Before arriving on the red carpet, the productions of the films nominated for the 2018 Oscars ran the world in search of the ideal place for the recordings. From Italy to Canada, across the United States and UK, movies rated as the world’s best by the American Film Academy promise to surprise you with beautiful scenery on the big screen.
With that in mind, Skyscanner, the global leader in travel research, has prepared a list of locations chosen to lease some of the films that compete for the gold statuette.
The search engine also brings tips in these places to inspire the traveler in choosing their next trip. Check below the selection:
Call me by Your Name – Call Me by Your Name – Lombardy, Italy
While the protagonist Elio is spending the summer at the home of his parents in Italy, we, spectators, are presented with the beautiful Italian landscapes on the big screen. Although based on André Aciman’s eponymous book on the Italian Riviera, the film was recorded in several cities in the province of Cremona in the Lombardy region.
Historical little towns like Crema, Montodin, Ripalta, Pandino and Moscazzano are the backdrop to the romance between teenager Elio and academic researcher Oliver. These localities can be easily reached by car and part of a fascinating itinerary through Italy.
Call Me By Your Name is one of the films nominated this year that counts on a Brazilian on the team, the coproducer Rodrigo Teixeira; the other is the Bull Ferdinando, animation directed by the Brazilian Carlos Saldanha.
Lady Bird – Sacramento, California, USA
Lady Bird is in Sacramento, California, where the protagonist Christine McPherson wants to leave as soon as possible. With a strong personality, Christine goes out of her way to finish school and go to adulthood at once. The show features teenagers’ uneasiness, such as first love, arguments with their mother and disagreements with a school full of rules.
Although not as well known as Los Angeles, San Francisco and San Diego, Sacramento is the capital of California. In addition to visiting the Capitol, a cool ride to do in the city is getting to know the old downtown, a preserved historic neighborhood, which refers directly to the movies of the old west.
It is also possible to take advantage of the Sacramento River, both on a boat trip and on a walk along the boardwalk. Just a short distance from the hotel you will find restaurants, bars and the Tower Bridge Gateway, the famous golden bridge.
The Post – White Plains, New Rochelle and New York, USA
Based on real facts, The Post is set in Washington in June 1971, the date of the discovery of US government secrets on the Vietnam War, known worldwide as Pentagon Papers.
The film was recorded mainly in New York State, in the cities of White Plains, New Rochelle and New York, specifically in Manhattan. While the first two cities are quieter and little or no tourism, New York has so many attractions that it takes at least three days to enjoy the city from the rides to shopping.
Among the attractions, be sure to visit the Empire State Building; Grand Central Station, perhaps the most famous train station in Hollywood; Central Park; the MoMA and Guggenheim museums; the cosmopolitan Times Square; the classic Brooklyn Bridge; Coney Island beach; and the Statue of Liberty.
The Shape of Water – Ontario, Canada
The Water Shape was recorded in Hamilton and Toronto, Ontario, Canada. As Toronto has the ability to mimic many US capitals and is a cheaper location, it has represented Boston in the movie Spotlight, which won the Best Film at the 2016 Oscar.
The Guillermo del Toro film already leads the dispute with 13 nominations. Although recorded in Toronto, the plot is set in Baltimore (Maryland, USA) during the Cold War, around the year 1963.
According to the Atlas of Wonders website, the Occam Aerospace Research Center and Elisa’s apartment were filmed at Cinespace Studios, and the outside was recorded on the University of Toronto’s Scarborough campus. The beautiful Elgin Theater also appears in the film (giving life to a cinema) and is located just below the apartment of Elisa, the main character. The Don River, around the Keating Channel, Lake Shore Boulevard E and Villiers Street, was the stage for the scenes on the docks.
If you go to Toronto, as well as visiting movie locations, be sure to climb the CN Tower, one of the world’s most incredible viewpoints, and visit the 18th century Casa Loma Castle. The vibrant and cultural atmosphere of Toronto invites visitors strolling through museums and galleries and enjoying the hectic nightlife – one of the reasons to get to know Canada as quickly as possible.
The Darkest Hour – Manchester, Yorkshire and London, England, United Kingdom
The feature unfolds from the early days of Churchill as British Prime Minister, a position he held almost accidentally. Along with the challenge of running the country, Churchill is forced to decide between a peace agreement with Nazi Germany or a direct confrontation that would lead to the withdrawal of English troops from Dunkirk.
The film is set in London, and even though the real UK Parliament is available at the Houses of Parliament, only the St Stephen’s Hall has been used for filming. The production team preferred to rebuild the mood of Parliament, as some reforms had modified the original look of the gallery and the space was not the ideal to handle the cameras scattered around the room. To represent the palace were also used locations in the city of Manchester, such as the Town Hall and the John Rylands library.
Filming on Downing Street, the official residence and office of the UK prime minister, were also part of the lease, part of a set, and have been modified in post-production. To represent Buckingham Palace, the team used the Wentworth Woodhouse in Yorkshire.
So you do not have to go through all these destinations in search of the scenes of the film, just go to the Palms of Westminster and Buckingham, take the sightseeing tour and be enchanted by the architecture and opulence of British royal constructions.
Dunkirk – France, UK, Holland and USA
Christopher Nolan’s film portrays the Dumah, also known as Operation Dynamo, which occurred in World War II – coincidentally, this film is practically the continuation of The Destiny of a Nation. The conflict unfolds from the rescue of more than 330,000 Allied soldiers who were surrounded by the German army in northeastern France.
To set the record straight, locations were selected in the Netherlands, UK, USA and, of course, France. Many scenes were filmed in exactly the same places and at the same time of year as the evacuation in 1940. Until today, the city of Dunkirk has several tributes to this battle, including a memorial with detailed explanations, maps, weapons and uniforms used by the soldiers during the rescue operation.
The port of the fishing village of Urk in the Netherlands was also the setting for the film. Typically port, Urk has old houses that give visitors a turn in time. Another beautiful choice of rental was the Dorset region in the UK. Not only was the port of Weymouth used as a backdrop, but also Jurassic Coast, part of the British coastline cut by huge cliffs and stunning scenery.
Run! (Get Out!) – Fairhope, Alabama, USA
You probably do not want to visit the houses that served as a location for this thriller, but we can assure you that Fairhope, Alabama, is a city sweet. The Long Run! tells the story of a young black man who is about to meet his white girlfriend’s family. He is well received but over time he notes something strange in the family’s loving behavior, and realizes that the house where he is hiding something very disturbing.
Suspense aside, Fairhope is one of the quieter cities in the United States, with an inner city feel. Visitors and residents often take advantage of the edge of Mobile Bay to stroll, bike and enjoy the sunset, as well as frequenting the beaches of the Gulf of Mexico, known for their “sugar sands”, so clear and thin which are the grains of sand.
About half an hour from downtown Fairhope, is located one of Alabama’s natural wonders, the Mobile Tensaw Delta. With 260,000 hectares, it is one of the most diverse ecosystems in the country, with marshes and bays, where you can see several birds, turtles and alligators.
Phantom Thread – London and Yorkshire, United Kingdom
In Ghost Plot, we went back in time to England from the 1950s with the almost pristine beauty of the north Yorkshire coast in the United Kingdom. The drama revolves around a renowned stylist, Reynolds Woodcock, who works alongside his sister to great royalty and British elite. At one point he meets Alma, a strong woman who becomes his muse and lover, and the life of the two and the family changes completely.
The landscapes of the film are fascinating and inspire a beautiful screenplay by the UK. Robin Hood’s Bay, a village near the town of Whitby in North York National Park, is one of the most used locations, especially due to the harbor, with architecture still preserved in colonial style, and the hotel where Reynolds and Alma know.
Other charming villages where the scenes were recorded are Staithes, Ravenscar, Lythe and Blackpool. The house where Reynolds and his sister live and later, where Alma lives, is an incredible mansion on Fitzroy Square in central London.
Three ads for a crime (Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri) – North Carolina, USA
With the Golden Globe for Best Picture and Best Drama Actress ever in hand, Three ads for a crime is also a strong contender for the Oscar statuette. This comedy drama involves a mother who had her daughter murdered, an ongoing investigation, and three billboards on the road that completely change the direction of the case.
The film is set in the fictional town of Ebbing, Missouri. To accommodate Ebbing, the chosen city was the small Sylva, in North Carolina, gateway to numerous American natural attractions. According to North Carolina’s official tourism website, Sylva has several interesting tours of the region, including movie locations, beautiful landscapes, and hiking and biking trails.
On Sylva’s main street, it’s worth visiting the Sassy Frass store, which became police station at the long, and Jackson’s General Store, whose top floor is the backdrop to a crucial scene. The beautiful road where the billboards are from the movie is North Fork Left Fork Road, which circles the town of Black Mountain.
A little over 30 minutes drive from Sylva are the Great Smoky Mountains National Park, one of the ten national parks in the US that you should visit, the Nantahala National Forest and Gorges State Park with several picturesque waterfalls. To 15 minutes of the city is the Blue Ridge Parkway, a quiet route, with panoramic view, that unites the states of North Carolina and Virginia.
Bonus: 2018 Oscar Ceremony – Hollywood, Los Angeles, USA
The destination-bonus list is the very location of the awards ceremony: Hollywood. Located in Los Angeles, the city of North American cinema will host the 90th edition of the awards ceremony that will take place on March 4 at 5pm at the Dolby Theater.
Every year, hundreds of fans are waiting around the red carpet – and behind a security railing – for the arrival of their idols. Families, tourists, city dwellers, and unconditional fans arrive in the morning on Hollywood Street to secure the closest possible celebrity parade and wait for many hours until artists’ movement begins.
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