This post is about the film Apocalypto.
Since many of you come across this post wondering ‘where was Apocalypto filmed’? I’ve edited this post to begin with that. Let’s get right to it!
Table of Contents
Apocalypto Movie Shooting Location/Apocalypto Movie Location: Where Was Apocalypto Filmed?/Where Was Apocalypto Movie Filmed?/Where Is Apocalypto Filmed?
Mel Gibson filmed Apocalypto mainly in Catemaco, San Andrés Tuxtla and Paso de Ovejas in the Mexican state of Veracruz.
Where Was Apocalypto Filmed for Waterfall Scene
The waterfall scene was filmed at Eyipantla Falls, located in San Andrés Tuxtla, Mexico.
Other filming by second-unit crews took place in El Petén, Guatemala.
Apocalypto was originally slated for an August 4, 2006, release, but Touchstone Pictures delayed the release date to December 8, 2006, due to heavy rains and two hurricanes interfering with filming in Mexico. Principal photography ended in July 2006.
Apocalypto was shot on high-definition digital video, using the Panavision Genesis camera.
During filming, Gibson and cinematographer Dean Semler employed Spydercam, a suspended camera system allowing shooting from above. This equipment was used in a scene in which Jaguar Paw leaps off a waterfall.
We had a Spydercam shot from the top of [the] 150-foot [46 m] waterfall, looking over an actor’s shoulder and then plunging over the edge—literally in the waterfall. I thought we’d be doing it on film, but we put the Genesis [camera] up there in a light-weight water housing. The temperatures were beyond 100 degrees [38 °C] at [the] top, and about 60 degrees [15 °C] at the bottom, with the water and the mist. We shot two fifty-minute tapes without any problems—though we [did get] water in there once and fogged up.
A number of animals are featured in Apocalypto, including a Baird’s tapir and a black jaguar. Animatronics or puppets were employed for the scenes injurious to animals.
Where Is Apocalypto Based?
Apocalypto is an American mythic action-adventure drama film co-produced and directed by Mel Gibson, written by Mel Gibson and Farhad Safinia. The film stars Native American and Indigenous Mexican actors consisting of Rudy Youngblood, Raoul Trujillo, Dalia Hernández, Mayra Sérbulo, Ian Uriel, Rodolfo Palacios, Bernardo Ruiz Juarez, Gerardo Taracena, Ricardo Diaz Mendoza, Ammel Rodrigo Mendoza, and Israel Contreras.
Apocalypto grossed $120.7 million worldwide and was nominated for 3 Oscars: “Best Achievement in Makeup”, “Best Achievement in Sound Mixing” and “Best Achievement in Sound Editing”.
The film follows a young man named Jaguar Paw who is taken on a perilous journey to a world ruled by fear and oppression. Apocalypto was mainly filmed in Mexico.
The complete list of the locations where Apocalypto was filmed, with latitude and longitude coordinates, are listed in the table below.
Apocalypto Filming Location/Apocalypto Filming Locations Table
| Location Name | Latitude | Longitude |
|---|---|---|
| Catemaco | 18.422190 | -95.118988 |
| El Petén | 16.962267 | -90.166656 |
| Eyipantla Falls | 18.384899 | -95.207756 |
| Polgaver Beach | 50.337456 | -4.731585 |
| San Andres Chicahuaxtla | 17.156120 | -97.840073 |
| Sierra Madre del Sur | 17.000257 | -100.002090 |
If you are interested in watching the Apocalypto trailer, you can do so here.
“¿Dónde se filmó Apocalypto?”
“Apocalypto” se filmó principalmente en las selvas tropicales del estado mexicano de Veracruz, así como en el estado de Quintana Roo. El director Mel Gibson eligió estas ubicaciones por su exuberante vegetación, terreno escarpado, lo cual se ajustaba al ambiente de la película en la antigua Mesoamérica. El equipo de producción también utilizó varias locaciones dentro de estos estados para recrear los diferentes entornos representados en la película, incluyendo selvas densas, acantilados rocosos y lechos de ríos. Además, algunas escenas se filmaron en otras partes de México, incluida la Península de Yucatán. El impresionante y auténtico telón de fondo de la película contribuye significativamente a su atmósfera inmersiva e intensa.
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