Hiring Local Talent and Extras in Croatia
Plan local casting with a clear brief, written bookings and the right checks before the shoot.
Casting in Croatia is not just a search for faces. The brief, rights package, schedule, and way performers will be engaged need to fit together before candidates are put forward. Local casting agencies and service-production companies can connect an international production with principal actors and extras; a local production partner can help turn those choices into workable bookings and set arrangements. The useful early question is not “what is the Croatian rate?” but “what exactly are we buying, from whom, and on what terms?” This guide sets out the decisions that affect a real production: how to brief a supplier, compare a shortlist, plan approvals, document the booking, and identify issues needing Croatian legal or payroll advice. Fees, commissions, usage, and working conditions should be quoted for the project rather than inferred from a generic rate card.
As Fixers in Croatia, we bring local expertise to international productions filming in Croatia. Our team's deep knowledge of local regulations, crew networks, and production infrastructure ensures your project runs smoothly from pre-production through delivery.
ACT 01
Start with a production-ready casting brief
Give the casting team enough context to find an appropriate shortlist without reducing people to regional stereotypes. A useful brief can include:
- role type, script context, age range, language and performance requirements;
- whether the role is principal, featured, or background;
- dates, locations, expected availability, and any travel needs;
- audition materials, self-tape or in-person requirements, and approval process;
- wardrobe, movement, driving, musical, technical, or other genuinely necessary skills;
- anticipated use of the performance, territories, media, term, and any buyout or reuse terms to be negotiated; and
- safeguarding, accessibility, or interpretation arrangements relevant to the production.
Brief the person, not a stereotype
Describe the character and the work, not an assumed appearance based on where someone comes from. If a language variety, historical context, or community connection is important to the story, explain why and ask a local casting professional to advise on a respectful process.
ACT 02
Choose the casting route against the brief
Croatia has local casting agencies with databases covering principal acting talent and extras, and some service-production companies have in-house casting departments. An international production can also ask a Croatian production partner to recommend options suited to the scale, location, languages, and role requirements. The right comparison is therefore between proposed approaches, not between unsupported claims about agency size or regional pricing. Send the same written brief to the selected partner or casting contacts and request project-specific information about:
- database or open-call approach;
- casting director and assistant availability;
- audition, self-tape, callback, and fitting arrangements;
- proposed shortlist and approval milestones;
- contracts, releases, usage terms, and payment administration;
- agency or casting fees, expenses, and cancellation terms; and
- backup planning for weather, illness, schedule changes, or crowd requirements.
Where HAVC fits
The Croatian Audiovisual Centre’s Filming in Croatia materials identify local production companies as a route to assistance, including casting, and its Filming in Croatia Department can help put productions in touch with a company tailored to their needs. This is a useful starting point, not an endorsement of a particular agency or a substitute for checking references and terms.
ACT 03
A workable casting workflow
Use these steps to connect casting decisions to the shoot plan, with a named decision-maker for each approval.
1. Confirm the brief and rights
Before auditions begin, agree who has creative approval, what the performer is being asked to do, and how the recorded performance will be used. Keep essential requirements separate from preferences, and flag sensitive scenes or special arrangements at the briefing stage.
2. Request a scoped shortlist
Ask the casting team to explain how it will source candidates and what information will accompany each submission. For extras, clarify the numbers, dates, continuity needs, and whether any distinctive skills or actions are required. For speaking roles, agree language testing and callback expectations in advance.
3. Schedule auditions and approvals
Set milestones around the actual shooting plan rather than promising a universal lead time. Principal casting, background requirements, period detail, multiple languages, minors, and difficult locations may each require different preparation. Leave time for client approvals, contract review, fittings, and replacement planning. If a supplier cannot explain what the approval points are, the production may be comparing candidates without knowing when a decision is actually needed. Remote auditions may be useful, but the production and casting team should choose the format that lets candidates perform safely and lets decision-makers assess the stated requirements fairly. Confirm who records, stores, and can access audition material, and when it will be deleted or otherwise dealt with.
4. Confirm the booking in writing
Do not rely on a verbal hold. The written booking or contract should identify the role or work, dates, location, fee and payment route, expenses, cancellation terms, publicity or usage rights, and any special conditions. The correct document depends on the engagement model and the performer’s status. For an employment relationship, Croatian government guidance says the employment contract is concluded in writing, or written confirmation must be supplied before work starts. Obtain project-specific advice on tax, social contributions, payroll, collective-agreement coverage, and performer releases. A budget category or production incentive rule does not itself establish a performer’s fee, commission, or levy percentage.
5. Prepare the set
Share call information, transport instructions, contact details, conduct expectations, wardrobe guidance, and scene-specific notes in a form the performer can understand. Coordinate extras through a named production contact, maintain attendance and continuity records, and make sure changes are communicated promptly. For employees, official Croatian guidance addresses working-time safeguards including a 30-minute break where employment includes at least six hours of work in a day, a weekly full-time benchmark, and daily rest. These rules should be checked against the engagement model, current law, contract, and any applicable agreement. A break entitlement is not the same as a universal promise of employer-provided catering.
ACT 04
Minors and foreign talent need early checks
Croatia’s Labour Act provides for social-welfare approval before a child or a minor attending compulsory primary education participates in paid filming. The legal representative applies to the body competent for social-welfare matters. Ask the competent social-welfare authority or Croatian counsel about the current filing procedure and timing well before the shoot. Obtain written approval before participation; submitting an application is not approval. Different rules can apply to 15–17-year-olds no longer in compulsory primary education, including employment safeguards; confirm the engagement route and minor-specific conditions rather than applying adult working-time assumptions.
Foreign performers
For foreign performers, check nationality, residence status, role, and engagement structure before work begins. Croatian government guidance states that third-country nationals generally work on the basis of a residence and work permit or a work registration certificate, subject to listed exemptions. The correct route is individual and should be verified rather than assumed.
Filming registration and permits
Also distinguish filming registration from permission to film. HAVC states that its filming registration confirmation does not constitute a filming permit. Determine which registrations, permits, and local approvals apply to the production itself; do not treat performer paperwork as a substitute for them.
ACT 05
Budgeting without invented rate cards
A responsible casting budget should be built from written quotes and the actual engagement model. Ask each provider to separate, where applicable:
- performer fees and any agreed usage or reuse;
- casting, agency, or production-service fees;
- payroll, tax, and social-contribution handling;
- auditions, fittings, rehearsals, travel, accommodation, and expenses;
- overtime, schedule changes, cancellation, and weather contingencies; and
- replacement or additional-crowd requirements.
No national rate card
The audiovisual-incentive regulations identify actors and extras as distinct production-cost categories and refer to applicable public charges, but that does not create a current fee schedule or a universal percentage. Do not publish or budget as though one national rate, commission, or regional discount applies to every engagement.
ACT 06
Questions to ask a local partner
Before confirming a casting supplier, ask:
- Which parts of the brief can you cover directly, and which require another supplier?
- How will candidates be approached, assessed, and informed about the project?
- What documents will performers sign, and who handles payment and payroll?
- How will language, consent, sensitive content, accessibility, and safeguarding be managed?
- What are the cancellation, replacement, travel, fitting, and usage terms?
- What legal, work-status, or minor-approval checks must be completed before the shoot?
- Which costs are estimates, and which are confirmed in writing?
Compare answers, not promises
A clear answer to these questions is more useful than an unsupported headline number or a promise that every booking follows the same schedule.
ACT 07
Common Questions
How far in advance should we start casting in Croatia?
Start as soon as the brief, dates, and usage requirements are sufficiently clear. The appropriate lead time depends on the roles, languages, number of extras, locations, approvals, and whether minors or foreign performers are involved. Ask the casting partner for a written schedule with review and contingency points rather than relying on a fixed rule.
Can a Croatian production partner help with casting?
Yes. HAVC’s 2026 production guide says Croatian production companies can assist through the phases of a project, including casting, and points productions toward its Filming in Croatia Department for a tailored company contact. Request more than one project-specific quote where practical.
Are there standard union or extra rates we can use?
Do not assume one. Verify any applicable collective agreement, its coverage, the performer’s engagement model, and the current terms with a Croatian production partner, payroll specialist, or counsel. Obtain written quotes for the particular production.
What should we budget beyond a performer’s fee?
Consider casting or agency charges, payroll and public charges, usage, auditions, fittings, travel, accommodation, schedule changes, cancellations, and replacement needs. The amounts depend on the contract and project; the production budget should show the assumptions behind each quote.
What approvals are needed for child performers?
For a child or minor attending compulsory primary education, the legal representative must seek approval from the body competent for social-welfare matters before participation in paid filming. Confirm the current procedure and timing with the competent authority or Croatian counsel well before the shoot. An application is not an approval; obtain the decision before participation. A 15–17-year-old outside compulsory primary education may follow a different employment route, which must also be checked before work.
Can foreign performers work in Croatia without further checks?
Not necessarily. Work authorization depends on nationality, residence status, role, employer, and applicable exemptions. Check the individual case with the Croatian production partner and the relevant authority before travel or work begins.
Sources
- Croatian Audiovisual Centre — Filming in Croatia 2026 production guide (pp. 10, 75, 77)
- Croatian Government — Employment contract
- Invest Croatia — Working hours
- Official Gazette — Labour Act amendment, Article 19.a (child performers)
- Croatian Government — Work of foreign nationals
- Croatian Audiovisual Centre — Filming registration
- Official Gazette — Audiovisual incentive eligible costs (Appendix 2)
Ready to Roll
Plan Local Casting in Croatia
Share the roles, dates and locations you need to cast. We can discuss a local casting route and the written terms your production should confirm before booking. Contact Fixers in Croatia to discuss your next project.