Where can you find some of the most impressive filming locations in the world? The answer is in the Magallanes and Chilean Antarctica Region. This amazing tourism destination has it all, from beautiful virgin forests to inhospitable mountain peaks. The best of all: it is relatively unexplored by filmmakers. This means there is an opportunity to leave a footprint, a mark, in this amazing place. 

Filmagallanes is a project that invites producers and directors from all over the world to come film in the Magallanes Region in some of the most austere and beautiful places on the planet, including fjords, glaciers, islands, mountains, residences, volcanoes, and much more. “Our workhorse to promote Magallanes as a cinematographic destination, is the website. You can find photos and information about each one of the provinces and towns there, with eight locations that are being promoted for the producers to have clear and precise information”, says Rodrigo Moreno, locational producer, and Coordinator of Filmagallanes.  

The Filmagallanes.com website seeks to position locations in Magallanes that are not in the collective unconscious such as Cabo Froward, Seno Obstrucción, Bahía Inútil, and others. “The information on the website can be perfectly useful for a tourist or visitor that searches for more details. On the other hand, and thinking long-term, the idea is to achieve the execution of important film projects, so these destinations are internationally seen”, says Rodrigo Moreno. 

Arrangements behind Filmagallanes 

Filmagallanes is a project initiated by the Regional Government through the Magallanes and Chilean Antarctica Regional Corfo Direction, as part of the framework of the Strategic Impact Initiatives Support Program that implemented a program called Tourism Reactivation in Times of Crisis Program, with the purpose of developing the creative industry and tourism, in the southernmost region in the country.    

“In this regional government, through the IFI promotion program, along with Corfo, we have promoted 11 tourism areas. There is one that we are particularly interested in, and it is related to the film industry in Magallanes. It is an incredibly beautiful region, with endless majestic landscapes, but this is not spontaneously known. We are systematizing what we have in the region to tell the world about it through Filmagallanes and thus, huge cinematographic productions can be done in our beautiful lands”, says Jorge Flies, Magallanes, and Chilean Antarctica Regional Governor. 

As well as the possibility to explore different film destinations, Filmagallanes offers detailed information for “location scouts” that are interested in filming in the south of the world, such as characteristics and qualities of each location and its level of difficulty, and recommendations to shoot, in addition to photos and a trailer to get to know its possibilities. Among the locations included in the catalog Bahía Inútil, Cabo Froward, Dientes de Navarino, Lago Fagnano, Pali Aike, Puerto Edén, Puerto Navarino, and Seno Obstrucción stand out. 

“At Corfo, we have always focused many of our tools on collaborating in the tourism productive sector. This project in particular, gives us the possibility to understand this region as a location where films, series, and advertisements can be developed, not only Chilean but also foreign. We must look at other countries such as Spain, Australia, Croatia, or New Zealand, which have gained a lot in terms of attracting tourists through the film industry”, says María José Navajas, Corfo Regional Director, Magallanes. 

Which films have been filmed in the Magallanes Region? 

Some of the movies whose shootings have been developed in the region are “Blanco en blanco”, the second full-length film by the Spanish-Chilean director Théo Court, which has been awarded two prizes at the Venice Film Festival in 2019, and “El Conde”, the new film for Netflix by the national director Pablo Larraín. 

“We want to organize a ‘Family Tour’ with important producers in the country that are making international movies and series, so they can get to know the region, go on a circuit, and travel around the locations we are offering”, states Rodrigo Moreno, locational producer, and Coordinator of Filmagallanes. 

He also adds: “Magallanes has a wide landscape diversity. You can be filming in a desert place and then in a leafy area in a mountain, to end up on a glacier. We also have great connectivity between provinces, great highways, ways to get close by sea or air. We also have a high-level hotel network located in strategic places. There is a rich light for a filmmaker, which is golden and soft, along with long days in the months of November and December. Everything for a great cinematographic experience.”