Dhruv Trivedi
‘Sex/Life’ follows the steamy love triangle between a mother of two, her model husband, and her sexually wild past that she misses. The Netflix series is an exploration of feminine desire and fantasy, which alternates between Billie’s life as a suburban mom and her wild younger days on the city’s party circuit. The show, stylishly presented, is a blur of city lights, skylines, dimly lit corners for impromptu encounters, and mowed residential neighborhood lawns. The heavily contrasted backdrops help put the conflicted protagonist’s two worlds in perspective. Let’s take a look at where ‘Sex/Life’ is filmed.
Sex/Life Filming Locations
Based on BB Easton’s memoir titled ’44 Chapters About 4 Men,’ ‘Sex/Life’ is based in New York City, where Billie lives out her wild younger days and also finds the level-headed man of her dreams. The show, however, is filmed in Ontario, Canada. The production team cleverly uses urban areas and skylines in Canada to create a convincing stand-in for the Big Apple. Filming for the show is also done in the studio on indoor sets.
The show was originally scheduled to be shot between March and June of 2020, but production was delayed due to the Covid 19 pandemic. However, it is one of the first Netflix scripted series in North America to resume production after the nationwide lockdown. The principal photography began on August 31, 2020, and reportedly went on till December 9, 2020. Let’s take a closer look at the specific filming locations of the show.
Greater Toronto Area, Ontario
‘Sex/Life’ is set in and around New York City. Much like how it explores the dual sides of Billie, the show also explores two very different sides of the city. The clean-cut residential suburbs of neighboring Connecticut, as well as New York City’s relentlessly neon nightlife, are represented on screen using locations in the Greater Toronto Area in Ontario, Canada.
Toronto’s urban downtown areas are used for outdoor location filming. Since many of the scenes filmed in these areas are of Billie’s wild younger days, they are set at night, making it easier to disguise one city as the other.
The glittering New York City skyline is also glimpsed in a few scenes, for which the production team had to scout suitably high towers in downtown Toronto to act as a convincing stand-in. The renowned CN tower, located at 290 Bremner Boulevard, is one of the buildings considered for filming scenes of the skyline.
The neighboring city Mississauga, which falls within the Greater Toronto Area and lies on the shores of Lake Ontario, is also used for filming the show. The production also takes place extensively at the Dixie Studios at 2365 Dixie Road in the outskirts of the city.
The interiors of the characteristic Connecticut suburban house that Billie shares with her “perfect” husband are reportedly recreated via detailed sets, adding to the show’s convincing premise of being based in and around New York City.
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