Naman Shrestha
Directed by Lucky Kuswandi, Netflix’s ‘Dear David’ is an Indonesian comedy-drama film that follows a talented high school-going teenager named Laras who tends to write and maintain a secret fantasy blog about her crush David. Even though bullies pick on her for being as well-performing as she is, she finds an escape from her stressful school life through her blogs. However, when Laras’ secret blog is revealed for everyone in the school to read, her life is turned upside down as it jeopardizes the promising future that lies ahead of her.
The comedic narrative is complemented by the hilarious onscreen performances by a talented ensemble cast, comprising Shenina Cinnamon, Emir Mahira, Caitlin North Lewis, and Michael James. The rom-com film also provokes the audience to wonder where it was actually shot, especially the scenes portraying the fantasy world of Laras. Well, if you are one such curious soul, you might be interested in what we have to share about the same!
Dear David: Where Was it Filmed?
‘Dear David’ was filmed in its entirety in Indonesia, seemingly in Jakarta and Bali. The principal photography for the romantic comedy-drama film possibly took place in the spring of 2022. Now, without much ado, let’s navigate through all the specific sites that make an appearance in the Netflix movie!
Jakarta, Indonesia
Several pivotal portions of ‘Dear David’ were supposedly lensed in and around Jakarta, the capital and largest city of Indonesia. From the looks of it, the filming unit seemingly set up camp at various sites across the city to record different scenes against suitable backdrops. It is possible that they utilized the premises of an actual institutional site — a school or a college — to shoot the scenes set in the Laras’ high school. Moreover, it is likely that they filmed a few key portions in one of the film studios in Jakarta as well.
Located on the northwest coast of the island of Java, Jakarta is home to many monuments, landmarks, and statues, attracting tourists from all over the globe. Some of the popular places of interest in Jakarta are the National Monument, Jalan M.H. Thamrin, the Selamat Datang monument, the Istiqlal Mosque, Merdeka Square, and Lapangan Banteng. Over the years, Jakarta has hosted the production of many film projects as well. Apart from ‘Dear David,’ its locales have been featured in ‘The Twelve Stories of Glen Anggara,’ ‘Perfect Strangers,’ ‘Check Store Next Door 2,’ ‘Dear Nathan: Thank You Salma,’ and ‘Milea.’
Bali, Indonesia
Additional portions for ‘Dead David,’ mainly exterior scenes, were likely taped in Bali, a province of Indonesia that is the country’s main tourist destination. The picturesque sites against the backdrop of the pristine open waters can be sighted in several scenes throughout the movie, and all those were most probably recorded on location in Bali itself. Tourism is the one single industry that drives Bali’s economy almost single-handedly, which makes it one of the wealthiest regions of Indonesia.
Read More: Best Romantic Drama Movies
