Director Guillermo del Toro loves Edinburgh so much he says he may come and live in the capital.
He has told Film Edinburgh, a division of the council which helps filmmakers to work in Edinburgh, East Lothian, Midlothian and the Scottish Borders, that he has been here about six times to this “unique city”.
He said: “I love it. I may become a resident. It is a city with a rich culture, and a cultural centre in the history of Europe. Publishing, writing, the arts, medicine, the birth of modern medicine in many ways, science. It is as rich a capital in history as any other city in the world.
“But on top of that, visually it has the beauty and the aura of mystery, and the diversity and the richness of any other capital. It’s extraordinarily friendly to shoot here. The people are tremendous. The facilities that are given to a movie are tremendous. The looks that you can do in this city – it’s anything.
“You can do Russia, you can do America, you can do 1800s, 1600s, anything.
“It has absolutely been a total pleasure to work here and I plan to return. I could not recommend it more openly and more fully than I do in this video.
as a filmmaker with 30 years of experience shooting all over Europe all over the world, this is the single most gratifying experience I have had shooting outside of America.”
It is well known that this is a career goal he has had for around a decade. He has now adapted the classic story written by Mary Shelley about Victor the scientist who experiments and gives life to a monster. Although the tale does not end well, it appears to have been a good idea to let the director loose in the Old Town where parts of the film were shot.
Film Edinburgh confirm that the busy street in the film is the Canongate, the butchers’ alley is Bakehouse Close and Victor’s house is in Acheson House at the Museum of Edinburgh.The marketplace is in West Parliament Square and Makars’ Court doubled as the hanging square.
Outside Edinburgh the film was shot on Seacliff Beach and at Gosford House.
The organisation also said on its website: “To add to this, Film Charters signed by the local authorities of both Edinburgh and East Lothian gives filmmakers the comfort they need to know that they will be well looked after by teams who understand their needs and are ready to facilitate the shoot.
“In addition to working with local crew, particularly in the locations and art departments, the production brought in a cast of 200 (approx) supporting artists from the local community, each of whom was sized and fitted with the most incredible costumes and equipped with a story about what their character was doing in the scene.”
Frankenstein is now streaming on Netflix in three parts, “Prelude” followed by two chapters, “Victor’s Tale” and “The Creature’s Tale.” The cast includes Jakob Elordi, Mia Goth, Oscar Isaac, Christoph Waltz, Felix Kammerer, David Bradley and Lars Mikkelsen.
Filming in Edinburgh
“Prodigal Father” filming in West Parliament Square Edinburgh ALL PHOTOS Alan Simpson
