The Filmmaker Guide to Film & Video Production in Israel
The Filmmaker Guide to Film & Video Production in Israel
The complete list of our film, television and video production services in Israel and Palestine
Highlight Films is a production house in Israel, providing full production services for film production companies, independent film, TV and video producers, motion picture production companies as well as public and private organizations and commercial companies.
We are a one-stop production company: our services include all parts of the film, video and television production - from research to crewing, coordination and filming, as well as full editing services in SD and HD formats.
The video industry is quickly becoming an integrated one, and we are trying to provide integrated production services: Our technical experts will advise you of the best way to integrate any of the possible platforms - analog video, digital video, DVD, High Definition video, analog / digital audio, web, streaming, cellular, and any other applicable platform.
We work with the best video and audio experts in Israel - professionals in camera operation, sound recording, picture editing and all other technical aspects of the film and video industries.
In this page we gathered concise, useful information that may help you take a quick glance at what we do and the services we offer. There are more details, explanations and referrals in the specific parts of our website.
PRODUCTION IN ISRAEL - GENERAL INFORMATION
Audio and Visual Production
Highlight Films will provide all your professional audio and video needs in Israel and Palestine. Our camera sets are well maintained, and our local crews are all professionals with many years of experience in various kinds of productions for international producers, broadcasters, multimedia production companies and c commercial clients.
Production Studio
Our Israel production studio is located in the outskirts of Tel Aviv, minutes from two major highways and within 15 minutes drive of central Tel Aviv. Our Palestine production studio is located in the city center of Ramallah.
Filming Studio
We have access to a variety of filming studios in Israel: from small news presenter booths to fully equipped multi-camera studios.
Media Production Studio
Our in-house studio is capable of dealing with most digital and analog video and audio formats. In addition to editing and video post-production, we can produce full-featured DVD's, CD's and streaming and compressed video files. We aspire to be able to provide complete production services under one roof, so if you need a machine, a software or a certain procedure we cannot provide, we will make sure you will have it...
Post Production Studio
We use both AVID and FINAL CUT editing software and CANOPUS for format conversion. Our post-production facilities are used for our in-house productions and for our regular customers: we don't rent our edit suites by the hour or by the day, because we prefer to make these services for our regular customers who require other services before reaching the postproduction phase.
Jerusalem
There are dozens, if not hundreds of documentary, dramatic and other video productions in Jerusalem every year. In Jerusalem filming must be coordinated in advance, filming permits must be issued by the agency or organization in charge, and careful planning is necessary for efficient filming in the small but complicated Old City of Jerusalem.
PRODCUTION SERVICES IN ISRAEL AND PALESTINE
Planning pre production video
We can provide all necessary pre-production services: research, script advising, production office and personnel, local casting, location management and all other functions in film pre-production.
Movie Pre Production services
We can provide all necessary pre-production services: research, script advising, production office and personnel, local casting, location management and all other functions in film pre-production.
HIGH DEFINITION (HD) PRODUCTION IN ISRAEL AND PALESTINE
HD production
High Definition cameras are the first professional cameras to provide one answer for both video and film. In the last several years we produced feature film, documentary, television and corporate productions in Hi Def, so we are both experienced and aware of all the factors to be taken into consideration when planning and executing a successful High Definition production.
If our camera set is not available, we will get for you another HD set from Israel. We work only with the Sony 900 series and have all the accessories necessary - from Cine lenses to heavy tripods, lighting, grip and so forth.
HD film crew
Our cameramen and soundmen are very experienced in working with High Definition cameras. We will never send a cameraman to do a job he is not fit to do, and we make sure on a regular basis that we employ and hire only first-rate professionals to do the best job!
HD video editing
By March 2008 we will be fully equipped with HDCAM editing studio. Until then we can provide all your HD editing needs by renting ad-hoc systems and players from our colleagues in Israel and Europe.
FILM PRODUCTION IN ISRAEL AND PALESTINE
Film production equipment
The Highlight Films production personnel are experienced with all kinds of field productions. We worked with British, French, American, Canadian and Italian producers who came to Israel to film their movies here, and we are aware of the possible complexities of any production. During the years we composed a small list of suppliers, colleagues and service providers who fit our professional standards. To each production we will bring the most of our experience and contacts in order to make it a successful, efficient and rememberable project!
Film production crew
There are many experienced film professionals in Israel, In addition to local movies produced in Israel, there are many international film and movie productions arriving to Israel every year. We can assure we will assemble the best list of film professionals for your production - experienced, hard working men and women who can help you achieve the best results in your production here.
Production services underwater
We provide underwater production services in the Mediterranean shores (Caesarea, Jaffa, Rosh Hanikra) and in the Bay of Eilat. Professional underwater cameramen will film in waterproof HDV or DVCAM cameras.
VIDEO PRODUCTION SERVICES
Video production equipment
We have complete camera sets of DV, DVCAM, Beta SP, Digital Beta, HDV and HDCAM formats, all available in both PAL and NTSC. Obviously all additional equipment and accessories are available as well.
Production services underwater
We provide underwater production services in the Mediterranean shores (Caesarea, Jaffa, Rosh Hanikra) and in the Bay of Eilat. Professional underwater cameramen will film in waterproof HDV or DVCAM cameras.
production services international
Since we are also producing our own films, both in Israel and around the world, we have created a useful network of service providers around the world. In 2007 we coordinated shoots in Jordan, Lebanon, South Africa, Norway, United Kingdom, in three different states in the US and in Canada. We are now planning a shoot in Mexico and Argentina. If your production takes place in several locations around the world, we can help you plan it efficiently and find the local service providers you can trust and enjoy working with.
Television production services
Highlight Films has more than ten years of experience in producing television projects - from studio programs to documentary films, reality formats, documentary feature films and others. We will assemble the best local crews possible in Israel or the Palestinian West Bank for you to work with, and we can assure you the highest professional levels on all fronts.
Documentary feature film
We are now producing three documentary feature films, so we are aware of the complexity of such productions and we clearly understand the difference between the production of a "simple" one-hour doc to the production of a documentary feature film. All the services we offer for documentary films and film productions are applicable to the production of documentary feature films as well.
Documentary film footage
Our picture archive is unique in many ways, but one of them is very significant: Most of it was filmed by experienced documentary cameramen, who were on location shooting a documentary film or getting footage completions for one. Many of the tapes filmed for our own films, following the most significant events and locations in the recent history of Israel and Palestine, are part of our footage library. If your documentary film is happening elsewhere, and you need only a few minutes from Israel, we assure you that we can get the best suitable footage for you.
Freelance Documentary Filmmakers
During the years we have developed long-standing relationships with some of the best freelance filmmakers in Israel and Palestine. In the past few years several production companies who were interested in producing documentary sequences or complete films in Israel approached us, but from a variety of reasons they couldn't send their key personnel to the locations. In these cases we found the most suitable Israeli filmmakers to work with this productions. We are proud to state that the matchmaking was successful in all cases...
Audio-video Production
We have an in-house complete operation for your audio video production: from camera sets to experienced, professional crews, editing and other post production features for the completion of your audio-video project. In addition, our content / creative persons are experienced in working for international customers, both from the production industry and commercial customers looking to produce a one-time video production.
Single video camera production
We produce dozens of hours of single video camera production every year. Let us know what you are looking for and we would be glad to offer you the relevant production crew, gear and services you may require.
Christian Video Production
From the Church of the Holy Sepulcher in Jerusalem, to the churches of Nazareth, the locations in the Galilee and by the Sea of Galilee, to the Church of the Nativity in Bethlehem and many other locations bearing a great significance to the cradle of Christianity - our producers and camera crews are regular visitors to these locations. We have produced and provided production services for dozens of films and videos dealing with various aspects of Christianity, it's history and heritage. In addition for facilitating the shoots, arranging filming permits and assembling a professional and experienced production and filming crew, we will let you know in advance the important details you would like to know before going on a shoot: where are the locations? When are the best days and times to film interiors / exteriors? Can you use artificial lights? Will the proprietors allow for speaking scenes to be filmed? Will they approve the use of dolly / crane indoors? And many other questions and issues we learned in many years doing this...
digital video production
As you can see in the trailers and other reels in our website, we are no strangers to digital videos... Many videos we produce have been digital all the way - from DV, DVCAM and HD cameras to non linear editing and uploading the final produce to a web site, streaming engine or burning it on a DVD. Our technical personnel find and develop many useful applications of web processes and procedures in video productions - from online viewing of footage or work in process by several parties around the world to uploading broadcast quality videos for transmission across the world.
Commercial Video Production
Highlight Films provides production services / creative assistance to dozens of commercial video productions every year. From three-minute instruction video for a local or international manufacturer, to a worldwide sales video or a TV commercial spot using footage, actors and animation - we have the experience and the abilities to analyze your project and offer you the necessary production services you require, as well as any options you may be interested in reviewing.
And when we face a challenge we are not sure about our ability to cope with, we always admit that. In this business no production company knows everything... While we know that our producers and creative people are very experienced, we will never mislead our clients or take upon ourselves a project we are not sure we can complete in full. As Israel's leading production house, we learned to keep it simple: listen to your customer, find the simplest solutions and take it from there: it is always possible to begin with complication and simplify your way on, but we prefer the other way... We know that you can always complicate things, the only question is if you want to...
Promotional video production
We have produced many promotional videos - for campaigns, products, services and companies. We are very experienced working with advertising professionals dictating a creative line and we believe that we have in Israel some excellent creative talents who can provide all necessary answers from here to your requirements.
Corporate Video Production House
In the last years we produced corporate videos and films for companies from England, Scotland, France, Germany, The United States, UAE and Israel. A corporate video is always tailor-made according to the purpose, needs and specific nature of the company. Among our regular contractors and in house creative talents are writers, scriptwriters, researchers and directors who are very experienced with planning and executing a corporate video production.
Producing the entire production in Israel is usually significantly less expensive than the production of the same video in Europe or the US. Even if our customer is in the other end of the world, he or she will be totally updated in the production process and can utilize our online work processes for their benefit.
In a corporate production we were in charge of in Spring 2007, the CEO of the company wanted to see the shoot, but was in South America at the time. We established low-resolution video communication at no cost from Jerusalem to Buenos Aires, and one week later we did the same in the end of the editing process, when the same CEO was in Australia. The main obstacle we have in setting up these conferences and online collaborations is the time differences - but that is something even we can't control....
With the development if the Internet, many corporate videos are now produced in order to fit several media outlets: while fewer customers use VHS tapes, many of the companies working with us use the combination of DVD, web digital video and streaming digital video.
Corporate training video Production
Unlike a corporate or infomercial video, the training video has to be the outcome of working with both the customer and the future viewer. The research process requires a deep understanding of both the content and the unique nature of the viewers, as far as language, the training setup, using the right terminology and creating optional outlets for future uses of the video in collaboration with other training tools. Once research is complete and the direction we recommended is accepted by the customer, we will write a first draft of a script, based on the technical data and information provided by the customer. After filming and editing, we will present a rough cut of the video, and after approval we will add graphics and animation, record final voice over and add other visual and audio elements to reach a complete product.
Corporate video production services
We can provide all necessary production services for the production of a corporate video or corporate film.
Pre-production: research, location finding and location management; releases and permits; scouting and casting of local talents.
Production: Coordination of camera crew and equipment; Production management.
Post production: Editing, format transfers, sound mixing, original or commercial music tracks clearance, archive footage, DVD mastering and duplication, compression to web formats / streaming video.
Educational Video Production
Our crews and producers took part in several productions of educational videos. Such productions in Israel / Palestine usually deal with either religion and archeology, or with the political / historical circumstances in past and present. Our vast archive, containing more than 900 ours of footage can come very handy for such projects. In our database we have experts for every area of activity, from Massada in the Herodian times to urban warfare in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. We will be able to advise you about specialists in every field and the best ways to film on the relevant locations.
creative video production
We work with the best creative talents in Israel and Palestine, and we would be glad to advise you on the best local talent for your production. We work with both established and experienced directors and young, talented professionals who are eager to prove their talent and motivation. As far as technical crews are concerned, we work only with the best. There are hundreds of good video cameramen in Israel, but on our lists there are less than 15 cameramen. Our demands are first and foremost professionalism, then good English language skills and obviously, we prefer nice people on the set... So if you are extremely talented but painfully obnoxious, we won't hire your services...
Video field production
Our fixers, or field producers, were trained as assistants to senior producers before working on their own. Our fixers are first-rate producers who operate from the office in pre-production, and on the field once actual production has begun. They have to be able to improvise, to solve problems swiftly, to keep a careful eye on the budget and to be ready with the next phase, scene or location. Whenever one of our fixers is out on a production, he or she knows that they have a back up person they can call or text with anything they need. The backup person will find information on the web, provide the fixer with help to unplanned multitasking, check updated weather and traffic information, and seek advise for anything the fixer is working on.
Since many of the stories we are working on take place in semi-hostile areas, it is of great importance to plan according to changing security conditions. Our Tel Aviv headquarters advises all fixers on the field about sudden security developments.
Television production services
Highlight Films has more than ten years of experience in producing television projects - fro studio programs to documentary films, reality formats, documentary feature films and others. We will assemble the best local crews possible in Israel or the Palestinian West Bank for you to work with, and we can assure you the highest professional levels on all fronts.
