Naman Shrestha
Co-written and directed by Scott Mann, ‘Fall’ is a survival thriller movie that follows two best friends, Becky and Hunter, who are all about looking their fears in the eye and conquering them. Sadly, the former goes through a traumatic incident and finds it extremely difficult to overcome. After several weeks of grieving, Hunter returns to her life and convinces her to confront her fears, just like they used to.
So, the two experienced climbers set out to ascend the top of an abandoned 2,000-foot tower. However, this anxious climb gets more complicated when they get stranded at the top. Now, Becky and Hunter must gather all their courage and use their years of climbing experience to get down safely and return home. Starring Grace Caroline Currey and Virginia Gardner, the movie features an abandoned tower against the barren backdrop of the desert, which is likely to make you wonder where it was shot.
Fall Filming Locations
‘Fall’ was filmed in California, mainly in the Mojave Desert and Los Angeles County. The principal photography for the thriller movie seemingly took place between August and September 2020. So, without wasting time, let us follow Becky and Hunter on their adventurous climb and learn about the specific sites that feature in the survival movie!
Mojave Desert, California
Most of ‘Fall’ was lensed in the Californian portion of the Mojave Desert in the Southwestern United States. Specifically, the filming unit chose to shoot the movie in the desert’s Shadow Mountains primarily. In a September 2022 interview with Radio Times, Scott Mann was not shy to reveal several details about the production process. To decide on a particular location that would serve as the movie’s centerpiece, they did plenty of research before coming across the abandoned B67 tower in California, the one that the best friends climb in the movie.
Although the team seemingly recorded some of the establishing shots using the actual tower, most of the shooting occurred elsewhere. At the same time, Mann was adamant that he did not want to use a green screen and preferred doing it on location. So, after much consideration, they decided to construct the upper portion of the tower on top of a mountain. Now, their next step was to find the right location.
Mann elaborated on the process of doing so, saying, “We scoured all around California, and it was during COVID, so we’d just drive and drive and drive to these random remote locations, to try and get access. A lot of them had kind of radio masts and things at the top of these mountains, and you’re just finding the right kind of top of a mountain with the right cliff and the right sunlight positioning.” Soon, thanks to modern technology and Google Maps, they journeyed to a location that seemed ideal on paper and stunning in real life.
Once the production team decided upon the location, they reportedly constructed 100-foot sections at the top of the cliff they found. Mann added, “…And so basically, we were actually above 2000 ft, so all the kinds of camera work and things to capture the movie, [stars] Virginia (Gardner) and Grace (Caroline Curry) were really immersed into what it was like to be up there – because they really were up there!” Filming at such a height was bound to be challenging, yet it also brought several issues they did not consider.
“…I would say it’s a struggle to make a film at the best of times. But this one, it was like just getting to set every day was like a Bear Grylls Adventure. And then we had all these things happen to us with lightning, hurricanes – we had our set blown down once,” Mann said. Although, another incident took Mann and his team by surprise. He explained, “It was raining hot rain and melting the set dressing. And then that caused the locusts or ants, whatever they are, that were in the mountain to kind of come up and hide somewhere inside the tubing of our set.”
Mann added, “So when Virginia and Grace got there the next day, the thing wobbled, and suddenly this cloud of flying ants came about – and we just couldn’t film because there was this huge cloud of flying ants for hours. And they would then settle back in the tube, and you’d try and climb up, and they’d release again. And it was this cycle. And you’re out in the middle of nowhere, so like how do you deal with that kind of problem, you know? In the end, I had to strap a leaf blower backward and hoover into a bag to get rid of like 8 million of these things!”
Los Angeles County, California
Additional portions for ‘Fall’ were seemingly taped in Los Angeles County, the most populous county in California and the United States. During the production schedule, the cast and crew members were spotted recording several key scenes in and around the charter city of Lancaster, located in the county’s northern region near the Mojave Desert.
Read More: Is Netflix’s Fall Based on a True Story?
