Naman Shrestha
Helmed by Edward Berger, Netflix’s ‘Ballad of a Small Player’ stars Colin Farrell as Lord Doyle, a high-stakes gambler who has been hiding from the authorities in Macau. Despite having a significant amount of debt to his name, he continues to drown himself in alcohol and gamble away his remaining money in casinos, hoping that his luck earns him enough money to pay off all his debts. Amidst all the commotion in his life, he finds a glimmer of hope when he crosses paths with a mysterious woman named Dao Ming, a casino employee who prefers keeping her cards close to her chest.
Meanwhile, a private investigator named Cynthia Blithe manages to track him down in Macau. While Doyle becomes fascinated with the woman and hopes to find salvation, his past is on the horizon, closing in on him. Adapted from the 2014 novel titled ‘The Ballad of a Small Player’ by Lawrence Osborne, the British psychological thriller movie takes place in Macau, where Doyle lies low to stay off the radar of the police. The glimmering city lights put the protagonist in the spotlight as he tries to get his life back on track.
Ballad of a Small Player Filming Locations
‘Ballad of a Small Player’ was filmed in China, primarily in and around Macau. A few portions were also reportedly shot in the city of Hong Kong. Principal photography for the Colin Farrell starrer got underway in late June 2024 and continued for a couple of months before wrapping up in August of the same year. With the premiere day approaching, the set designer, Zoe Lee, opened up about her experience of shooting the film. She stated, “It was such an incredible experience to work with you, Jonathan @studiojonathanhoulding with Edward Berger and James Friend. Truly grateful to our fantastic art teammates and everyone who assisted us with the filming in Macau & HK.”
Macau, China
Since the story unfolds in Macau (or Macao), the production team of ‘Ballad of a Small Player’ shot a major portion of the film on location in order to add a layer of authenticity to the narrative. Reportedly, the cast and crew members were spotted taping many pivotal sequences, especially the gambling scenes involving Lord Doyle, in and around actual casinos, such as The Londoner Macao, the Venetian Macao, and Four Seasons Hotel Macao, all of which are located on the Vegas-inspired Cotai Strip.
The filming unit also took over Casino Lisboa at Avenida de Lisboa in the civil parish of Sé, as well as the Grand Emperor Hotel at 288 Avenida Comercial de Macau, where they lensed various key portions. The exterior as well as interiors of the Wynn Palace at 4HXC+2FG, Av. da Nave Desportiva, feature in multiple sequences. From what we can tell, Tin Hau Temple also seemingly served as a filming site for ‘Ballad of a Small Player.’ When asked about her experience of shooting in Macau, Fala Chen told Netflix Tudum that she had previously worked in China, especially in Macau and Hong Kong.
“It’s been over 10 years since I’ve worked in China, so for me, it felt like coming home in a way. Even just on set, I would bump into old colleagues that I had not seen in so long. It’s awesome to work with such an international team. We speak so many different languages, we had to translate between each other. When they called “action” on set, there were two different languages going on at the same time. It just felt like a really bustling and creative team. Chinese, German, British, Saudi Arabian — people from all over the world came to Macao to work. I loved the experience,” she added.
Meanwhile, Colin Farrell found the region fascinating and referred to Macau as an additional character in the film. During an interview with Deadline, he claimed that shooting on location was an extraordinary experience, “…but everyone was wrecked by the end of the film because we had a lot of filming to do and a lot of shots to get in a very small space of time in an environment that isn’t particularly film friendly, because we were shooting on live casino floors.”
Hong Kong, China
A portion of the filming of ‘Ballad of a Small Player’ was also carried out in Hong Kong, located on the southern coast of China. According to reports, in 2024, the cast and crew set up camp in the special administrative region for about two and a half weeks while shooting the movie across several spots. To be specific, a few scenes were shot on a houseboat in the waters close to the scenic Lamma Island. Many spots in the Pearl of the Orient serve as the backdrop for the scenes featuring the high-stakes gambler, Lord Doyle, spiraling into misadventures. Aside from a beach in the New Territories, the stunning skyline and the shimmering waters make an appearance in one of the scenes where Doyle is in a hotel that overlooks the iconic Victoria Harbour. In addition, a part of the metropolis of Shenzhen in China can also be spotted in the backdrop of the psychological thriller.
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