All the Locations in Madrid Featured in Wes Anderson's New Film

The director of major hits like 'The Grand Budapest Hotel' and 'Isle of Dogs' is back with the release of 'Asteroid City', a film featuring a star-studded Hollywood cast. Wes Anderson brings another one of his pastel-toned features where fun is guaranteed. Anderson's latest takes you back to the 1950s in a small town in the United States where a convention for space cadets is taking place, bringing together students and parents from across America. However, this gathering will be interrupted by an event that will change the world in a spectacular and disturbing way.

The ensemble cast starring in this film filled with symmetrical shots includes names like Scarlett Johansson, Tom Hanks, Edward Norton, and Jason Schwartzman. Joining these global cinema stars are actresses like Margot Robbie, who recently starred in the film 'Barbie', and Hong Chao, nominated for an Oscar for Best Supporting Actress for her role in 'The Whale'.

But this film has something very special and distinguishes it from the rest, as many of its locations are in the Community of Madrid. The Texas-born director, with the help of production designer Adam Stockhausen, chose this area of Spain to shoot his latest film. The choice of location was not random; Stockhausen asserts that they had to adapt and study the set before building it, and due to the timing of the project (2021), it had to be done from a distance. Ultimately, Chinchón and Colmenar de Oreja were selected by the filmmakers to host the shoot.

"In Chinchón and the neighboring village of Colmenar de Oreja, there is a theater," explains Adam Stockhausen. "We used them as sets for the behind-the-scenes scenes, for the actors' introductory scene, everything was filmed there. The presentation stage corresponds to one of these theaters without the seats; the control booth where the camera enters is attached to the boxes." Just like in 'The French Dispatch', filmed in Angoulême, France, the team ended up in unexpected places. "One of the sets was built in a huge garlic warehouse. I like the smell of garlic, but living with ten tons of garlic can be overwhelming," the designer continues.

Although many locations are set in Arizona, the clay mountains, hillside houses, and the Main Square of Chinchón, as well as the theaters and roads of Colmenar de Oreja and the golf course of Aranjuez are some of the stars of 'Asteroid City'. The municipalities were completely adapted with constructions and sets to transport the moviegoers to a typical scene of the Grand Canyon of the United States. "When you look into the distance, you can see the road and hills, but they are sets that are about 300 meters away. Some hills reach the height of a five or six-story building," explained the film's producer Jeremy Dawson.

This spectacular film, shot in Spain between August and October 2021, will hit theaters on June 23, 2023. 'Asteroid City' will have its premiere at the Cannes Film Festival, where all attendees will have the chance to enjoy this film whose main locations were the unique municipalities of Chinchón, Colmenar de Oreja, and Aranjuez. Our country is ideal for cinematic recordings, thanks to its spectacular landscapes that offer sea, mountains, countryside, and desert, which more and more directors are choosing to stage their films. Wes Anderson and his team fell in love with this place as soon as they saw it and knew that the Community of Madrid had to be the setting for 'Asteroid City.'