HYPE's partner in Estonia, production company Get Shot Films, has repeatedly approached the Ministry of Justice and Digital Affairs to discuss the possibility of allowing the French company to use Tartu Prison's currently vacant wing as a filming location for a French-language reality show. The production would require housing 50 participants in prison cells for 15 days.

However, both the ministry and the Prison Service share the same position: filming on prison grounds is not feasible — at least not within the proposed budget of €40,000.

Tartu Prison has two residential buildings, and although one of them — the E-wing — is not currently in use, it is still located within the grounds of Tartu's closed prison. This means that background checks would be required not only for the production crew but also for all participants. In addition, all equipment, vehicles, and each individual entry to the facility would need to be screened.

Minister of Justice and Digital Affairs Liisa Pakosta (Eesti 200) said that the prison is not willing to compromise on security and that the proposed budget should, at minimum, have a zero tacked onto the end before the matter can be seriously considered.

She said that it would probably be easier for the producers to film the show in a similar building elsewhere.

Get Shot Films' executive producer, Kadi Freja Felt, says the positions of the ministry and the Prison Service have been communicated to their French partners, but no final decision has been relayed back to them yet.

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