Sea Stories
Aberdeenshire attracts arts and filmmakers for the natural beauty and quality of the light on our shores.
Beaches
Aberdeenshire has a huge coastline going north and south of Aberdeen and in the north along the Moray Firth from Fraserburgh. Notable beaches are St Cyrus, a long stretch of sand which is part of St Cyrus National Nature Reserve. There are great facilities including toilets and car parking. Likewise, Balmedie Country Park is the centre of a 15 mile stretch of sandy beach and dune system that starts north of Aberdeen city. The dunes are protected and this is where the large sea wind turbines are hosted giving dramatic juxtaposition of nature and modernity.
Fishing
The fishing industry is the mainstay of life in many towns and villages along the coast of Aberdeenshire. Working harbours, Macduff, Fraserburgh and Peterhead are often featured in film & tv. Peterhead, the Blue Toon, is home to the largest fishing port in the Europe and its state-of-the-art Fish Market had enables a superior environment to ensure preservation of fine quality fish.
Whilst some harbours are commercial, others such as Banff, Portsoy, Rosehearty, Johnshaven and Stonehaven are recreational harbours. These can be easier places in which to film, some of which are managed by the council.
We have good relationships with the marine economy and can help arrange boats for your production.
Unbelievably Picturesque Fishing Villages
Aberdeenshire’s numerous fishing villages were mostly built in the 19th century at the height of the herring boom. The herring, the silver darlings, as described by Neil M Gunn in his eponymous novel, were easy to catch and a huge export market. Often attracting Highlanders who had been cleared from the north west, fisherfolk built small fishing cottages, gable end to the sea to protect them from the elements. Some of these villages were ‘planned’, built by a local laird, for workers and have period uniformity. The villages, many entirely unmodernised, are all along the coast of Aberdeenshire both north, on the Moray Firth, or east, on the North Sea.
Marine Life
Macduff Marine Aquarium is an incredible place to visit and is film-friendly. What is really unique about the aquarium is that the fish and sea life is all from the local cold-water sea. The attraction is on the shore at Macduff but currently going through a major refurbishment and will re-open in 2026.
Aberdeenshire attracts arts and filmmakers for the quality of the light.
