Directed by Joe Wright, “Cyrano” is a romantic drama centered on a blacksmith named Cyrano who feels his appearance is unworthy of the love of his bright friend Roxanne. Consequently, Cyrano helps a young Christian man woo her by pouring out his heart in the love letters he writes in Christian’s name. What makes the situation sad is that Cyrano has yet to confess his feelings for Roxanne, who falls in love with Christian at first sight.
This musical drama film features stellar performances from Peter Dinklage, Haley Bennett and Kelvin Harrison Jr. It is based on Schmidt’s 2018 musical of the same name, which was itself based on the 1897 play ‘Cyrano de Bergerac’ written by ‘Edmond Rostand. To do justice to the film’s classic origin, the director had to choose something dramatic and theatrical as the location. Would you like to know more about the filming locations used as sets in this film? Well, we’ll cover all the details for you!
Filming locations of Cyrano
Even though the original story of Cyrano and Roxanne is set in 1640 France, director Joe Wright and Sarah Greenwood (responsible for production design) wanted “Cyrano” to be portrayed in a slightly more whimsical European country a la late 17th and early 18th century. So they decided to film this musical on the largest island in the Mediterranean Sea, Sicily, Italy. Greenwood told The Hollywood Reporter, “The palette came out of where we were [in Noto]», remembering « this beautiful stone which changes with the light ».
A new adaptation of #Cyrano is directed by director Joe Wright. Here are a few #onsetphotos from #Sicily 🇮🇹#PeterDinklage is Cyrano 🎭
#bts #Historical series #shooting #Noto #Scicli #adjustments #movies pic.twitter.com/prJmQCAcP8
— Period Drama World (@WorldPeriod) August 17, 2021
Principal photography began around October 2020, during the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic in Italy. Sicily has been used as a prime filming location for a number of films in the past, such as ‘The Godfather’ and ‘Aquaman’. Let’s take a look at the specific places that served as the sets for the filming of “Cyrano”!
Noto, Sicily
Noto, in southeast Sicily, was one of the main filming locations for the production of this musical drama. The famous and royal cathedral of Noto served as the setting for several scenes, notably when Cyrano meets Roxanne. Apart from that, the film crew was also seen shooting scenes at Palazzo Castelluccio in Via Camillo Benso Conte di Cavour.
The Church of Montevergine, a Baroque-style Roman Catholic church in Via Camillo Benso Conte di Cavour, was also used as a filming location, making it the perfect backdrop for various scenes in the film.
Syracuse, Sicily
Known for its ancient ruins, Syracuse was the perfect city on the island of Sicily to shoot a lot of scenes for the musical drama. One of the locations in this historic town that served as a filming site was Castello Maniace, a famous citadel and castle on Via Castello Maniace. Several iconic scenes were also shot in Ortygia, also known as Citta Vecchia, home to many historical monuments. Joe Wright chose this prestigious location to capture some of the important scenes from ‘Cyrano’.
Scicli, Sicily
The symbolic and historic Church of Saint Matthew, also known as Chiesa di San Matteo, was used as a backdrop for several scenes, and production at this site was made around December 2020.
Catania, Sicily
The cast and crew of “Cyrano” were also spotted filming the movie at Palazzo Biscari, a monumental private palace in the eastern Sicily port city of Catania. According to reports, the private palace in Via Museo Biscari hosted the production of the film for two days at the end of 2020.
The team chose Mount Etna as the backdrop to capture the film’s dramatic and climactic war scenes, which proved to be one of the most difficult sequences to shoot, as revealed by the director of the film. photography, Seamus McGarvey. In an interview with Variety, McGarvey said, “Since we were ready to shoot at 16,000 feet, there was a massive snow dump that happened. Our set, camera rig and everything was completely inaccessible. So we had to go down the mountain and improvise this whole sequence with a camera and a tripod.
Read more: The best historical films of all time
