Filming a highland event in Kundasang

Kundasang is a highland town, so the questions are about altitude, weather and who owns each place you want to film. Settle those first, and the filming plan follows.

Where is Kundasang, and what events are held there?

Kundasang is a hill station in Ranau District, about 6 km from Kinabalu National Park. At around 1,900 metres, the air is cool and mist is routine. People choose it for retreats, company trips, weddings and family gatherings away from the city.

How do cold and mist change filming?

For an event, that means:

• An outdoor ceremony can be delayed or moved. Agree a covered or indoor fallback with the venue.
• The mountain view you chose the venue for may be hidden. Do not plan the whole film around one shot.
• Guests in jackets change how group portraits look. Plan portraits for a covered spot.

Our guide on weather planning for an event videography booking lists what to agree. Ask your venue which hall or terrace takes over if it rains.

Who do you ask about each place?

The places people want in a Kundasang video belong to different owners.

• Kundasang War Memorial and Gardens. The four gardens honour prisoners of war who died at the Sandakan camp and on the marches to Ranau. Ask the people who care for it, and expect a quiet, respectful setting.
• Farms and the dairy farm. These are private land. Ask the owner for a time, and for how many people may enter.
• Roadside vegetable stalls. They run along the main road and are busy with buyers. Ask the stall owners before you film them or their customers.
• Kinabalu National Park and other Sabah Parks sites. Sabah Parks asks for a formal application at least 14 days before filming, and lists approvals from other agencies. It also lists a fee line for professional or commercial camera use, and says recreational drone use is prohibited in its parks. Ask the park office how an event recording is treated.

Read permits and permissions for destination filming. For drones, CAAM (Civil Aviation Authority of Malaysia) asks for applications at least 14 working days before the activity, with additional authorisation in Sabah. See the Sabah drone questions.

How do the crew and equipment get there?

The road up is a mountain road, so arrival time matters more than it does in a city. Think through these:

1. When does the programme start, and when must the crew be set up?
2. Does the crew arrive the night before, or on the morning?
3. Where does the crew stay, and who books it?
4. What power and sound does the venue provide?

Ask the venue early how many rooms it has, because the crew may need somewhere to stay. See filming a resort or destination event and the outstation filming budget worksheet.

Where do you start?

Tell us the venue, the date and the programme. Writing your plan in the event video brief builder is a good first step. For a city event on the way up, see Kota Kinabalu. The Sabah overview covers the other settings, and our event videography service lists what we film.