Naman Shrestha
Based on the life of the last French Queen before the French Revolution, PBS’ ‘Marie Antoinette’ is a historical drama series created by Deborah Davis. It follows an innocent teenager named Marie Antoinette who leaves her homeland behind and marries Louis Cunningham to become the Dauphine of France. She realizes that there are burdens that come with the crown as she cannot live her life how she wishes to, is constantly pressured to continue the family line, and is expected to ensure the alliance between France and Austria.
However, with time, Marie becomes wiser and understands the secrets of the court to shape her image as an independent woman and a feminist. Almost the entire show unfolds in various palaces and grand estates, with characters in the attire of the 18th century against some stunning backdrops of the castles’ interiors and the lush green gardens. Thus, if you are eager to know where ‘Marie Antoinette’ is filmed, let’s explore the same in detail, shall we?
Marie Antoinette Filming Locations
‘Marie Antoinette’ is filmed in France and Italy, specifically in the Île-de-France and South Tyrol. Principal photography for the inaugural iteration of the period series reportedly commenced in September 2021 and wrapped up in February 2022. As per reports, the makers use real French palaces where the titular character lived in reality in the second half of the 18th century. Now, allow us to provide you with a detailed account of all the specific locations that appear in the PBS show!
Île-de-France, France
Given that the story takes place in France, the production team sets up camp in the Île-de-France region to stay authentic to the narrative and give the viewers an immersive experience. The Palace of Versailles in Place d’Armes, Versailles, serves as one of the primary shooting locations for the historical drama series. Built by King Louis XIV, the former royal residence consists of some historical and iconic sections, including the Hall of Mirrors, the Marble Courtyard, and the sculpted gardens, all featuring in various scenes.
Moreover, the filming unit of ‘Marie Antoinette’ utilizes the facilities of Studios de Bry-sur-Marne at 2 Av. de l’Europe in the commune of Bry-sur-Marne. Reportedly, they took two and a half months to construct two sets in the studios, mainly to shoot many Versailles interior scenes. Since the palace used to be dirtier in the 1700s, they had to reconstruct various apartments and corridors accordingly, replicating the real palace and the period as accurately as possible. With an area of around 40,000 square meters, the film studio is home to eight sound stages, making it one of the largest studios in France.
The stunning gardens and scenic outdoor areas of the Château de Vaux-le-Vicomte in Maincy attract the cast and crew of the show to tape some exterior shots on location. Situated southeast of Paris, the French chateau was built between 1658 and 1661 and is famous for the anamorphosis abscondita (visual effects) in the garden.
The cast and crew members also set up camp in various other palaces or chateaus for the drama series, such as the Palace of Fontainebleau or Château de Fontainebleau in Fontainebleau, Château de Champs-sur-Marne at 31 Rue de Paris in Champs-sur-Marne, Château de Bagatelle, Château de Rambouillet, and seemingly Château de Lésigny in Rue de la Croix in Lésigny. Furthermore, the commune of Voisins-le-Bretonneux and the Avenue des Champs-Élysées serve as important production locations.
South Tyrol, Italy
For shooting the remaining portions of ‘Marie Antoinette’ season 1, the production team traveled to South Tyrol, an autonomous province, also known as the Autonomous Province of Bolzano, in Northern Italy. They seemingly recorded a few key scenes for the series around Forestis Dolomites in Palmschoß 22, Bressanone, against some gorgeous mountain ranges.
Read More: Best Historical Dramas on Netflix
