Naman Shrestha
Created by Marissa Jo Cerar, Hulu’s ‘Black Cake’ is a historical mystery drama series that focuses on Eleanor Bennett, a mother who loses her life to cancer and leaves behind a flash drive that contains untold stories about her life journey, in particular, how she traveled from the Caribbean to America.
When Bennett’s children discover the truth about their mother’s early life, they are shocked and begin to question everything they know about their family’s origin. Featuring compelling performances from Mia Isaac, Adrienne Warren, Chipo Chung, Ashley Thomas, and Lashay Anderson, the period drama show takes place in 1960s London, the Caribbean, and America, which combine to provide the audience with a visual spectacle and a lot to think about. Thus, it is understandable if you find yourself curious to know where ‘Black Cake’ was filmed.
Black Cake Filming Locations
‘Black Cake’ is filmed in England, California, Italy, Scotland, Wales, and Jamaica, particularly in Somerset, London, Bristol, Cardiff, Los Angeles, and Rome. As per reports, principal photography for the inaugural iteration of the drama series got underway around early June 2022 and seemingly went on throughout the summer of the same year. Now, it is time to get into the intricate details of all the specific locations that feature in the Hulu production!
Somerset, England
The ceremonial county of Somerset, which is situated in South West England, served as one of the primary production locations for ‘Black Cake.’ Setting up camp mainly in the town of Bridgwater, the filming unit transformed Kings Square and Castle Street into 1960s London to lens several important scenes. Moreover, Sedgemoor District Council’s office building features in quite a few sequences of the mystery series.
London, England
Additional portions of ‘Black Cake’ are also taped in the capital of England and the United Kingdom — London. Since several exterior portions of the show are recorded on location, you are likely to spot various iconic landmarks in the backdrop, including the Big Ben, the Tower Bridge, the London Eye, and more.
Other Locations in England
For shooting purposes, the cast and crew members of ‘Black Cake’ also travel to other locations across England, including the city and ceremonial county of Bristol. The city center doubles for London as they turned Frog Lane into a London street for the shooting of the debut season. Besides that, the production team also sets up camp in Great Point Seren Studios on Wentloog Avenue in Cardiff’s St. Mellons. Home to four different sound stages, the film studio complex also consists of workshops, production offices, parking space, and other necessities, making it a favorable filming site for different kinds of productions. Reportedly, the botanic gardens in Roath Park in Cardiff are turned into film sets as well.
Los Angeles, California
The filming unit of ‘Black Cake’ also sets up camp in the entertainment capital of the world — the city of Los Angeles. Given its ties with the Hollywood industry, the City of Angels serves as a suitable filming site for the Hulu show. In addition, reports suggest that other Southern California areas also make several appearances through different episodes.
Other Locations
The production of ‘Black Cake’ takes the filming unit to different locations across the world, including Rome in Italy, Scotland, and Wales. A few pivotal sequences are also recorded on location in the island country of Jamaica. In a late October 2023 interview with Screen Rant, one of the directors, Natalia Leite, was asked about her experience shooting the series. She explained, “Very challenging. Sometimes you have the budget to go to a tank in a controlled environment, but we were actually in Jamaica in the water, and some of the cast members had very limited experience in the ocean swimming.”
Natalia added further, “Their comfort level wasn’t great. We had a lot of support. We had water safety people. We had underwater cameras, and we had people on jet skis helping out. It felt very supported, because obviously, safety first, but it was still challenging because the water is doing its own thing. Sometimes there’s a wave, and you’re all bouncing along with the movement of the water.”
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