Maui County is made up of four islands: Maui, Molokai and Lana’i and Kaho’olawe. Maui, the largest of the three islands, has for an unprecedented 14th time captured "Best Island in the World" honors by Condé Nast Traveler. Molokai, which many say is the most Hawaiian island in the chain, is the county’s second largest island. Once known as the “Pineapple Island,” the privately owned island of Lana’i sits off the west coast of Maui. Rounding out Maui County is the Kaho’olawe Island Reserve, which is uninhabited. Commercial filming is not allowed on Kaho’olawe. Any filming requests that are documentary, education or cultural in nature, should go through the Hawaii Film Office which in turn will coordinate with the Kaho’olawe Island Reserve Commission (kahoolawe.hawaii.gov). Maui, Molokai and Lana’I together offer some of Hawaii’s most magnificent and diverse locations, scenery and terrain.
THE MAUI FILM OFFICE: At the direction of the Mayor’s Office, Maui County is ready to offer producers, directors, production companies, and filmmakers production support, crew and talent. The Maui film office provides assistance in location scouting services by air, land and sea. The Maui film office will assist you in securing the necessary services designed to make your film experience in Maui County a complete success.
LOCATIONS: Maui County’s spectacular islands offer 42 miles of sandy beaches, 200,000 acres of verdant pastures and ranch land as well as redwood and eucalypyptus forests. From the plains of Africa or lush jungles or rainforests, Maui County fits the bill. Maui’s towns also take on an international flavor. Lahaina, an old whaling town, features plantation-style architecture, while the surf town of Paia has a Caribbean flair: Upcountry’s Makawao is an ode to America’s old west and Wailuku, the county seat, harkens back to Hawaii villages of old. And, of course, the sleepy town of Hana, also known as “heavenly Hana,” captures old Hawaii at its best. Couple this with some of the world’s tallest seacliffs on Lanai and waterfalls on Moloka’i, and it’s easy to see why Maui County can double for almost anywhere in the world. With Maui’s moonscape Haleakala Crater and Lana’i’s Mars-like Garden of the Gods, Maui County can double for other worlds as well.
CREW: For your convenience, Maui County maintains a production guide. Maui has a very strong, well established production crew base, with many specialists in each field of filmmaking.
PERMITTING: The Maui County Film Office provides permits for all the islands in the county and helps to facilitate state and national park permits.
FACILITIES: The Maui Arts & Cultural Center is a state-of-the-art venue featuring a 1,000-seat indoor theater as well as a smaller theater that doubles as a sound stage. Maui’s Research and Technology Park houses the Maui High Performance Computing Center. This center offers fiber optic connectivity to the U.S. mainland, Asia, and Europe via T1 and T3 lines. Complete videoconferencing facilities, film resolution, CGI rendering and qualified access to one of the world’s largest supercomputers are also available.
The Maui County Film Office prides itself as a one-stop shop for filmmakers. Remember, whatever your needs, Maui County will see that it happens.