The Setup

Rare TV is an award-winning independent television production company known for ambitious international factual series. For Extreme Airport Africa, a documentary series following the operations of airports across Southern Africa, they were filming across South Africa, Botswana, Namibia, Zambia, and Madagascar over five months, with thirty crew rotating in and out throughout, no fixed base, and a schedule that changed constantly.

The scale of the logistical challenge was significant. Thirty crew members rotated in and out throughout the production, moving between countries on a schedule that changed week to week. There was no fixed base. No single location to anchor the operation. The team was always on the move, always in a different country, and always needing to stay connected to each other and back to the UK.

The entire production workflow ran through WhatsApp. Files, approvals, and communications all moved through mobile. On some shoots, the team even filmed on their phones. Before every flight and every helicopter ride, dynamic risk assessments had to be signed off in real time. And everything had to stay connected back to UK headquarters, regardless of which country filming was in that day.

As Holly put it:

"We run everything off of WhatsApp, and sometimes we even film on our phones. Without good connectivity, our operations would grind to a halt."

Holly had worked with GTN before, on Celebrity Race Across the World across South America. The service had been reliable throughout. When Extreme Airport Africa came around with an even more complex brief, she came back to the same team.

What Global Telecom Networks Did

GTN provided international SIM cards and eSIMs covering all five territories from day one, working as seamlessly across Southern Africa as they did in the UK, with no roaming issues and no network gaps. As crew arrived and plans shifted throughout the five months, SIMs were pre-allocated and reassigned on the spot. Holly had full control over allocation as the schedule evolved, without needing to go back and forth with a supplier.

Real-time cost monitoring ran throughout the entire shoot, keeping spend visible and predictable. And whenever something came up on location, the GTN support team was available 24/7

"The eSIMs made it so easy. I could allocate them to crew members as they arrived, and with plans constantly changing, being able to adjust on the go was invaluable."

What Changed

The crew stayed connected across all five countries for the entire five-month shoot. Not a single connectivity failure. No roaming surprises. No network gaps in remote locations.

Safety-critical communications never failed. Risk assessments were approved in real time before every flight and helicopter ride. Pilots and production teams stayed in contact throughout aerial shoots. The comms held up every time it mattered.

SIM management never became a burden. With 30 rotating crew members across five countries, eSIMs were allocated and reassigned as the schedule changed without friction or delay.

Costs stayed predictable throughout. Real-time spend monitoring meant no billing surprises at the end of a five-country shoot. The final invoices reflected exactly what was expected.

Support was there at every hour. Whenever something came up on location, the GTN team responded instantly, day, night, or weekend. Holly's team never had to wait or figure something out alone in the field.

Holly's team never had to stop because of a telecom issue. Not once.

"If we hadn't had good cell service, it would have been a nightmare. The team relied on instant communication to approve risk assessments and ensure safe filming conditions."

"The support team was second to none. Any time I had an issue, even at odd hours, they were there to help. That kind of reliability is priceless in a high-pressure production environment."

The Bottom Line

Holly's summary says it better than we could:

GTN made my job so much easier. Managing telecom needs across five countries could have been a nightmare, but with GTN, I didn't even have to think about it. The service was seamless, the support was outstanding, and the cost transparency was a huge relief. I tell everyone in TV production that they need to use GTN – I wouldn't go anywhere else!"

If you're managing a production that crosses borders, your telecoms need to work as hard as your crew does. Talk to our team about Global SIM.