Naman Shrestha
Adapted from the eponymous best-selling novel by Bonnie Garmus, Apple TV+’s ‘Lessons in Chemistry’ is a period drama series created by Lee Eisenberg. Set in the 1950s, the plot chronicles the life of Elizabeth Zott whose dream of becoming a scientist is thwarted by a society believing that women only belong in the domestic sphere and far away from the professional one. When she becomes pregnant while unmarried, she gets fired from her own lab and demonstrates the kind of courage only a single mother possesses. She gets offered a job on a TV cooking show ‘Supper at Six,’ which she accepts and decides to use to her and millions of other females’ advantage.
While hosting the show, Elizabeth embarks on a mission to teach a nation of undermined and overlooked housewives several scientific topics, and not just some recipes. Meanwhile, in the back of her mind, she craves a return to her one true love — science. While Brie Larson portrays the lead character of Elizabeth Zott in the historical show, she is accompanied by several other talented actors in supporting roles, including Lewis Pullman, Aja Naomi King, Stephanie Koenig, and Patrick Walker. The vintage setting of the 1950s and the aptly redecorated locations in the backdrop are bound to spark questions about the show’s filming locations in the minds of the viewers.
Lessons in Chemistry Filming Locations
‘Lessons in Chemistry’ is filmed in California, especially in and around Los Angeles. As per reports, principal photography for the inaugural iteration of the drama series got underway in August 2022 and continued for the following four months or so, before getting wrapped up in December of the same year. Now, without wasting any time, let’s traverse through all the specific locations that make an appearance in the Apple TV+ show!
Los Angeles, California
A major chunk of ‘Lessons in Chemistry’ is reportedly lensed in the city of Los Angeles and its surrounding areas. Situated in Southern California, the downtown area of the City of Angels serves as one of the prominent production locations for the drama series. For the most part, the filming unit utilizes the facilities of Ace*Mission Studios at 516 South Mission Road in Los Angeles. They transform the studio into the different spheres of the protagonist’s life.
For instance, the chemistry laboratory where she meets and falls in love with Calvin Evans, the interior setting of her Southern California home, and the TV set where she is employed after having shut out of the lab for having a child before marriage, are all brought to life using the amenities of the Ace*Mission Studios. These sets are so detailed and realistic that even the showrunner Lee Eisenberg was taken aback in a good way when she first stepped into the sets.
Sprawling across 18 acres, Ace*Mission Studios is home to eight sound stages, three mill/flex spaces, and more than 100 production offices. In addition, the film studio complex also consists of ample parking space and loading docks. All these amenities make the studio a suitable filming site for different kinds of productions and one of the most sought-after for many filmmakers.
Moreover, even the cuisine plays a significant role in ‘Lessons in Chemistry’ in transporting viewers back to the 1950s. In an October 2023 Zoom interview with The Daily Beast’s Obsessed, creator Lee Eisenberg and director Sarah Adina Smith opened up about several things related to the shooting of the period drama series, including the 1950s cuisine they worked with to portray ‘Supper at Six.’ Besides that, Eisenberg was asked about Brie and Alice’s connection on set during the production process.
Eisenberg replied, “(Brie) really developed an amazing relationship with Alice. There was no affect to it. They just would sit around and speak French to one another. Alice’s family would come around, and they all developed a real (bond). They went dancing together on the weekend. It was not a professional thing where they say ‘Hi’ in the mornings, and then in the afternoons they say ‘Goodbye!’ They really made it feel like a family.”
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