Shooting a car commercial in Eastern Europe
Roads, a race circuit, backlots, camera cars and a McLaren case study.
Bulgaria and Romania offer the best value in Europe for car commercials. Bulgaria combines mountain passes with hairpins, dramatic gorge roads, a race circuit an hour from Sofia, modern city boulevards and standing New York, London and American suburban street sets, all within a few hours of each other. Romania adds the Transfăgărășan, one of the most dramatic driving roads in the world. On a recent McLaren commercial, the same scope that Western European bids priced at €170,000 to €225,000 was delivered in Bulgaria for around €100,000.
Car commercials are expensive to shoot almost anywhere. Roads need closing, camera cars and precision drivers are costly, and the brief usually demands several contrasting looks: a mountain road, a city at night, a coastline. That last requirement is where geography decides the budget. The fewer company moves between looks, the more of the budget ends up on screen.
Who shoots car commercials in Bulgaria
Bulgaria regularly hosts automotive productions. Brands that have shot commercials here include McLaren, Škoda, Citroën, Lamborghini, BMW, BYD, Porsche, Toyota and SEAT.
The reasons are consistent: varied roads close together, a track within an hour of the capital, the kit and crew that car work demands, and costs well below Western Europe.
The roads
Mountain passes. The Shipka Pass crosses the Balkan range with 22 hairpin bends on its southern side and gradients of 10 to 12 percent, topped by the Shipka Memorial. The Troyan Pass is the highest regularly passable road in the country. Both deliver the classic sweeping-hairpin shot.
Gorge roads. The Kresna Gorge carries a winding road along the Struma river in southwest Bulgaria, between steep rocky slopes, and it's a proven location for car work with partial and rolling closures. In the Rhodopes, the road through the Trigrad Gorge runs beneath cliffs 100 to 300 metres high, with the tighter Buynovo Gorge nearby. For a brief that wants drama rather than open vistas, these are exceptional.
Close to Sofia. Vitosha mountain rises directly above the capital, so mountain road footage is possible on the same day as city work.
Coast and open road. The Black Sea coastal road between Varna and Burgas, and the Trakia motorway for high-speed tracking on a modern highway.
The city. Sofia gives you wide modern boulevards, glass business districts, Brutalist housing estates and Soviet-era industrial sites, often within a few kilometres of each other.
The track
A1 Motor Park, a race circuit near Samokov, about an hour from central Sofia, is available for controlled track work: hot laps, drifting, launch shots and anything that needs a closed, repeatable surface. Pit boxes are booked separately from track time.
The backlots
Car commercials often need a street that isn't in Bulgaria. On the same lot near Sofia there are standing sets for a New York street, a London street and an American suburban street with driveways. A car can arrive in Manhattan in the morning and pull into a suburban driveway after lunch, with no road closure needed for either. Full details are in our guide to New York, London, Middle East and Ancient Rome backlots.
Camera cars, action vehicles and drivers
Everything car work needs is available locally: Russian Arm and similar camera car systems, action vehicles, a large variety of picture cars, and precision drivers. Nothing has to be shipped in, which saves both cost and lead time.
Road closures and permits
Partial and rolling closures are possible on mountain, gorge and city roads, so a car can run the same stretch repeatedly while traffic is held and released between takes. City-centre location permits in Sofia typically clear in one to two weeks from confirmed location.
Case study: McLaren
The brief. A premium automotive commercial for McLaren, aimed at Asian markets. Two shooting days, a 30-second TVC plus social cutdowns, and several distinct location looks on a tight timeline. The agency and production company were based in Dubai, and a specialist McLaren driver came in from the United States. The Asian cast was sourced locally in Bulgaria.
The Western European bids. The job was first scoped and priced in several established production hubs. Bids from Spain, Italy and Germany ranged from €170,000 to €225,000.
The Bulgarian production. The whole production was relocated to Bulgaria with the creative, technical and quality scope unchanged. Total budget: about €100,000, roughly 40 to 55 percent below the Western European bids. It was delivered on time and on budget.
Where it was shot. Both city and mountain road. The road sequences were filmed in the Kresna Gorge using partial, rolling closures, which gave the production a dramatic winding road without closing the route entirely.
Where the saving came from:
- Lower crew and infrastructure costs
- Dense locations, so less travel between looks
- Streamlined permits and less downtime
- Lower overhead on standard production services
What didn't change: senior international-level crew, English-speaking heads of department, high-end camera, lighting and grip equipment, premium locations, and identical deliverables and timelines.
For day rates across six Eastern European markets, see our crew rates comparison.
Frequently asked questions
Where is the best place in Eastern Europe to shoot a car commercial?
Which car brands have shot commercials in Bulgaria?
How much cheaper is a car commercial in Bulgaria than in Western Europe?
What are the best roads for filming in Bulgaria?
Can I close a road for a car commercial in Bulgaria?
Is there a race track near Sofia for filming?
Are camera cars and Russian Arms available in Bulgaria?
Can I cast international talent in Bulgaria?
Can I combine road, track and city scenes in one shoot?
About this guide
Compiled by Vivid Films, a production service company based in Sofia working across Bulgaria, the Balkans and Southeast Europe.
Sources
- Sources: Vivid Films production data; Bulgarian National Film Center.
