Now that filming in Spain for Game of Thrones season 6 is official, production is under way, with extras casting announced and more locations popping up.
The cities of Girona and Peñíscola have been confirmed as locations, and extras will be drawn from the local population. According to ElPuntAvui, Fresco Film Services (the film production company working with GoT once again in Spain) is seeking 1500 extras. Casting will take place on July 1st and 2nd.
The publication also reports that filming is scheduled there from September 1st through the 21st.
Diario de Navarra says that Fresco Film has been scouting another location- the Bardenas Reales Natural Park, a semi-desert badlands region located in Navarra, Spain. Fresco is checking out the site as a possibility for the show, but apparently declined to comment further on the matter as HBO makes the final decisions on locations.
When it comes to desert-like regions, Dorne always springs to mind, but we can’t rule out Essos. With so much of season 6 a question mark even for book-readers, the Bardenas site is sure to inspire a great deal of speculation.
Aragirona.cat reports that the locations chosen so far include the old quarter of Girona (referred to as the Barri Vell), Sant Pere de Galligants (a Benedictine abbey), and the Monastery of San Daniel. Filming may also include the Cathedral. The locations are not officially confirmed by HBO, however.
Speculation has been running wild, with fans guessing Westeros locations for the above new sites such as Oldtown, Casterly Rock, the Quiet Isle, and more. Given how Game of Thrones can transform a film location, there are so many possibilities.
Thanks to Los Siete Reinos for the heads up about the latest casting and location, and Javi for the translation help!
Holy sh*t the semi-desertical or steppe location they found is golden. What could be filmed in the desert at this point of the story…? Outside Meereen? Or Dorne? … maybe further east in essos but I’m not sure why would they do that…
And what scene could demand 1500 extras in Spain…? Some intriguing bits we have here..
And thanks again the WOTW crew for finding those informations for us. You always do an amazing job ! 🙂
Tower of Joy?
I’ve been in Las Bardenas and it looks like Mars. Absolutely amazing.
I can totally picture
Am I the only one who things one of these locations will be Sunspear? Unless they plan to have all of The Martells living in The Water Gardens, again.
Anyway, the locations revealed thus far look really cool and I cannot wait to see what is done with ’em!
Perhaps they’re filming Dany and Dothraki scenes there
No more books to speculate :'(
I begin to think that D&D will stay to live in Spain.
Thanks for the pingback. At your service, from Spain.
Do you think they are gonna return to where they fimed Pyke back to S2 ? As more Greyjoys seemed to appear in the casting calls..
Bardenas looks like a good place to shoot the Tower of Joy
The freaking ”W” word wants to come out of my mouth…no, not wedding another ”W” word or Dany stuff for sure.
That is one hell of a beautiful location, I hope they get it.
It makes me a little pissed at how lazy they were with Dorne this year. That grassy beach location didn’t capture the Dorne that was in the books and that was honestly the first time a location disappointed.
And yeah, I don’t think we’ll be seeing much of Essos in season 6. Dany and co will probably land in Westeros long before the finale. Gotta be Dorne.
Lost Northern,
Wanking?
Also, I’ve been avoiding the site since I’m holding off on episode 8. I’ll watch 8 and 9 back to back with some friends.
jentario,
Damn, your resistance is strong. Hope you haven’t been spoiled on episode 8
Show ruins biggest surprise of the next book: Game of Thrones in space confirmed. Sorry, going stir crazy for the last two episodes, I need to know what happens NOW! I’ll go back to disrupting the other thread and leave you all in peace here 🙁
Turncloak,
I knew Hardhome and the WWs were in there way before the episode aired. But I hope there’s still some surprises in there. I heard the battle is one of the best in the entire show 🙂
Sword of the Morning CONFIRMED. 😉
Bardenas is remarkable. I live in the Basque Country, which is adjacent and historically tied to Navarra. I’d like to emphasize how completely shocking it is to see so much devastation here. It’s like the opposite of an oasis; Bardenas is a desert in a region that is otherwise so green and lush. A really weird, otherworldly place.
Fordee14,
These locations have no Moorish influence at all, so it doesn’t look like Dorne should (or as it does already, as the Alcázar de Sevilla is the Water Gardens.) These buildings look very firmly European.
As for the desert; could be the Red Mountains of Dorne, could be somewhere in Essos. There’s no way to know without TWOW.
jentario,
Dorne isn’t a desert. Dorne has a desert. There is a difference. I mean, come on: The Dornish are known for their wine! Which vineyards grow on sand dunes? Jaime and Bronn arrived at the coast, and traveled through the coast to the Water Gardens, which are also located near the shore. There shouldn’t be any desert there. What we saw was perfectly in line with a realistic, non-stereotypical depiction of Dorne (and Spain, for that matter.)
GoT turns out to be the prequel to Dune. Or it’s a Star Wars crossover. I knew it! 🙂
The Spanish locations are beautiful. And I wonder how many will turn out for extras casting this time.
Can´t be. Only Machete kills in space.
Turncloak,
I hope the Tower of Joy isn’t filmed to be honest. Without the increased knowledge of the characters involved it isn’t needed and they wouldn’t be able to do it justice without a build up. All they need is the scene between Ned and Lyanna. Save the cool stuff outside for if they ever do a Robert’s Rebellion prequel. I want to see the Kingsgaurd’s last stand in a more meaningful way!
Either this is going to be the Dothraki Sea or they’re staying longer in Dorne…which I can’t say excites me.
If they’re going to do Casterly Rock then I think the best options out there at the moment are
Swallow’s Nest in Crimea
https://s-media-cache-ak0.pinimg.com/474x/cb/79/7d/cb797d337ce7e72b816d5ca9daecd8da.jpg
Guaita fortress in San Marino (would have to CGI the sea in!
http://www.theworldroamer.com/photos/guaita_castle_san_marino.jpg
OR if they don’t want to stray far then Dunluce Castle in N.Ireland
http://www.tangodiva.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/08/183.jpg
Oldtown is coming! And looks good. Spain is gorgeous. Must visit.
Sword of the Morning,
Be still my heart! Don’t do that to me Ser Arthur Dayne. I may never recover.
MoF,
https://41.media.tumblr.com/ae3fe8ea31f51067e83ece1e77f16c8d/tumblr_nphbaqJ4dz1qf5uago1_1280.png
new pic of cersei and high sparrow
I want to applaud the show for using so many actual extras, as opposed to a handful then multiplied with CGI. I know they do the latter also, but 400 for Hardhome, 500 for Daznak, and now 1500 for S6. I know it seems insignificant, but there’s a subtle yet important change in how one experiences those big scenes when its so many actual people, and not an image created by a hard drive.
darjan,
Do we know if it’s episode 9 or 10? I didn’t expect King’s Landing this episode at all.
1,500 extras for Girona and Peniscola, speculated to be
?
Sounds like a big battle to me.
, GET HYPE.
Miguel is coming back!
https://twitter.com/MigSapochnik/status/606566838328123392
😀
The badlands region seem very much like Essos to me. Where did they film Vaes Dothrak in Season 1? Could this be the outskirts of VD in Season 6? Or perhaps some areas outside Qarth, which was rather desert-like in Season 2.
They’ve released the alternative version of Hardhome! 😛
darjan,
Where did you find this?
Is it from Episode 9 or 10?
Big battle, with loads of onlookers CLEGANE BOWL CONFIRMED!! Sorry I lied about leaving you all alone, I really need to go home and calm down. That place looks amazing, reminds me of the Grand Canyon.
EDIT Flora Linden Yus! Cue Darth Vader “the FAITH is strong with this one”. Jaime Lannister is HAND Solo. I’m really sorry I promise I’ll stop now. Hysteria is setting in 🙁
The first pictures reminds me of the place where Dany confronted Mirri Maz Duur in season 1.
Indeed: if you stick a desert near an ocean, then you will almost always get a belt where a lot of water falls out of the sky and makes for a very nice place to live. Humans have spent the last 10K years killing each other for these places.
However, it also creates places like Dorne (think Australia or California) where the population is concentrated largely on the coasts, resulting in very low population densities within the country. That’s actually an issue in the books and referred to once in the show: there really are not that many Dornish.
I hope Dany goes further east (before she goes west). Then again, maybe she continues east and goes thru Asshai and attacks Westeros via Pyke & Casterly Rock? Assuming Planetos is round of course.
Only half-joking.
I agree. However, don’t hold your breath for a “Robert’s Rebellion” prequel: trying to impose a story on a pre-existing plot is very difficult, and they are not going to do something like that without a damn good story (or series of stories) to go with it.
I do wonder if we’ll get anymore clues we will get about Jon’s mother in the next two episodes. I’ve been surprised at how good the guesses have been from non-readers.
Hodor’s Bastard,
heh, for me, I’m hoping that Daeny finds outboard motors stored away where she’d locked up her dragons. She cannot get to Westeros fast enough for me anymore! (Are we there yet? Are we there yet? Are we there yet?)
Deepwood Motte? Is this on?
in who’s tumblr is this?
Gd75,
The Dothraki Hoard returns?
It’s really just sinking in that we’ll know in just a few months whether or not Dany is about to finally go to Westeros. The locations Emilia Clarke is seen in and which other cast members are there should tell us at least some generals. My first speculation is that she’ll arrive in episode 10 of next season. Subject to change as filming news emerges.
Oh, the logistics!
I still believe that Dany’s small air force will arrive in Westeros far ahead of her “army/navy”.
She might. I will be interested to hear what Tyrion recommends. They did a very good job of forging a quick but solid bond between the two last week. Tyrion is tactically savvy and politically savvy, both of which combine to strategically savvy: and he will have insights about what would be most effective that Barristan would not have had and that Jorah probably would not have, either.
(Regarding the books, I think that Tyrion
Wimsey,
Wimsey,
I’m not sure there would be enough for a TV series (even a season) or the will to do it but I could see it working as a trilogy of films. I think there will be spin off of some sort as it’s phenomenon and there’s money to be made as well as other parts of it’s universe to be explored. We shall see. Putting the cart ahead of the horse a bit! Either way, The Tower of Joy in it’s entirety isn’t needed. The epic moment of Ned and his gang facing up to the three legendary members of the Kingsguard would mean absolutely nothing to the show watcher as they don’t know them from Adam! It’s one of the more iconic moments in the history built around the books so to throw it in for a meaningless action sequence is silly.
Stanislav,
Luka Nieto,
Luka Nieto,
As far as I’m concerned, that’s a technicality. When they introduce a new location in GOT, they usually go big and not some afterthought beach in Northern Ireland. In the books, we get dunes and mountains- which would have been much more distinct and characteristic of the Dorne we’ve heard of so far. The location we got looked no different from the rest of Westeros.
H. Stark,
Yes!
Why does it have to mean anything? Besides, why are these guys supposed to be so legendary? Nothing in the books suggests that they stand out among the history of Kingsguardsmen. They are just the “old school” guys when Jaime came on board and whom Jaime admired (in his own self-centered fashion). It’s human nature to make “giants” of such people: but the “giants” of the prior generation are soon forgotten as nobody who knew them remains to recount them.
So, for all we know, the members of the Kingsguard 50 years before, 75 years before, etc., were just as impressive. It’s a negative evidence argument as the books do not dwell on the issue.
At any rate, I wouldn’t bank too much on them ever going for “epic” like that. Too often what fans consider “epic,” general audiences consider over-the-top to downright “corny.” I strongly suspect that one of the things that makes this show work is steering away from Tolkienesque moments and going more for “reach” moments. Last weeks duel between the White Walker and Jon was a great case of that: and it harkened back very much to Jackson’s de-Tolkienization of Aragorn vs. the Chief Orc at the end of Fellowship of the Ring.
1,500 extras=Dany´s army in Dorne, with Doran´s army.
Well I’m hoping this is Dorne but I’m expecting Essos.
H. Stark,
Fuck yeah!!!
Wimsey,
Well, because everything worth showing should mean something or it shouldn’t be included in the show. At this point in the show’s timeline they are still remembered with great respect and admiration of their fighting prowess and deeds. So these ‘giants’ would be intersting to explore to see the human side of the legends.
Because the show only refers to it from recall and references then it does come across as a more romantic/epic period which could translate well to a film. It doesn’t have to be corny and you don’t have to have a pure Good vs Evil story for it to be told in a more high fantasy style. IT all depends on the execution and there were some pretty gritty things happening with a lot of inner-conflict in a lot of characters. I’d happily see them have a go at it.
Lucius,
I don’t think they would need that many extras for that. With the Unsullied they just use CGI duplication.
Sean C.,
The extras are for multiple scenes and locations across Spain, they aren’t going to use 1500 extras in one shot.
Just wait until the Night’s King has to deal with Sand Worms. Epic.
Same here. 6×10.
Which is frankly the #1 reason I’m hoping hard for a split-up “extended” seventh season or even a surprise eighth. I want more than 10 hours of Daenerys in Westeros so very dearly.
Beautiful locations! The red cliffs look like the desert Southwest, USA. Too bad it is so damn expensive to film here. I’d love to be an extra! Lucky, lucky Spaniards!
I’m also thinking Vaes Dothrak, or perhaps farther east in Essos for the cliffs. I would LOVE to see Asshai make it into the show as I think that the glass candles in Oldtown and magical knowledge of M. Marwyn have something to do with the end game. Perhaps that is why they have saved
story for closer to the end since he has traveled there and had dealings with the Warlocks as well. Just a thought…
They probably didn’t want viewers to get it confused with Qarth, Yunkai, Meereen, the Red Waste,
Now I’m consumed with curiosity…what is the freaking “W” word? Wylla?
These all look awesome! Spain is just gorgeous everywhere you look it seems 🙂
1500 extras is a big army… and a big boost to the local economy, well done HBO.
WeirwoodTreeHugger,
Rygritte,
Meh. With some proper dialogue, the right people wouldn’t get it confused. And the ones that would generally confuse a lot of things in the show (such as Roose=Stannis in seasons 2 and 3, Lancel=Loras in season 1 etc).
jentario,
Dunes and mountains wouldn’t have made sense in the coast of Dorne, as per the frigging books and common sense too. It’s not a technicality. It’s the GoT crew doing their job properly.
Luka Nieto,
Fine, let the beach be grassy… But as deep inland as the Water Gardens? In the books, that area is duney and what we get in the show is typical Westerosi grassland. The only green areas in the books are the one near the river (was it Greenblood?). And if you’re implying that there are no desert beaches without grass, you are very wrong (I assume that’s not what you mean).
I know this is nitpicky and I generally love everything about this season, but Dorne seemed underdeveloped in every possible way to me. Locations included.
The pictures make me want to visit those places! Beautiful!
jentario,
Yes. So underdeveloped, Dorne. Filming in an infamously tax-heavy country for film productions, closing a freaking UNESCO site that is simultaneously a tourist landmark for thousands and thousands of people everyday, and has only been closed for another film production. So lazy, right? Yeah.
Also, the Water Gardens in the books are inland, while Sunspear is in the coast. In the show, however, as you can clearly see in this picture (and as Jaime explained to Bronn in “Sons of the Harpy”), the palace is on the shoreline. Some vegetation is warranted.
And I insist: Dorne HAS a desert; Dorne ISN’T a desert. Maybe your imagination betrayed you —were you picturing a stereotypical Arabian Nights-style Dorne, with Arab palaces and sand dunes as far as the eye can see? Fine, no problem, but that’s not Dorne. Dorne is inspired by Moorish Spain. Moorish Spain is what this looks like, both the Water Gardens and the shoreline. They did their job.
Luka Nieto,
The fact that they chose to put the palace in the shoreline seems like an excuse not to show a unique desert location. They deliberately put the Water Gardens outside of a location that would have gave Dorne more character and would have been unique compared to the rest of Westeros.
But let’s agree to disagree here, or the argument will just go in circles.