Inkheart - Sometimes Filming A Movie Is All About The Location

Source: Warner Bros

Principal photography on "Inkheart" began on location in Liguria, Italy, which is also where "Inkheart" author Cornelia Funke's original story unfolds. "I made a decision early on that I wanted to use real places," Director Iain Softley says. "When I went back to the book, I discovered it was set in Liguria and I thought it would be even better to make the film where the story takes place. While scouting the area, we could see that the landscape and geography had incredible variety; the combination of mountain villages and seaside towns provided the perfect backdrop for all the exteriors in the film. It is a real world on one level, but it has jumping-off points into the fantastic."

Funke had actually lived in the area for several months and says she found it to be a magical place. "I remember being so impressed that if you travel to the mountains, you could be in a quite modern, tourist area, and then five minutes later you feel like you're in the Middle Ages. You turn the corner and you seem to fall out of time. So when I thought about the idea of characters who had come out of a medieval tale then finding a lair hidden in the mountains, it made so much sense to set the story in Liguria. It also gave me the chance to write a love letter to the region."

Marking their fifth film together, production designer John Beard worked with Softley to create sets that would bridge the realms of reality and imagination. Softley notes, "The first thing I did was to get out there with John and do some photographic research so we could absorb the atmosphere of the location. We found antiquated hilltop towns that completely transport you back to a storybook past."

Producer Diana Pokorny says, "I think the collaboration between Iain and John is extraordinary. They have made so many films together that they have a shared vision, and you see it in every set."

The producer continues, "Iain was very clear that he wanted to work in practical environments, as opposed to using a lot of green screen, so John and his team created really fantastic sets that made us all feel like we were stepping into another world. Our visual effects department did amazing work in enhancing or creating certain things, but for the most part, all of our scenes were accomplished in places our actors could see and touch."

"When we went to all the locations, we felt the cold and the sense of history around us, and that has an impact," Brendan Fraser, who plays Mortimer "Mo" Folchart in "Inkheart", attests. "To actually be in the place adds a sense of authenticity that you can't fabricate. You can't beat the real thing."

The film's more intangible elements, including a well-timed twister and the terrifying specter of the Shadow, were rendered by the visual effects group, led by visual effects supervisor Angus Bickerton.

Verity Hawkes' costume designs also reflected the integration of two distinct domains. "Iain wanted a very timeless feel, so the clothes are not set in a particular period," she offers. "Brendan's and Eliza's (Hope Bennett) costumes were contemporary, but with a slightly period silhouette. Helen Mirren (Elinor) had a lot of input into her wardrobe in keeping with her inspiration of Edith Sitwell, which I thought was genius."

For the the homesick fire juggler Dustfinger (Paul Bettany), Hawkes states, "He wasn't going to come from a medieval world and suddenly dress in jeans and a t-shirt. I wanted him to look like he had chosen clothes that would allow him to blend, but there was still something unique and out of place about him."

The fashion-conscious Capricorn (Andy Serkis), the evil villain of "Inkheart", wears a suit that Hawkes describes as "much more GQ. We had this very tailored black suit, black shirt look going on for him."

When location filming was completed in Italy, the production moved to soundstages at Shepperton Studios in England, where most of the interior shots were done.

Funke visited the set on several occasions and Softley remarks, "It was fantastic having Cornelia on set because she was so enthusiastic about the film. She just embraced the re-interpretation of it and was very supportive of everything we did. You could see in her face that she was very excited to see her characters and her ideas being brought to life."

For Funke, being so intimately involved in the big-screen adaptation of her novel was a rich and rewarding experience. She reflects, "Even for a writer it is difficult to find words for such an experience, enchanting, overwhelming, magical, unforgettable...all that is true. What I saw was so close to what I had envisioned in my head that I suspected Iain Softley and all the other amazing artists found a secret door to my imagination," she smiles. "Some things were different, but then I would think, 'Oh yes! That's how it should look.' What greater gift can an author be given by other artists?"