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<em>Watchmen</em> Filming in <strike>New York</strike> Vancouver
By
Jen Carlson
Published Nov 28, 2007
Modified Mar 7, 2008
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By
Jen Carlson
Published Nov 28, 2007
Modified Mar 7, 2008
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The DC Comic Watchmen is coming to the big screen, and the NYC sets were recently revealed! They aren't tearing apart town or stopping traffic like Cloverfield or I Am Legend, instead they're filming the alternate universe New York, mostly circa 1985, in Vancouver. Director Zack Snyder said:
After a couple months of shooting at various locations and on stages, last week we finally made the transition to our New York City backlot. Since the New York City that is rendered in the graphic novel is so particular, it was very important to me that our backlot speak the same language, the vernacular of WATCHMEN. In addition, the backlot needs to function as many different parts of the city, countless store fronts, street corners, alleys, etc. So, with that in mind, we set out to build own own custom backlot here in Vancouver, BC. In my opinion, the results speak for themselves.
Some of the things you'll find in alt-NY: 100 unique and custom-designed graphics created for the various storefronts, 5,000 square feet of custom posters, 1,040 feet of 1:1 scale New York streets and a whole lot of creativity. In addition, the street had to work for 1938, 1945, 1953, 1957, 1964, 1974, 1975, 1977, and 1985.
Some problems we noticed: That vintage Chevrolet Malibu was never used as an NYC Taxi, and the fare sticker is also too modern. The traffic signals and walk/don't walk signals are all wrong. And, lastly, there is nothing that even remotely looks like that in the vicinity of the 42 Street-Grand Central subway station. Other bad news: Watchmen doesn't come out til Spring of 2009!
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Jen Carlson
Jen Carlson is a former WNYC and Gothamist editor.
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