Written by Shona Smith on May 26, 2021. Posted in On Location

London stars in punk-era inspired Cruella

The Cruella de Vil origin story is set in a vibrant punk era of 1970s London. Production was based at Shepperton Studios, and filming took place at over 44 locations in central London and around the UK.

Emma Stone (La La Land, The Favourite) stars as Cruella de Vil in Disney’s live-action film about the rebellious early days of the fashionable villain. Set in 1970’s London amidst the punk rock revolution the film follows Estella a young creative determined to make a name for herself with her clothing designs.

The film also stars Emma Thompson (The Children Act, Alone in Berlin) as Cruella’s nemesis, Joel Fry (Yesterday, Paddington 2) Paul Walter Hauser (I, Tonya, Cobra Kai) , Emily Beecham (The Pursuit of Love, Into the Badlands), Kirby Howell-Baptiste (Killing Eve, The Good Place)and Mark Strong (1917, Kingsman: Golden Circle).

The production team dressed around 130 sets, across 96 official dress sets on five stages and the backlot at Shepperton Studios. The iconic Liberty’s of London was one of the major set builds. The real store was 3D-scanned so a replica seventies version of the store could be built on a stage.

On location filming in London took place at 44 locations over 40 days. These include the parade of shops at fashionable Portobello Road and Westminster. Greenwich Naval College provided the setting for re-carpet sequences as well as parks and driving scenes.

Elsewhere in the UK, RAF Halton in Buckinghamshire, Ipswitch Manor and Englefield House and Estate in Berkshire feature.

Director Craig Gillespie and cinematographer Nicolas Karakatsanis on set

Producer Andrew Gunn comments,  “completely outstanding. She had to try to find a line between an authentic London of the late 1970s but find a way to put it off -kilter. Her use of colour and the angles in her designs can always tell us whether we are in a space occupied by The Baroness or Cruella. Jasper and Horace’s flat, The Baroness’ design space, even Liberty of London are beautiful and ingenious spaces.”

The UK High-End TV Tax Relief offers 25% of qualifying UK expenditure to productions that 10% of the film's core expenditure must be used or consumed in the UK. This includes above-the-line costs, including actors and directors irrespective of nationality.

Image Credits: © 2021 Disney Enterprises Inc. All Rights Reserved.