Where Was Shōgun Filmed? Every Major Location Explained

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The historical drama series “Shogun” by FX garnered 18 Emmy awards and nearly perfect reviews on Rotten Tomatoes, compelling the cable network to extend its initial miniseries format into three seasons. Adapted from James Clavell’s novel of the same name, the show narrates the story of Lord Yoshii Toranaga (Hiroyuki Sanada), a ruler in conflict with political adversaries during the reign of the late emperor’s child heir in Osaka. The series also follows English maritime pilot John Blackthorne (Cosmo Jarvis) who becomes Toranaga’s captive after his ship lands on Toranaga’s territory.

The visually breathtaking television series, boasting expansive scenery, captivating sets, and awe-inspiring costumes, offers an enchanting spectacle, from the grandeur of Osaka Castle to the vessels on the water. For those curious about where “Shōgun” was filmed, it might be surprising to learn that despite its Japanese setting, the majority of the production took place far beyond Japan’s shores. With insights gleaned from interviews with producers and the show’s designers, we can now reveal the key locations where “Shōgun” was brought to life on screen. Prepare for your travel plans as we unveil each significant filming location of this captivating series.

Wya Point Beach in Ucluelet, British Columbia is seen in Shōgun’s opening sequence

The spine-chilling opening scene for “Shōgun” was filmed at Wya Point Beach in Ucluelet, British Columbia. However, the setting depicted is actually the Izu Peninsula, located to the west of modern-day Tokyo, Japan. This location boasts a rugged coastline and misty mountains in the distance, as a troop of soldiers marches towards a Dutch trading ship called the Erasmus. The vessel is shown beaching on their shores, and its crew are subsequently captured by Lord Toranaga.

As a devoted admirer, I can share that I was thrilled to kick off our production with the breathtaking panorama of Wya Point Beach in Ucluelet. In conversation with CTV News, producer Erin Smith expressed this very sentiment while explaining our choice to film in Canada. You see, we have a sizable contingent of cast and crew hailing from Japan, and they were absolutely captivated and left spellbound by the striking similarity between that location and their homeland.

However, as enchanting as Ucluelet was for our early scenes, it presented some logistical challenges because, unlike other major outdoor filming locations in Canada we utilized, Ucluelet is more of an island.

Several sets were built in Port Moody, British Columbia

In a creative twist, Port Moody, British Columbia, Canada, was metamorphosed into a dual setting – Osaka City and Ajiro, a traditional fishing village. Production designer Helen Jarvis utilized an old cedar factory, the Flavelle sawmill, as a foundation for this transformation. Though the mill had been active for over a century, it ceased operation in 2020. Post-closure, the site was cleared of any remaining logging machinery, allowing the crew for the series “Shōgun” to begin constructing jetties linking land and water, along with other essential structures to replicate the series’ Japanese backdrop. With majestic mountains serving as a picturesque backdrop, this location provided an ideal canvas to depict Japan during the Edo period of 1600.

As a gamer, I’d say: “I’d be starting out with humble abodes by the waterfront, owned by our fisherfolk back then. These homes would gradually give way to grander, more elite structures as we moved towards the castle in the distance. It was designed this way to reflect the simple life near the water and the increasing complexity and prestige closer to the royalty.” Plus, building outdoors allowed us to create things at an authentic scale, making sure the walls and other features looked just right.

Hiroyuki Sanada, both lead performer and series producer, expressed his preference for actual buildings over green screens while acting. “It was incredible! I’m thrilled as an actor to have had the chance to act in front of those massive real-life sets,” he shared during an interview with Collider.

Soundstages and backlots in Vancouver, Canada were Osaka Castle

For scenes set inside Osaka Castle, although portions were filmed on location, soundstages and backlots in Vancouver were utilized to create indoor spaces. Production designer Helen Jarvis discovered that these areas had low, flat ceilings during her research. However, when setting up the rooms for filming, she purposefully omitted ceilings to provide a more expansive shooting area. This move not only expanded the director’s filming options but also facilitated better lighting in the rooms. As Jarvis explained to Variety, this was somewhat of a creative liberty taken, as it simulated the construction phase of Osaka city, and it allowed for impressive lighting effects in the meeting hall. It would have been challenging with a solid low ceiling.

Approximately 700 shoji screens were utilized for building the Osaka Castle set. The designs on these screens are accurate, as they stem from Jarvis’ research, but instead of being individually hand-painted, they were printed due to time limitations. In other words, we infused our panels with a stunning color and fine metallic powders, then ran them through an enormous printer to print the exquisite designs.

Apart from the castle, other structures like the samurai houses in Osaka City and the interior cabins of larger ships were also constructed in soundstages. Since Jarvis had recently worked on “Peter Pan and Wendy,” she began her work there, reusing some ship sets from the previous project for “Shōgun.” With her expertise, extensive research, and the guidance of Douglas Brooks, an expert on Japanese boat building, they managed to create a variety of vessels, ranging from small fishing boats to the grand Erasmus.

There was a single scene shot in London

A significant portion of the show was produced in Canada, but for one scene featuring Lord Toranaga on a horse, the production team opted to film in London, UK – one of the initial locations planned for filming. This single-day shoot happened in 2019. Although it might appear unusual, this choice played a crucial role in shaping “Shōgun” into the series it is known as today.

The initial plan was to start the project in 2019. But due to production hold-ups and the need to overhaul all scripts, the commencement date got postponed. There was a conscious effort made to transform the storyline such that it didn’t just replicate the ’80s adaptation. As a result, they chose to change the perspective of the story from Western to something more authentic. This alteration necessitated numerous script revisions and collaboration with consultants for accurate portrayal and translations.

Meanwhile, under the tight deadline set by the contract, FX needed to produce something to keep the rights for the project. Consequently, Hiroyuki Sanada, who is known for his extensive acting career and also starred in and produced the series, along with a crew, traveled to London to film a scene where he rode a horse. By doing so, they managed to preserve FX’s rights to the adaptation while the script was being revised. As Sanada shared with Variety, “We filmed only me on the horse in front of the fire.” After securing the rights, they waited for an opportune moment to finish the revisions. Eventually, filming for the rest of the project started in 2021, giving the team enough time to complete the script revisions beforehand.

Shōgun still filmed landscapes and establishing shots in Japan

Initially, it was intended to manufacture “Shōgun” within Japan. However, due to production hold-ups, everything shifted to Canada instead. Places such as Port Moody and Ucluelet effectively substituted for Japanese locations during the Edo era depicted in the series, but certain landmarks and settings necessitated by the team couldn’t be replicated. Consequently, some genuine Japanese landscapes were incorporated into the show, along with scenes of various monuments that weren’t reconstructed on the British Columbia sets.

Initially, Rachel Kondo and Justin Marks intended to shoot their series in Japan. However, mere weeks after completing the scripts, the world entered a lockdown due to the COVID-19 pandemic. As Marks explained in an article from The Walt Disney Company, while there were some positive aspects to this situation in terms of their workflow, the primary setback was losing the opportunity to film in Japan for at least the next couple of years. Consequently, they had to essentially recreate Japan on their own set.

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2025-04-26 21:30