Iraq — and especially the Kurdistan Region — has quietly become one of the most cinematic and accessible territories in the Middle East. This guide covers what international producers, line producers and commissioners need to know before flying a crew in: locations, permits, crew, equipment, costs and the realities on the ground.
Iraq offers a range of landscapes most producers don't realise exist in one country: the snow-capped Zagros mountains in the north, the Mesopotamian marshlands in the south, the deserts west of Anbar, Ottoman-era old towns, Soviet-era brutalism, and modern glass skylines in Erbil and Baghdad.
The Kurdistan Region (Erbil, Sulaymaniyah, Duhok) is the most practical entry point for foreign productions: visa-on-arrival for most nationalities, a stable security environment, English-speaking fixers, and an experienced local crew base built up over a decade of news, documentary and commercial work.
Sulaymaniyah is the cultural capital — Ottoman bazaars, the Amna Suraka museum, Sarchinar's green spaces, and an hour's drive to Lake Dukan and the Halgurd-Sakran peaks. It is the most film-friendly city in Iraq, with the lightest permit process and a mature creative community.
Erbil centres on the Citadel — one of the longest continuously inhabited sites on earth — ringed by a modern downtown, the Christian quarter of Ankawa, and the Sami Abdul Rahman park. Erbil is the logistical hub: international airport, the largest equipment houses, and most production-service companies.
Duhok and the northgive you Lalish (the Yazidi spiritual centre), Amedi perched on its mesa, and the waterfalls of Gali Ali Beg.
Federal Iraq — Baghdad, Babylon, Najaf, Karbala, the southern marshes near Chibayish — requires more lead time and a Baghdad-based fixer, but is open to serious productions.
In the Kurdistan Region, filming permits are issued by the General Directorate of Cinema under the KRG Ministry of Culture, usually via your local production-service partner. Lead time for a standard commercial or documentary shoot is 2–3 weeks; news and editorial accreditation runs through the KRG Department of Media and Information.
In federal Iraq, the Ministry of Culture in Baghdad issues filming permits, and most heritage sites (Babylon, the Iraq Museum, Ur) require a separate permit from the State Board of Antiquities and Heritage. Plan 4–6 weeks.
Most nationalities receive a free 30-day visa on arrival in Erbil or Sulaymaniyah. The federal e-visa covers Baghdad, Basra and Najaf. Bring carnet documentation for any non-consumable gear — customs at Erbil is familiar with ATA carnets.
Erbil and Sulaymaniyah have rental houses carrying ARRI Alexa Mini, Sony Venice, RED Komodo and Komodo-X bodies, Cooke and Zeiss prime sets, DJI Ronin and Movi stabilisers, and a working inventory of Aputure, ARRI and Astera lighting. Larger or specialist packages (Alexa 35, anamorphics, techno-cranes, larger HMI/SkyPanel orders) are typically supplemented from Istanbul or Dubai with 3–5 days lead time.
The local crew base covers DOPs, gaffers, grips, sound recordists, art department, hair & makeup, and drone operators (licensed). Most key crew speak English; second-tier crew communicate in Kurdish or Arabic and pair well with an AD who bridges both.
Iraq is meaningfully cheaper than neighbouring production hubs. A fully crewed commercial day in Erbil or Sulaymaniyah typically runs 40–60% below equivalent days in Istanbul or Dubai, before any location or talent uplift. Hotels, transport and catering are inexpensive; specialist post is usually handled abroad.
The best windows for principal photography are March–May and September– November. Summer (June–August) brings 45°C heat in the lowlands; winter delivers snow in the mountains — a feature, not a bug, for the right script.
Almost every problem foreign productions hit in Iraq — slow permits, the wrong location fixer, equipment that doesn't arrive — traces back to working without a properly embedded local partner. A good production-service company handles permits, security clearance, location scouts, crew, transport, and the dozens of small relationships that make a shoot day actually happen.
I direct and produce out of Iraq with Unique Engine Group, the studio I co-founded in Sulaymaniyah. If you are planning a shoot in Iraq or the Kurdistan Region and want a second pair of eyes on the schedule, locations or budget, get in touch.