast Go 3, with a cutdown for paid social.
- 4,700 MilesBetween Meg Amos, directing the Bin 4 interviews from London, and the crew we booked in Vancouver.
The work we make
Made across the UK and abroad, by the same team
Our nearest is Twycross Zoo, in Leicestershire. The rest were made across the UK and abroad, and they’re the standard a Birmingham shoot gets: the same producers, the same kind of crew, the same post team.
Twycross Zoo
Easter TV ad · Leicestershire, north-east of Birmingham · 2.8m impressions on Sky AdSmart
Cohere
Brand campaign · Shot on 35mm in four countries
KYN
Branded micro-documentary · A series of films since 2024
FatFace
Brand campaigns · Seven national campaigns
Turner Twins × Panasonic
Adventure documentary · An electric paramotor world record
The Living Layer
Documentary · Overall Winner, Edinburgh Conservation Film Festival 2026
Services
What we make in Birmingham, and what it costs
Six kinds of work, one team. We publish prices because it saves everyone a week.
The honest range
Every production starts at £9,500. Most single films we make land between £9,500 and £25,000; shoot days, locations, crew size and the edit move the number.
Shoot only
£2,690
One day, in Birmingham or anywhere in the UK. A two-person crew, lit and recorded properly. 4K footage for your own edit.
Full production
from £9,500
The idea, the shoot, the edit, grade and sound, from one team. Brand films, documentary, corporate films and customer stories all start here.
TV commercials
from £15,000
Regional TV and Sky AdSmart, idea to delivery, as for Twycross Zoo.
Multi-market campaign
Scoped from the brief
A director and art department, several countries, film or digital, one grade across every asset. Cohere is the worked example.
The Birmingham guide
Filming in Birmingham, written down
Six guides to everything that sits around the crew: who says yes, what it costs and how much notice it wants. On the films we produce, we sort all of it, each item its own line on the quote. Figures checked October 2026.
The canals by Brindleyplace, Digbeth, Colmore Row and the Jewellery Quarter. Photos: Lulu Black, Adam Jones, Chris Dack and Billy on Unsplash; Here Now Films.
Lead times, at a glance
The minimum notice each permission wants, shortest first. Book the shoot with more than this and nobody’s rushing. The fees, the forms and who to call are in the guides.
- A small shoot on council land5 working days
- The canals5 working days
- New Street, up to ten people5 working days
- Kit in the road, or a camera track7 days
- A residents’ and businesses’ letter drop14 days
- A drone inside the airport’s zone, through NATS14 days
- A road closure21 days
- A large shoot on council land4 weeks
- Children on camera28 days
- An extensive road closure8 weeks
Sources: Production Central WM · the 2026–27 permit fees · the Clean Air Zone · Birmingham Airport · the Canal & River Trust · Network Rail. Every guide links its own.
All six on the crew hire hubHow we work
How a Birmingham shoot runs. One team.
Most films pass through two suppliers: an agency writes the idea, then hands it to a production company to make. On a Birmingham shoot we run all five stages as one team, and tell you where we are every Friday.
Swipe to see all five stages →
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01
Brief
What the film has to do, agreed before anyone mentions cameras. We read every brief within 2 working hours.
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02
The idea
A written treatment, and boards where the budget carries them. For Twycross Zoo the idea was a child’s questions, one line at a time.
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03
Pre-production
Locations, the film office permit, residents’ letters and parking bays, a Clean Air Zone check on the vans, talent and crew.
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04
Shoot
A crew sized to the day: two people for an interview, a full unit for a street scene, Birmingham crew where we can.
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05
Post
Edit, grade and mix by our own post team, delivered in every format the media plan needs.
Creative agencyWrites the idea, then hands it on. Covers stages 01 and 02.
Production companyMakes the film, usually from somebody else’s idea. Covers stages 03 to 05.
Here Now FilmsThe idea, the shoot, the edit and the crew, from one team. Covers all five stages.
Then the next one. AlTi Tiedemann Global came back for six productions.
- A roster of 20+ directors
- 2,800+ crew across the UK
- Prices on the page
Crew hire
Film crew hire in Birmingham, for productions from anywhere
DOPs, camera operators, sound recordists, gaffers, runners and the rest of a unit, for one day or a full shoot, each paid their full day rate.
Local crew first. When a brief needs someone Birmingham can’t supply that week, they come from Manchester, London or Bristol, and the travel is on the quote. We add a 10% booking fee and 2% insurance, which covers employers’ liability for every crew member we book, and send the full price before anything is booked.
- From £850 a day DOPs in Birmingham The look of the film, and the light that makes it. Many bring their own camera.
- £529–656 a day Camera operators Interviews, conferences at the ICC and the NEC, and multi-camera days.
- £550 a day Sound recordists Radio mics, boom and recorder, and a plan for the railway arches.
- From £750 a day Drone operators The airport’s restriction zone, the film office permit, and the canals’ rules.
- From £450 a day Producers Permits, letter drops, call sheets and the day itself, run for you.
“Here Now Films is always my first call when filming internationally in the UK… They matched the exact camera and lighting kit I use back in the States.”
Director, United States
All 24 roles, from director to editor, with their rates: crew roles in Birmingham. Shooting somewhere else? Film crew hire across the UK
Recognition
Awards and recognition
Festival juries, broadcasters, trade awards and client reviews. Each one is tied to a named film or a public listing.
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Overall WinnerEdinburgh Conservation Film Festival · The Living Layer
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Regional Panorama AwardCineEco · The Bio Estrela Project
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Top Video Production Company, LondonClutch, from client reviews
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Highly Commended, Best Small Agency (Global)The Drum Awards
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Best Media StartupUK Business Awards
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BroadcastBBC World News · Survival: To the Brink & Back
- Commissioned: the Outstanding Contribution filmSony World Photography Awards · Joel Meyerowitz 2026
- Featured Project, UK Films DatabaseBritish Council · Survival: To the Brink & Back 2025
- SelectedGood Fest · The Regenerative Farm, for Heligan
Members of EVCOM, BIMA and Bristol Creative Industries.
Getting here
Birmingham, in the middle of our bases
Our team works from London, with bases in Manchester, Bristol and Cornwall. Birmingham sits between London, Manchester and Bristol, each of them a train ride from New Street.
The UK
Rings are our bases. Numbers are our nearest shoots.
To New Street
- London Euston1 hour 17 minutes to New Street on the fastest trains
- Bristol Temple MeadsAbout an hour and a quarter
- Manchester PiccadillyAbout an hour and a half
- Birmingham InternationalTen minutes out, for the airport, the NEC and bp pulse LIVE
Fastest trains, checked October 2026. Kit comes by van, inside the Clean Air Zone only when it’s compliant or paid for.
Our nearest shoots
- 01Twycross Zoo, LeicestershireTwycross Zoo · The Easter TV ad, 2025
- 02Alderley Edge, CheshireThe Athletic, for NYT Studios
- 03Manchester and BoltonDavies Group · Crews in three cities
- 04The Peak District and Tatton ParkFatFace · A national campaign
- 05OxfordSwanson Studios · Shoot days for Intuitive
Reviews
What clients say
5.0 from 54 Google reviews · Clutch Top Video Production Company, London 2026
“Supremely high standard of work. They understood exactly what we needed and delivered beyond expectations.”
Global Marketing Director, AlTi Tiedemann Global
“Their ability to quickly assemble professional and talented crews was impressive, and their dedication to meeting our deadlines was commendable.”
Campaign Marketing and Internal Communications Manager, Davies Group
“The Here Now Films team helped us conduct a remote shoot in London, from San Francisco. The team made the process as smooth as possible.”
Google review
Video production by sector
All sectors
FAQ
Video production in Birmingham: questions
Something we haven’t answered? Our team reads every brief within 2 working hours.
Drop us a lineDo you make films in Birmingham?
Yes. We make corporate films, brand films, documentaries and TV commercials in Birmingham and across the West Midlands, from the idea to the final grade, and we crew other people’s shoots here too. One of our producers runs every job, with Birmingham crew where we can, and our own post team cuts, grades and mixes the film. Our nearest recent work is a TV ad for Twycross Zoo, in Leicestershire, and our customer stories for Toast show how we run a shoot with a crew booked where the story is.
Where’s your team?
Our base is in London, at 124 City Road, with bases in Manchester, Bristol and Cornwall. Our producers plan and run Birmingham shoots; the crew comes from Birmingham where we can, and from Manchester, London or Bristol where the brief needs them, with travel on the quote before anything is booked. New Street is 1 hour 17 minutes from Euston on the fastest trains (checked October 2026). Our team reads every brief within 2 working hours.
How much does video production cost in Birmingham?
Every production starts at £9,500, and most single films land between £9,500 and £25,000. Shoot days, locations, crew size and how much the edit has to produce move the number. A TV commercial for regional TV or Sky AdSmart starts at £15,000. If you only need a crew, a DOP and a sound recordist come to £1,568 for an 11-hour day, with our booking fee and insurance, before kit and any travel from outside Birmingham.
Do we need a permit to film in Birmingham?
On a street, in a council park or anywhere else on council land, yes. Production Central WM, the West Midlands film office, issues it, and asks for five working days for a small shoot and four weeks for a large one, with at least £5m public liability and a risk assessment. Birmingham’s 2026–27 street permit is £84 for a crew of up to ten and £191 for 11 to 24, plus VAT, and applying inside two business days adds £182 (checked October 2026). Private property needs the owner’s permission instead. On the films we produce, we make the application. More on filming permits in Birmingham.
Can you fly a drone in Birmingham?
Yes, with the right permissions. Birmingham Airport’s flight restriction zone is a 2.5-nautical-mile circle around the airport, plus zones off each end of the runway, up to 2,000 feet. Flying inside it needs air traffic control’s permission through the NATS portal, with at least 14 days’ notice. Over council land, Production Central WM’s drone permit is £229, with a flight map, RAMS and £5m to £10m insurance (checked October 2026). The pilot needs a CAA Operator ID and third-party insurance. More on drone operators in Birmingham.
How does the Clean Air Zone affect a shoot?
It covers every road inside the A4540 Middleway ring road, around the clock. A car or van below Euro 6 diesel or Euro 4 petrol pays £8 a day, and an HGV or coach £50; the charge can be paid up to six days before and up to six days after, and the penalty for missing it is £120 (checked October 2026). We check every van and car before it’s booked, and any charge goes on the quote at cost. Parking bays and car park height limits are in our guide to shoot logistics in Birmingham.
Can you film at New Street or on the canals?
Yes, with the owners’ permission. New Street is a Network Rail managed station: corporate and commercial filming is £750 an hour for up to ten crew, two hours minimum, plus VAT, on weekdays between 10:00 and 16:00 or after 20:00, with up to £10m public liability. The canals, Gas Street Basin and Farmer’s Bridge Locks among them, belong to the Canal & River Trust: online video from £196 an hour plus VAT, five working days’ notice and £5m public liability (checked October 2026).
Are there film studios in Birmingham?
Yes. Steven Knight’s Digbeth Loc. Studios was home to Peaky Blinders: The Immortal Man. Curzon Street Studios, in Eastside, is available to hire: Studio A is 14 by 17 metres with a 6.1-metre grid, and Studio B has a large fixed green screen. The BBC’s Tea Factory in Digbeth is due to open in 2027. For product, interviews and green screen, there are blacked-out studios in Hockley and south Birmingham, hired by the day. More on film studios in Birmingham.
Where do you hire camera kit in Birmingham?
Mostly at the NEC. Media Dog Hire, behind Hall 3, has the longest published list, from Sony FX6s to ARRI Alexa 35s, and Wex Rental hands over booked kit at the Wex Photo Video store on Hagley Road. Film cameras, big anamorphic sets and generators come up from London. On a crew booking, many camera operators and DOPs bring their own kit, and it goes on the quote as its own line. More on film equipment hire in Birmingham.
Can you film a conference at the ICC or the NEC?
Yes. We crew and film conferences, panels and events at Birmingham’s venues: the ICC on Centenary Square, the NEC and bp pulse LIVE by the airport, Utilita Arena and Edgbaston Stadium. Each venue sets its own filming and access rules, so we ask the event team for them when we plan the day: load-in times, power, where the cameras can stand, and the crew list for security. If the edit needs rushes the same day, book a wired line with the venue and the proxies go up as you shoot: DIT and data for Birmingham shoots.
Do you crew Birmingham shoots for other production companies?
Yes. Production companies, agencies and in-house teams book Birmingham crews through us, from one camera operator for a day to a full unit. You run the shoot; we find, book and brief the crew, and send the full price before anything is booked. Overseas teams contract with us, a UK company, so they don’t need one of their own. Film crew hire in Birmingham
Tell us what you’re making.
Our team reads every brief within 2 working hours. Or call us on +44 7412 543822.