Naman Shrestha
Adapted from the eponymous short story written by Kristen Roupenian, Hulu’s ‘Cat Person’ is a horror thriller layered with the romance between a college sophomore named Margot and Robert, an older and mysterious man the former meets while working at the theater. After exchanging numbers, the two spend a lot of time flirting over texts. However, when Margot realizes that Robert in real life is different than the online Robert, her life gets turned upside down.
The Susanna Fogel directorial, featuring impressive performances from a talented ensemble cast, comprising Emilia Jones, Nicholas Braun, Geraldine Viswanathan, and Isabella Rossellini, explores the perils of modern dating, keeping the viewers on the edge of their seats. Meanwhile, the interesting choices of locations, including the theater, residences of the lead characters, and college campus, spark curiosity about the actual filming locations of ‘Cat Person.’
Cat Person Was Filmed Across New Jersey
‘Cat Person’ was filmed in its entirety across the state of New Jersey, particularly in Jersey City, Teaneck, Cranford, Livingston, Newark, Florham Park, and Wayne. As per reports, production for the Nicholas Braun starrer commenced in October 2021 and seemingly wrapped up by the end of the same year.
Jersey City, New Jersey
A major chunk of ‘Cat Person’ was lensed in and around Jersey City, which is the county seat of New Jersey’s Hudson County. To be specific, the area around Congress Street and Palisade Avenue was taken over by the cast and crew members during the shooting schedule. Moreover, the production team even set up camp in front of Fox & Crow at 594 Palisade Avenue as well as in and around Cellar 335 at 335 Newark Avenue, both in Jersey City.
Teaneck, New Jersey
Some important portions of ‘Cat Person’ were also taped in the township of Teaneck. Fairleigh Dickinson University at 1000 River Road served as one of the prominent production locations as many pivotal scenes were recorded on the campus. Moreover, the theater where Margot works and meets Robert is an actual theater — Teaneck Cinemas at 503 Cedar Lane in Teaneck.
Other Locations in New Jersey
For the purpose of shooting, the filming unit of ‘Cat Person’ also traveled to various other locations across New Jersey, including Florham Park. They reportedly utilized a couple of actual residences in Cranford and Livingston to capture some key interior scenes. Moreover, another university that stood in for Margot’s college campus is Rutgers University at 195 University Avenue in Newark. The director and his team even set up camp on the premise of the former Toys R Us headquarters at 1 Geoffrey Way in the township of Wayne.
The cinematographer of ‘Cat Person,’ Manuel Billeter, was asked to talk about the most challenging scene he had to capture in an interview with Filmmaker Magazine. He admitted that there were several difficult scenes but the opening sequence involving Margot was the most challenging one. He stated, “The first scene is always challenging because you never get a second chance at making a first impression, and so many nuances had to be set up — and it was the last scene we shot that day, after a full day’s work during daylight.” Since they were on a limited budget, he decided to make the most of the existing practical sources.
Elaborating on the same, Manuel explained, “…I came up with a plan to which sources we should or could alter with gels, where to place the few lights that I had available, with only very limited access to power, and which practical sources I needed to have turned off. When night started falling, it proved a lot more difficult to turn the selected campus lights off than previously promised, so we had to improvise a lot and also be very patient – all the while the clock was ticking and we still had so much work to do. Thanks to the great crew we got it done, but it proved a little stressful for all involved.”
