Courts & Prisons

Opening up the Ministry of Justice’s sites to filming is part of a policy to promote the State’s intangible heritage.

Filming is managed by the Audiovisual and Heritage Promotion Office of the Délégation à l’information et à la communication (DICOM): a single point of contact, personalised support and a wide range of sites to choose from!

As part of its mission to promote our heritage, the office dedicated to the filming of fiction is responsible for :

• Searching for suitable locations for filming (prisons, courts and other places of justice);
• Requesting authorisations internally;
• Determining the amount of the fee;
• Drawing up the agreement to make the space available for filming

Filming request

Fundamental principles of the Ministry of Justice for hosting a film shoot :

Priority to the continuity of the public justice service:

• Adaptation of filming to the judicial calendar and the occupancy rates of the establishments;

• Limiting the inconvenience caused in relation to normal site activity;

Respect for the image of the judicial institution:

• Accompanied by a proofreading committee (to correct and explain legal inaccuracies and avoid confusion with the legal systems of other countries);

• Strict compliance with the principle of res judicata = no turning on a case in courts !

Compliance with safety and security standards:

• Application of the conditions of use of the premises and/or specific recommendations (e.g. list and photocopies of ID cards for crew members, compliance with fire safety standards….);

• Securing the filming perimeter so as not to impede the movement of staff, litigants, detainees and visitors;

• Storing and installing equipment in compliance with safety standards and without damaging the premises;

• It is forbidden to use drones to fly over courts, appeal courts and prisons.

Please note that filming in prisons is authorised:

• outside prison sites (general views, entrance and exit scenes, prison grounds, family reception area, car parks, etc.);

• inside prison sites (entrance gates, main courtyard, visiting rooms, semi-liberty quarters, with the exception of detention quarters: living units for detainees).

Certain areas such as watchtowers or protected posts may not be photographed nor filmed under any circumstances.

Documents to be provided for filming requests :

• Note of intent ;
• Synopsis ;
• Complete script and sequences dedicated to the locations of Justice ;
• Certificate of insurance ;
• Producer/Broadcaster :
• Types of sets required ;
• Requested dates and locations

Procedure

1. Centralisation of filming requests by the Audiovisual and Heritage Promotion Office – request sent by e-mail.

2. Examination of the request by the fiction Film Office and request for additional information if necessary.

3. Referral to the proofreading group, if there is a need to rework judicial realism;

4. Opinion of the fiction film office in conjunction with the Judicial Services Department and the Prison Services Department.

5. In the event of a favourable opinion, the fiction Film Office liaises with staff in the field (head of court, head of court, head of prison) via the magistrates responsible for communication and the communication managers of the regional prison services directorates.

6. The fiction Film Office is informed of the final decision to approve or reject filming by the establishments concerned and informs the production team.

7. If the filming is approved, and once the final technical scouting has been completed, the fiction film office will send a fact sheet to the production, which will be used to calculate the fee and draw up the availability agreement.

8. The agreement is signed by the production and the relevant department of the Ministry.

Disused premises: the Ministry of Justice has few disused premises. When buildings cease to operate, they are sold or become the property of France Domaine.

Prices

The rates applied by the Ministry of Justice are designed according to the APIE method (which the Film France network has made aware of the sector’s specific characteristics and territorial differences).

It distinguishes :

• types production ;

• the different phases: editing/dismantling – shooting ;

• technical crew sizes;

• Locations categories.

Fee calculation :

The amount of the fee includes the cost of providing the spaces for use as scenery, and for technical and logistical use (provided that this use does not cause any extraordinary inconvenience).

The fee does not include the cost of ancillary services (e.g. extraordinary security, cleaning, electricity, etc.).

For all rate requests, please contact tournages-decors@justice.gouv.fr

A system of discounts and surcharges is applied according to :

• the number of sets made available over the same period ;
• the size of the technical team
• filming times;
• extraordinary disruption to normal site activity;
• set-up and dismantling periods.

Contacts