Mirza Aaqib Beg
Created by Ryan O’Connell, ‘Special’ is a semi-autobiographical comedy series based on his memoir ‘I’m Special: And Other Lies We Tell Ourselves.’ The coming of age series centers upon Ryan Hayes, a gay man with mild cerebral palsy. Tired of constantly being treated as a child and the continuous interference in his decisions by his overprotective mother, Ryan decides to get a job. It marks the beginning of his adventures as an adult responsible for his own decision.
By taking responsibility for his life, he finally begins to embrace the challenges posed by cerebral palsy at the workplace and truly embraces himself for who he is. Ryan’s emotional and inspiring story has resonated with a lot of viewers as it impressively delivers the message the author wants to convey. So it is natural for fans to wish to learn more about its other essential aspects like the filming locations. In case you are curious about the same, we have got you covered.
Special Filming Locations
‘Special’ is filmed in California and Texas. The delightful natural locales of California include cliff-lined beaches, fascinating redwood forests, the Mojave desert, and the mighty Sierra Nevada Mountains that have attracted filmmakers and tourists alike for decades. It is also a global center of the entertainment industry and has been a prominent television production location since the early 20th century.
On the other hand, Texas offers generous cash grants to film, television, animation, video game, and virtual reality productions in order to increase employment opportunities for its citizens. Over the years, the incentives offered by the state have made it an attractive shooting location, especially for television and film projects. The filming for ‘Special’ is done in several places in these two states, so let’s jump right in and learn more about them.
Austin, Texas
Season 1 of the semi-autobiographical series was filmed in and around Austin, the capital city of Texas. Located in Travis County, the city hosts several international film festivals. Owing to the influence of The Department of Radio–Television–Film at the University of Texas, over the years, the inland town has hosted the production of several well-known films.
The long list includes ‘The Texas Chain Saw Massacre,’ ‘Miss Congeniality,’ ‘Grindhouse,’ ‘Machete,’ and ‘The Life of David Gale.’ Apart from being an attractive filming location, the city has also emerged as a center of business and technology in recent decades.
Los Angeles, California
The second season of ‘Special’ was filmed in Los Angeles. The sprawling Southern Californian city is home to Hollywood and several major global film studios like Paramount Studio, Universal Studios, Warner Bros Studio, among many others. Surrounded by the fascinating snow-capped mountains and vast deserts, the City of Angels has dominated the global film industry for almost a century and continues to have a significant influence even today.
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