If we look closely, beyond the everyday grind that takes up most of our attention, we will realize one thing – that at the heart of it all, the world around us is beautiful. And nowhere is this more visible than in Africa.

Africa has one of the most breathtaking scenes in the world. From one end to the other, the continent is blessed with lush greenery, sand dunes, high mountains, sandy beaches and clement weather. On this backdrop, many filmmakers around the world have journeyed to tell their stories.

There are many film destinations in Africa but some countries are more popular than others. Here are the top 6 film destinations in Africa in no particular order.

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South Africa

Home to a thriving local film industry and some of the best film directors in the continent, South Africa is one of the top film destinations in Africa. Top filmmakers around the world troop to South Africa to shoot their films/projects, in part or in full.

Many locations in South Africa have seen a movie or two shot in them like Soweto (District 9 2009) and Sun City (Blended 2014). However, the two most popular film locations in South Africa are Cape Town and Johannesburg.

Cape Town, located in the Western Cape of South Africa, has seen many foreign movies and television productions like Homeland (2011), Doomsday (2008), Lord of War (2005), Resident Evil: The Final Chapter (2016), Safe House (2012), The Giver (2014), Black Sails (2014), Maze Runner(2014), Tomb Raider (2018) and the Netflix series, Troy: Fall of a City (2018).

Many local and international films like Hotel Rwanda (2004) have been shot in Johannesburg. Johannesburg is also pretty popular for American and European productions. The city, enriched with Victorian Colonial and Edwardian Baroque architecture, is a good stand-in for many places in the US and Europe.

The need to shoot in South Africa can be traced to the fact that shooting a project in the US or the UK is expensive; sometimes three times more expensive than in South Africa.

Also, the South African Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) goes a step further by giving out generous 20% (capped at 50 Million Rand) filming incentives to production companies willing to shoot in the country.

Couple that with the availability of skilled workers and flexible locations, South Africa is the go-to place to shoot your film in Africa.

Our favorite foreign movies shot in South Africa remain Avengers: Age of Ultron (2015), Eye in the Sky (2015), Hitman (2007), Hotel Rwanda (2004) and Blood Diamond (2006).

Morocco

We have written about Morocco before. What astounds us about Morocco is not just the myriad and great number of films that have been shot in the country – thus making it one of the top film destinations in Africa.

It’s the fact that Morocco has mastered the art of camouflage, passing for places like Tibet in Kundun (1997), Martin Scorsese’s tale of the 14th Dalai Lama and Somalia in Black Hawk Down (2001).

Since 1919, Morocco has seen many foreign film productions. Some of the popular ones are

• Tom Cruise’s Mission: Impossible – Rogue Nation shot in Casablanca,
• Oliver Stone’s Alexander (2004), Orson Welles’ film adaptation of William Shakespeare’s Othello (1951) and John Wick 3 (2019) shot in Essaouira,
• Sex and the City 2 (2010) in Marrakech,
• Lawrence of Arabia (1962), Gladiator (2000) and Game of Thrones in Ait Benhaddou and
• Inception (2010) in Tangier.

Other movies shot in Morocco include The Jewel of the Nile (1985), Aquaman (2018), The Dictator (2012), The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen (2003), Mamma Mia! (2008), War Dogs (2016), Men in Black: International (2019), Queen of the Desert (2015), Rendition (2007) and Rules of Engagement (2000).

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Read: Why Morocco is One of the Top Film Destinations in Africa

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Thanks to Morocco’s 20% tax rebate on foreign films, the number of foreign movies and television series shot in Morocco continue to rise every year, making it a top film destination in Africa.

According to the Moroccan Cinema Center (CCM), the total foreign production spend in Morocco grew from $32 million in 2017 to $50 million in 2018 to over $80 million in 2019.

The rebate, which has a yearly budget of about $11 million, grants foreign investors a 20% refund on qualifying expenses, provided that they spend at least 18 days shooting on location and have a production cost of at least $1 million. 

Our favorite foreign films shot in Morocco are Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time (2010), The Mummy (1999), Babel (2006), American Sniper (2014), The Bourne Ultimatum (2007), Gladiator (2000), Kingdom of Heaven (2005) and Captain Phillips (2013).

Kenya

Many foreign films were shot in Kenya as far back as the 1950’s like Mogambo (1953) starring Ava Gardner and Clark Gable and King Solomon’s Mines in the 80’s.

However, many didn’t fall in love with Kenya as a film destination until the 1985 film, Out of Africa featuring Meryl Streep and Robert Redford.

Since then, Kenya has seen itself grow as a popular film destination in Africa with over 80 foreign films shot in the country.

Out of Africa (1985) was shot in Ngong Hills, pushing the location to film-making limelight. Ngong Hills is about 22 kilometers southwest of Kenya’s capital, Nairobi.

Other popular film locations in Kenya include Loiyangalani near the coast of Lake Turkana where The Constant Gardener (2005) was shot, Hell’s Gate National Park where Tomb Raider: The Cradle of Life (2003) was filmed, Nairobi where the Netflix series, Sense8 (2015) was shot and Baringo where Nowhere in Africa (2001) was shot.

Nowhere in Africa went on to win over 14 international awards, including the 2003 Academy Award for Best Foreign Language film.

Kenya is also a great destination for television wildlife productions. Many award winning wildlife series have been shot in Kenya by Discovery and BBC Natural History. BBC’s Big Cat Diary, shot in Maasai Mara, follows the lives of the predators there.

Kenya’s natural beauty, predictable weather and wildlife experience are the main incentives that draw filmmakers from around the world.

In addition, Kenya has a single-window system, a one-stop shop that allows foreign filmmakers to obtain and submit regulatory documents such as permits and licensing at a single location instead of having to visit different government agencies in different locations.

Our favorite foreign films shot in Kenya include Ace Ventura: When Nature Calls (1995), Going Bananas (1987), Out of Africa (1985) and Nowhere in Africa (2001).

Egypt

There’s just something exotic, mysterious and otherworldly about Egypt. From its ancient history and mythology to its stunning architecture and landscape, Egypt has appeared time and time again in many works of art including film. It’s no wonder that almost every film director worth his salt wants to shoot at least one movie in Egypt.

Egypt has had a long history with hosting foreign film and TV productions like

• Michael Bay’s Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen shot in Luxor and at the Pyramids,
• The Spy Who Loved Me (1977) shot at Karnak Temple in Luxor,
• The Mummy (1999) shot in Luxor,
• The Ten Commandments (1956) shot in Memphis,
• Malcom X (1992) and
• Fair Game (2010) shot in Cairo. Fair Game also stars Egyptian actor Hanaa Abdel Fattah

However, due to past incidents of unrest in Egypt and great competition from countries like Morocco, some projects have been known to opt for other locations as evident in Ridley Scott’s Exodus: Gods and Kings.

This has led to a slow decline of foreign film productions in Egypt. In trying to remedy the situation, the Egyptian authorities have established a series of financial incentives and a trade body to promote Egyptian films abroad and to attract more international productions into the country.

Our favorite films shot in Egypt include Malcolm X (1992), Cleopatra (1963), Death on the Nile (1978), The Spy Who Loved Me (1977) and Syriana (2005), produced by George Clooney.

Tunisia

Tunisia is another northern African country that has proven over the years to be a top film destination in Africa.

One of the most popular franchise in modern film-making, Star Wars, was shot in Tunisia. The original Star Wars was filmed in Tunisia in 1976. George Lucas had originally planned for scenes involving Tatooine, Luke Skywalker’s home, to be shot in the Philippines, but later changed his mind for Tataouine, a location in Tunisia.

Subsequently, other films in the series (The Phantom Menace in 1997, Attack of the Clones in 2000 and Revenge of the Sith in 2003) were all shot in the country.

Other famous movies filmed in Tunisia include Monty Python’s Life of Brian (1979), where Tunisia stood in for Israel, The English Patient (1996) shot in Tunis and The Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981) set in Kairouan masquerading as Egypt’s Cairo. 1001 Nights (1990) and Black Gold (2011) were also shot in Tunisia.

Tunisia can attribute its success as a top film destination in Africa to many factors. Firstly, the variety of scenes found in the country like deserts, forests, beaches, mountains, industrial landscapes and souks are simply outstanding.

Secondly, getting permission for a foreign film production is pretty easy in Tunisia as it requires obtaining only one permit from the Ministry of Culture to cover the entire shoot. Also cast and crew members, who are US or EU citizens, are not required to have work visas before shooting in the country.

Thirdly, Tunisia has adequate infrastructure to cater to the film industry as well as locally skilled film workers to help in production.

Our favorite foreign movies shot in Tunisia include the 1977 miniseries, Jesus of Nazareth, all the Star Wars movies and Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981).

Namibia

Mesmerizing, desolate and enthralling, the Namibian desert, located in the southern part of Africa, is a juxtaposition of emotions at first glance. On this backdrop, has many a movie been made.

Stanley Kubrick’s stunning opening scene in 2001: A Space Odyssey was shot in Spitzkoppe, Namibia. The 1968 movie went on to win four Oscar awards one of which was for Best Visual Effects.

Namibia was also the film destination for the 2003 Beyond Borders starring Angelina Jolie and Clive Owen. The Hunters (1957), The Cell (2000), Flight of the Phoenix (2004), 10,000 BC (2008) and Gallowwalkers (2012) are all movies that were shot in the Namib Desert in Namibia

2015 saw the shooting of the box office film, Mad Max: Fury Road. The film was shot on location in Namibia for 100 days after rains cut short the film’s initial plan for the Australian desert outback.

Namibia is a great film destination in Africa that happens to be politically stable. Its proximity to South Africa is also another plus. Additionally, Namibia has a very supportive film commission that helps out with local permits and logistics which intending filmmakers consider when looking for film locations in Africa.

Our favorite foreign films shot in Namibia include Dhoom 2 (2006), Mad Max: Fury Road (2015) and The Mummy (2017) starring Tom Cruise.

Conclusion

Africa as a film destination is growing in leaps and bounds every day as more and more productions move to the continent. We hope to see this collaboration yield tangible results like a more vibrant film industry across Africa.

Tell us in the comment section about other great film destinations in Africa that you know of.

Movie production involves a lot of things. From the script, cast and crew, logistics, and equipment, to post-production and distribution, producing a movie is no small feat and requires a substantial budget to pull everything off.

So, it’s no surprise that inadequate funding, poor government policies, political strife, and underdevelopment are some of the major factors contributing to the low production of movies in some African countries.

In this article, we are looking at 10 African countries least known for movie production and the reasons behind this.

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1. Chad

The first feature movie from Chad was the 1958 John Huston adventure film, The Roots of Heaven, which was filmed when the country was still under the French rule.

After independence, the film industry in Chad suffered severely after the breakout of the civil war from the 1970s to the 1980s.

During this period of unrest, movie production stopped, and all the cinemas in Chad closed down.

Today, a few Chadian filmmakers such as Mahamat-Saleh Haroun, are trying to revive the movie industry in Chad.

Even though Mahamat’s work is widely acclaimed and recognized beyond the country’s borders, Chad’s film industry is still widely unknown.

2. Central Africa Republic

As one of the world’s poorest countries, Central Africa Republic’s film industry is relatively small.

The first film shot in the country was a 1970 French ethnographic documentary titled ‘Les enfants de la danse’.

A few indigenous filmmakers have also done some movies in the CAR such as Joseph Akouissone with his 1981 documentary, Un homme est un homme and Léonie Yangba Zowe who also shot documentaries in the 1980s.

Since then, multiple internal conflicts and economic crises have limited the growth of the film industry in the country.

3. Togo

Togo experienced a boom in film production in the 1970s and the post-independence era when the Togolese government encouraged cinema.

This was evident with the establishment of Service du Cinéma et des Actualités Audiovisuelles (CINEATO) in 1976 by the Togolese government to encourage the production of newsreels and documentaries.

However, in 1993, the Togolese movie industry suffered some setbacks, when funds received from Organisation Internationale de la Francophonie were stopped for over ten years.

Today, Togo is one African country least known for film production with a relatively small and underdeveloped industry.

4. Madagascar

Despite the success of the Dreamworks franchise, Madagascar (2005), the country, Madagascar, isn’t quite as successful, cinema-wise.

Rasalamaa (Rasalama, the Martyr) is the oldest film produced in Madagascar by a Malagasy. It was directed in 1937 by Deacon Philippe Raberojo.

In the following years after Madagascar gained independence, political crisis and overthrows led to the closure and transformation of most of the country’s cinemas into places of religious worship.

With this, the film industry in Madagascar is almost non-existent, and as of today there is still no public cinema in Madagascar.

5. Libya

The dictator regime of Muammar Gaddafi resulted in the total control of the film industry in Libya.

Prior to this, there were some local film productions in Libya under the Italian rule and citizens enjoyed cinema-going after independence.

But from 1973, some of the adverse policies passed by Muammar Gaddafi coupled with the resulting Libyan crisis, led to the closure of the country’s major cinemas and stagnation of the film industry.

Any hope for the resurgence of the country’s film production is almost dead as the Libyan film industry suffers from lack of funding and infrastructure.

6. Burundi

Burundi is one of the world’s poorest nations, with a large portion of the population surviving on subsistence farming.

So, it’s no wonder that low standards of living, lack of electricity, lack of government funding and high rates of illiteracy are factors affecting the film industry in Burundi.

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Read: How to Get a Sponsor or Grant for Your African Movie Idea

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In 2007, joint efforts between the Canadian filmmaker, Christopher Redmond and Rwandan videographer, Raymond Kalisa, helped establish the Burundi Film Center.

International organizations such as the French Corp, UNESCO, and other international sponsors are also helping to kick-start the movie industry in Burundi.

7. Sierra Leone

After the release of the 2006 Hollywood thriller, Blood Diamond, starring Leonardo DiCaprio and Jennifer Connelly, the image of Sierra Leone was severely damaged overseas.

The movie made Sierra Leone infamous, seeing most tourists and foreign investors taking their money elsewhere due to the bloody depiction of the political conflict that ravaged Sierra Leone for most of the 90s.

This affected the film industry as lack of funding and the absence of infrastructure retarded the production of movies in the country.

8. Sudan

Film production in Sudan was started by the British colonial presence in the country and after independence, a vigorous documentary film tradition was established.

After the military coup of 1989, the interim Islamist government suppressed cinema in the country as well as much of the public cultural and social life.

This censorship led to the decline of cinema from the 90s and due to lack of funding, Sudan’s movie industry was stagnated for years.

New initiatives have been coming up since the 2010s to encourage film-making in Sudan.

9. Democratic Republic of Congo

After DRC Congo gained its independence in 1960, the country experienced a series of civil wars that largely destroyed the nascent film industry obtainable then.

Although, foreign initiatives from the French ministry of foreign affairs have allowed some directors to create movies in DRC, the lack of support from the government and the fact that most Congolese filmmakers live abroad contribute to the country’s poor film production.

10. Lesotho

Lesotho is another African country that isn’t well known for film production in the continent.

Situated in a landlocked area, with little to no infrastructure in place for film-making, Lesotho’s film industry is almost non-existent.

Additionally, a lack of support from its government has more or less rendered Lesotho’s film industry, dormant.

Conclusion

Film production in Africa is still growing with countries like Egypt, Nigeria and South Africa at the forefront of that growth.

However, there are still some African countries that need to build their film industry and have the rest of the world hear their story.

We hope that with time, we will get to see more films from the African countries listed in this article.

Do you know what movies like Gladiator, Bourne Ultimatum, The Last Temptation of Christ, Babel and Inception have in common? Morocco. These were movies all shot in Morocco, Africa.

Even TV shows are not left out when it comes to picking choice locations in Morocco. Famous shows like Game of Thrones, America’s Next Top model, Tyrant and The Amazing Race all have a scene or two shot in Morocco.

Morocco, made famous by movies like Casablanca (1942), has in recent years, seen an influx of movie directors in numbers, making it one of the top film destinations in Africa.

So what makes Morocco the Mecca of sorts when foreign filmmakers want to shoot in Africa? Well, there are various reasons why film auteurs are attracted to Morocco and we have outlined these in five points

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1. Affordability

Yes, Good old money. Everything seems to always find a way back to money. One reason why Morocco is one of the top film destinations in Africa is simply because it makes financial sense to shoot in Morocco.

Morocco’s cheap labor and generous tax credits are the main culprits here. Recently, a new 20% cash rebate on the money spent by production companies within Morocco has further sweetened the pot which has filmmakers coming back to Morocco for their film projects.

2. Security

Morocco offers Hollywood studios who want to shoot films that are set in the Middle East, a safe environment. Movies such as Army of One, Syriana and the war documentary movie, American Sniper, have all been shot safely in different locations in Morocco despite the political undertones of these movies.

Also, the support of the Moroccan Army can’t be overlooked. This is where Morocco excels when compared to other African countries like South Africa and Egypt when looking for a film destination in Africa.

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Read: 6 Popular Film Destinations in Africa

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The Moroccan Film Institute, for instance, negotiates with the country’s armed forces to provide extras and military equipment or vehicles required for a particular movie, when foreign filmmakers are in need of military equipment.

3. Liberal and Open-Minded

When seeking to shoot a movie in the Middle East, some countries sometimes refuse to accommodate films of a certain political nature, because of the political content which is seen by these countries as being too sensitive.

For example, Body of Lies, whose initial film location was between Jordan and Dubai, but was changed to Morocco because of the political content.

Which begs the question, “If a movie like Papicha, which has been banned in Algeria, was a Moroccan movie, would it have had a different story?” Well, we’ll never know.

4. Beautiful Landscapes, Diversity and A Rich Culture

One of the many reasons why film directors are attracted to Morocco is because of its diverse blend of cultures and historical cities. There is something just organic about Moroccan film locations. They are real, bursting at the seams and they constitute a strong part of the film’s architecture.

Moroccan film studios in different cities can be easily transformed from snow-capped mountain tops to deserts, beaches and picturesque cities having narrow streets and vibrant markets with loud tradesmen, spices and snake charmers. Altogether, making a blend of cultures from Europe, South of the Sahara and Asia.

5. A Long History of Film-Making

Morocco has a long history of foreign filmmakers making historical movies, set in ancient Rome or Greece like Troy, Gladiator and Kingdom of Heaven.

Morocco also has a vibrant movie industry of its own, dating back as early as the early 1900’s. This long history has produced many skilled workers who have worked both for local and foreign productions.

Conclusion

Being one of the top film destinations in Africa has its benefits. Morocco has seen a boost in its tourism sector as tourists have been known to flock to famous film locations like Aït Ben Haddou used in the Game of Thrones. Aït Ben Haddou, due to its old aesthetic architectures was designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1987.

What other famous movies were shot in Morocco? Tell us in the comment section.