Written by on Jul 5, 2013. Posted in Production News

Pinewood Studios Toronto hosts filming for monster epic Pacific Rim

Mexican filmmaker Guillermo del Toro based his epic monster movie Pacific Rim at Pinewood Studios Toronto. The film charts humanity’s battle for survival building giant robot war machines to fight immense alien monsters that have risen from the depths of the Pacific Ocean.

“We took over virtually every space at the studio, including all the soundstages, which still weren’t enough,” says executive producer Callum Greene: “We ended up splitting Stage 8 into two separate stages - it was quite an endeavour.”

The film’s global settings were all recreated at Pinewood Toronto, with a team travelling to cities around the world and coming back with photos that were used to build iconic skylines digitally using vast green screens.

“The scope of the film required a lot of different looks, from Hong Kong to Tokyo to the various interiors,” adds production designer Andrew Neskoromny: “We were building almost everything on stages, so from a design standpoint it all had to be manufactured from scratch. We put on the layers of about 15 years going into the future - a future that does not appear hopeful.”

Pacific Rim opens in cinemas from 12 July 2013.