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Video Production Cost In Dubai, Version By Version.
How much does video production cost in Dubai? This page answers the question with published figures, not a quote: a traditional Dubai shoot on one side and the computing cost of generating the same film on the other.
Four things drive what a film costs: how long it is, how many languages it ships in, how many formats it ships in, and whether it has to be filmed for real. Change them below and both sides update as you type. On the left is what published ranges for a traditional Dubai shoot add up to. On the right is only what published rates say the computing and the lip synced dubbing would cost; the studio's own work and fee are not in it. Neither side is the studio's price. The last question changes the advice on the page, not the figures. Every number shows the published line it came from.
Your film
Anything from 5 to 300 seconds. Longer pieces are quoted directly.
Counting the first one. The studio works in English and German, and other languages are possible.
Formats
Tick every aspect ratio the campaign has to ship in.
Does it need real locations and real people on camera?
This is the question that decides whether a shoot can be replaced at all.
A traditional shoot
Published Dubai ranges for 2026, added up line by line for the film you described.
Estimated cost
AED 53,040 to AED 179,040
Brief to delivery
30 to 50 working days
Creative and pre production
AED 10,000
Once for the project
Worked example, 2026 research: creative and pre production on a 30 second brand film, AED 10,000.
Shoot days, full crew
AED 10,000 to AED 50,000
1 shoot day
Published Dubai day rates, 2026: a full crew of director, camera, sound and lighting, AED 10,000 to 50,000 a day.
Camera and lighting hire
AED 2,000 to AED 8,000
1 day
Published Dubai rates, 2026: camera and lighting hire, AED 2,000 to 8,000 a day, billed apart from the crew.
Filming permit, public location
AED 3,040
One application
Dubai Film and TV Commission, public location: AED 520 to apply and AED 2,520 for the permit.
Post production
AED 5,000 to AED 25,000
1 finished minute
Published Dubai rates, 2026: post production covering edit, grade, sound and voiceover, AED 5,000 to 25,000.
Extra language versions
AED 15,000 to AED 75,000
1 version, filmed again with local talent
Worked example, 2026 research: a second language with matching lips means filming again with local talent, plus its own post. Priced here as another shoot day and another pass of post.
Extra format versions
AED 8,000
2 versions, reframed in post
Worked example, 2026 research: reframing a version in post, AED 4,000 each, and only if the shoot was planned for it.
The pipeline, computing and dubbing only
Published 2026 rates for generating the footage and the lip synced language versions of the same film. The studio's direction, design, review, finishing and fee are not in this figure, and the skilled hours are shown as hours, not money.
Brief to delivery
3 to 7 working days
Skilled hours behind it
11 to 21 hours
Computing and dubbing cost only
AED 21 to AED 753
Generated footage for the master
AED 7 to AED 248
30 finished seconds
Published 2026 rates for generated video: USD 0.03 to 0.75 per second of raw footage, depending on the service and the resolution. Published 2026 working rule: about 2 to 3 seconds of raw footage for every finished second, because a shot takes about three attempts.
Generated footage for the other formats
AED 13 to AED 496
2 formats, generated at the new frame
Published 2026 rates for generated video: USD 0.03 to 0.75 per second of raw footage, depending on the service and the resolution.
Lip synced language versions
AED 1 to AED 9
1 language, lips matched to the words
Published 2026 rates for a lip synced language version: USD 0.24 to 2.40 per minute, per language.
What the extra versions add
Going from one language in one format to what you asked for adds AED 23,000 to AED 83,000 and 10 to 20 working days to the published shoot ranges. On the computing side the same step adds another pass of generation or dubbing, and a few more skilled hours that this page does not price.
Each extra version adds another day of crew and another pass of post to the published shoot ranges. On the computing side it adds another pass of generation or dubbing, and a few more skilled hours that this page does not price.
Email me this estimate
Send yourself a copy and the studio gets one too, so Stephan can come back with a real quote.
What this page compares
For one language in one format the two columns sit closest together. They are not two prices: the left is what a shoot would cost a buyer, the right is only what the computing would cost the studio.
Every extra language and every extra format adds to both columns. On the shoot side the published ranges add another day of crew and another pass of post for each one. On the computing side they add another pass of generation or dubbing, and a few more skilled hours that this page does not price.
Use it to see how versions add up on each side. For what a film would cost with the studio, send the brief: a project is priced from the brief and confirmed in writing before anything starts.
Email me this estimate
Send yourself a copy and the studio gets one too, so Stephan can come back with a real quote.
When a shoot is the better deal
This tool is not here to talk anybody out of a shoot. There are briefs where filming is simply the right answer:
- The brief needs a real, named person on camera. A founder, a customer or a public figure. Audiences notice a substitute.
- Live events. A conference, an opening, a race. It happened once and it had to be filmed.
- A physical product that has to be shown exactly as it is, unless real product photography goes in as the reference.
- Broadcast or regulatory approvals that require actual footage.
- Real, recognisable locations that have to be the real place.
What the shoot figure leaves out
- Talent and usage rights. No published range covers them, and what they cost depends on who is cast and where the film runs. A real shoot adds them on top, so treat the figure above as a floor.
- Private location fees. A public location permit is included. Filming inside a hotel, a mall or a private development is charged separately and can reach AED 25,000 a day.
There is a cheaper traditional route
Instead of filming the second language again, a shoot can dub it. The research behind this page puts that at roughly a quarter less than filming twice, in its own worked example. The catch is that the lips do not match the words, which is exactly the problem the pipeline solves.
This is a comparison, not a quote
The shoot column is what published Dubai ranges add up to for a traditional production, before talent and usage rights. The computing column is only what published rates say the generation and the lip synced dubbing would cost. It leaves out the studio's direction, design, review, finishing and fee, so it is not a price and cannot be read against the shoot column as one. The studio prices a project from the brief and confirms it in writing before anything starts.
Where these numbers come from
Published 2026 price guides from Dubai production studios, the Dubai Film and TV Commission permit schedule, published 2026 rates for generated video and for lip synced dubbing, and a worked example of a 30 second brand film in two languages and three formats. Dollar figures are converted at AED 3.6725 to the dollar, the rate the dirham is pegged at. Ranges are wide because published day rates run from junior to senior crews.
Questions about this tool
What This Page Is, And Is Not.
Is the pipeline figure what the studio would charge me?
No. It is only what published rates say the computing and the lip synced dubbing would cost, which is not what a film is sold for. A studio has to design the piece, direct it, review it and finish it, and none of that is computing. Treat the two columns as a comparison of how each route behaves as you add versions, not as two prices side by side.
Is this a quote?
No. It is an estimate built from published ranges, and the ranges are wide on purpose because published day rates run from junior to senior crews. The studio prices a project from the brief and confirms it in writing before anything starts.
Where do the numbers come from?
Published 2026 price guides from Dubai production studios, the Dubai Film and TV Commission permit schedule, and published 2026 rates for generated video and for lip synced dubbing. Every line in the result names the published source it came from, and dollar figures are converted at the rate the dirham is pegged at.
Does this send anything while I am using it?
No. The calculator runs entirely in your browser. You can change every setting and read the whole result without giving anybody anything. Nothing is sent unless you fill in the form asking for the estimate by email.
When would a real shoot still be the better answer?
When the brief needs a real named person on camera, when it is a live event that happened once, when a physical product has to be shown exactly as it is, when an approval requires actual footage, or when a real recognisable location has to be the real place. This page sets those out in full rather than pretending they do not exist.
Cloud & AI Infrastructure
- MicrosoftAzure
- DIFCInnovation One
Named for what the studio runs on and where it is licensed. No partnership or endorsement is implied.