Andor Season 1 set itself apart from other Star Wars shows by relying heavily on real-world locations during principal photography. So, where was Andor‘s first season filmed?
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Andor Season 1 Filming Locations
Andor Season 1 was filmed on studio and location sets throughout the UK. Pinewood Studios in Buckinghamshire, England housed many of the production’s interiors, including various spaceship cockpits and crew quarters. Nearby nature spot Black Park doubled as the Kenari village where Cassian Andor lived as a child. The Andor cast and crew traveled further afield to shoot scenes set at the Ferrix Terminal, captured at Coryton Refinery in Essex. Andor‘s Coruscant spaceport material was less of a mission to film, as it only involved a 40-minute trek to the McLaren Technology Centre in Woking.
Other scenes set at the Galactic Capital were slightly more onerous, though. Syril Karn’s apartment building and several Coruscant establishing shots were filmed at the Brunswick Centre and the Barbican Centre, respectively – both in central London. And that’s only scratching the surface of Andor Season 1’s filming locations. Cleveleys in northwest England’s Lancashire country stood in for Niamos, while Dorset’s Winspit quarry in the country’s southwest passed for Saw Gerrera’s base. Middle Peak Quarry in the East Midlands represented Narkina 5’s harsh terrain.
Andor also shot footage in Scotland – including the bulk of the outdoor Aldhani scenes. Vel Sartha’s Rebel hideout set was built in Glen Tilt, Perthshire, as well as elsewhere in the wider Scottish highlands. Meanwhile, the Imperial garrison Vel and her fellow Rebels attack is in reality Cruachan Dam in neighboring Argyll and Bute. The cast and crew filmed scenes on the dam itself, as well as the complex’s network of tunnels.
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Did Andor Film on The Volume?
No, although the production did utilize StageCraft technology to a small extent. What’s the difference between The Volume and StageCraft? The Volume is a soundstage surrounded by a video wall that projects a real-time rendered CG background; StageCraft is the video wall itself. Andor VFX producer TJ Falls explained how Season 1 employed StageCraft in a November 2022 /Film interview.
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“We built a specific LED screen around the embassy where Mon Mothma works,” Fall said. “And so they’re having their party and you’ve got wonderful screens. And it’s like, well, now we’ve got a wonderfully practically built set. We’re immersed with our environment of people, we’re utilizing new technology in terms of StageCraft and blending everything together.”
Andor Season 1 is currently streaming on Disney+, as part of the platform’s Star Wars collection.
