Where Was ‘Project Blue Book’ Shot?

of Where Was ‘Project Blue Book’ Shot? Varun Patel
January 21, 2020

‘Project Blue Book’ is a period drama about government conspiracies and the possibility of extra-terrestrial beings that feels extremely topical after the ‘Storm Area 51’ trend. It is based on an actual series of experiments conducted by the American government with regards to U.F.O. sightings.

To be more specific, the show revolves around the titular project undertaken by the United States Air Force in the 1950s and the ‘60s. Aidan Gillen plays Dr J. Allen Hynek, the astrophysicist who undertook the study. Upon investigation, Hynek starts to believe that there might be a lot of things which are not explainable by science. Other cast members include Michael Malarkey, Laura Mennell and Ksenia Solo.

Project Blue Book Filming Locations

‘Project Blue Book’ is set all over the United States with the story taking place in the 1950s and ‘60s. The period setting has been executed well, as one would expect. Many viewers might be wondering where the show is filmed. Did the makers of the show actually film on-location at all the places depicted on the show? That would have surely been a Herculean task.

British Columbia, Canada

Nope, ‘Project Blue Book’ was not filmed on location. Instead, the show was filmed mostly in Vancouver and other places in its vicinity in British Columbia, Canada. This should not be surprising at all.

Of late, the region has become a prominent location for filming American productions due to the Canadian government’s generous tax credits which help filmmakers cut down on their costs significantly. Moreover, the country resembles the United States of America aesthetically and the region of British Columbia is famed for its spectacular, natural landscape.

https://twitter.com/Chris_derx/status/997277731393073153

One of the challenges of filming in Vancouver, according to the production designer of ‘Project Blue Book,’ Ross Dempster was the fact that the time period had to be conveyed effectively. Vancouver is a relatively young city with a largely modern aesthetic. Hence, finding appropriate and cinematically interesting filming locations was a challenge.

For the show, the toughest task, when it came to filming, was finding appropriate airbases and aircraft hangars that could reflect the period of the series’ setting. Since Canada is a relatively peaceful nation, the show’s producers had to go the extra mile of making other buildings look like aircraft bases belonging to the ‘50s.

A hangar in Boundary Bay airport was used to depict various locations on the show. Other than that, buildings in the Pacific National Exhibition or the PNE on Hastings Street, Vancouver were also used.

The first season was filmed between December 2017 and May 2018 and the crew were lucky enough to witness the change in atmosphere and climate from a dull winter to a bright spring.

‘Project Blue Book’ also utilized the exterior of the Marine Building at Burrard Street for filming purposes. Moreover, the Vancouver Club also made an appearance on the television series. However, Vancouver was not the only place in Canada where the show has been filmed.

The Matsqui Island in the Central Fraser Valley region of British Columbia was used to film the show as well. Other than that, ‘Project Blue Book’ was also filmed at Langley and Delta. Furthermore, the following tweet reveals how the crew also traveled to the historic, fishing town of Steveston to shoot several scenes of the show:

Other than that, in the city of New Westminster in British Columbia, Massey Victory Heights was one of the locations used to film the show. The residential area boasts of a streetscape with a 1950s aesthetic and that would have surely proven to be handy for the show’s makers.

Other than the above-mentioned places, the city of Coquitlam was also made of use of while filming ‘Project Blue Book.’

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