Inception Film Locations

Where were the scenes in Inception filmed? Christopher Nolan decided to film Inception in a wide variety of global locations. Following are descriptions of what scenes were filmed in which cities around the world. Click the links for more details about the locations. Yes, there are spoilers if you haven’t already seen Inception.

Tokyo, Japan

The scene where Saito sits in the helicopter and offers the job to Cobb (while Arthur tries to talk Cobb out of it) was filmed on top of a skyscraper in Tokyo.

Cardington, England

As I mentioned in a previous posting, sets were built in a converted airplane hangar in Cardington to film scenes of the hotel bar, the rotating hotel corridor, the hotel room, and the elevator shaft.

Other Locations in England

They filmed the scene where Miles introduces Cobb to Ariadne in the Flaxman Gallery at the University College London. They filmed Yusuf’s pharmacy at the Farmiloe Building. The scene with Arthur and Ariadne discussing the Penrose steps was filmed at a former gaming company.

Paris, France

The scene where Cobb is explaining things to Ariadne while they sit at sidewalk cafe was actually filmed at a small bakery in Paris. Here’s a map of Paris.

Tangier, Morocco

The Mombassa scenes were actually filmed in Tangier. This is where Cobb meets up with forger Eames and they go to meet Yusuf the chemist. The scene of Cobb running through the streets and alleys was shot here  in the Grand Souk section. The riot scene that happens at the beginning of the movie was also shot in Morocco.

Los Angeles, California

The scenes of the interior rooms of Saito’s castle were shot on sets built on a soundstage. The castle is also where the water comes flooding through the windows toward the end of a dream while Cobb stands there, watching the water come crashing down.

The car chase scenes during the rainstorm were also filmed in L.A. The rain was created by spray heads that were rigged to the tops of buildings. This is also where one of the most amazing scenes of the movie was shot – the freight train coming down the middle of the street, knocking cars out of the way.  Los Angeles is also where the scenes of the team riding around in the white van were shot.

Other Los Angeles Locations

A warehouse in L.A. was used as the team’s Paris workshop. In addition, they built parts of the exterior of Saito’s castle in a water tank at Universal Studios, the San Pedro harbor, and in Palos Verdes.

Calgary, Canada

Filming was done at a closed ski resort named Fortress Mountain on a mountain near Banff. Most of the outdoor action sequences in Calgary were shot with handheld cameras and the actors and cameramen alike had to do extensive skiing which, in the case of Tom Hardy, involved taking ski lessons before filming began. Aerial scenes were shot from a helicopter.

Here’s a video showing clips from the movie, including the locations. I think I got them right…

Song in video clip: Dream within a Dream from Inception Soundtrack by Hans Zimmer