Film production in Puerto Rico

Puerto Rico is covered here with 1 location. Between the longest and shortest day, usable light swings by up to 2h 12min depending on where you shoot — planning across the country is not planning one single kind of day.

Shooting hours in San Juan across the year

San Juan is the location covered here for this country. The table gives sunrise, sunset, usable daylight and the start of the evening golden hour for every month — computed from the coordinates (18.4655, -66.1057) in the America/Puerto_Rico timezone.

Sun times for San Juan — computed for 2026, timezone America/Puerto_Rico
MonthSunriseSunsetDaylightGolden hour (evening, from)
January07:0018:0911h 08min17:37
February06:5318:2611h 33min17:56
March06:3418:3512h 01min18:06
April06:0818:4212h 34min18:13
May05:5218:5213h 00min18:21
June05:4919:0313h 14min18:31
July05:5719:0513h 08min18:34
August06:0718:5312h 46min18:23
September06:1318:2812h 15min17:59
October06:1918:0311h 44min17:34
November06:3217:4811h 16min17:17
December06:5017:5111h 02min17:19

What that means for planning

In San Juan, daylight swings by 2h 12min across the year. A schedule built around 13h 14min in June has only 11h 02min left in December — with the same setup count.

Concretely: in December, the sun in San Juan sets at 17:51, with golden hour starting as early as 17:19. 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 Puerto Rico are covered here?

1. Locations are included when there is an evidenced production landscape — not every town in the country.

Which location in Puerto Rico has the longest shooting days?

In June, San Juan with 13h 14min of daylight. In December that drops to 11h 02min.

When is the best time to shoot in Puerto Rico?

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.