Film production in Switzerland
Switzerland is covered here with 10 locations. Between the longest and shortest day, usable light swings by up to 7h 29min depending on where you shoot — planning across the country is not planning one single kind of day.
Locations at a glance
The table shows June and December daylight for each location — the two numbers a schedule hinges on across the year.
| Location | Daylight June | Daylight December | Spread |
|---|---|---|---|
| Basel | 15h 57min | 8h 28min | 7h 29min |
| Winterthur | 15h 57min | 8h 28min | 7h 29min |
| St. Gallen | 15h 56min | 8h 29min | 7h 27min |
| Zurich | 15h 55min | 8h 29min | 7h 26min |
| Zug | 15h 54min | 8h 31min | 7h 23min |
| Lucerne | 15h 53min | 8h 32min | 7h 21min |
| Bern | 15h 52min | 8h 33min | 7h 19min |
| Lausanne | 15h 48min | 8h 36min | 7h 12min |
| Geneva | 15h 45min | 8h 39min | 7h 06min |
| Lugano | 15h 44min | 8h 40min | 7h 04min |
What that means for planning
Basel has the widest swing at 7h 29min, Lugano the narrowest at 7h 04min. The wider the spread, the more a schedule has to differ between summer and winter — same setup count, different hours to fit it in.
Concretely: in December, the sun in Basel sets at 16:39, with golden hour starting as early as 15:47. Put the exterior at the end of the day and you shoot it in the dark, or not at all.
TillyGen folds each location's sun position straight into the schedule. An exterior that no longer fits before sunset in December is flagged in the plan, not discovered on the day. The same calculation sits behind every location page for this country.
Permits and local requirements
Filming permits are granted locally almost everywhere, not nationally: the city or district you shoot in is the responsible body, and processing times differ considerably within the same country. Public space, traffic areas and drone flights each run through separate procedures.
File early enough that a refusal still leaves room for a cover location — not so late that the permit becomes the condition for the only possible shoot day. Only the responsible local authority gives binding information.
Frequently asked
How many locations in Switzerland are covered here?
10. Locations are included when there is an evidenced production landscape — not every town in the country.
Which location in Switzerland has the longest shooting days?
In June, Basel with 15h 57min of daylight. In December that drops to 8h 28min.
When is the best time to shoot in Switzerland?
On daylight length alone, June. Whether that also means the steadiest weather depends on the location — the individual location pages carry rain days and sunshine hours per month.
Do I need a separate permit for every location?
As a rule yes, as soon as public ground is involved. Private locations run through the owner; traffic areas and drones add further procedures. The local authority is always the binding source.