Filming locations (Caprica)

Vancouver Art Gallery as the Caprica City Courthouse ^{(CAP: "Pilot")}.

Like its parent series, Caprica was produced entirely in the Greater Vancouver area of British Columbia, Canada. Interior scenes were shot primarily on stages at Vancouver Film Studios in Burnaby, while location shooting throughout Metro Vancouver and the surrounding Lower Mainland provided the visual grammar of Caprica City, Little Tauron, and the other worlds of the Twelve Colonies of Kobol.

Primary production facility

The bulk of interior filming for Caprica took place at Vancouver Film Studios, located in Burnaby, British Columbia, the same facility used for the Re-imagined Series. Standing sets on the stages included the Graystone family home interior, the ha'la'tha mob interiors, New Cap City environments, and various GDD offices. The series also made consistent use of BCIT's Aerospace Technology Campus in Richmond as its primary real-world location for Graystone Industries interiors and campus scenes throughout its entire run.

Caprica City

Vancouver Art Gallery (former Provincial Courthouse)

The building at 750 Hornby Street in downtown Vancouver served as the Caprica City Courthouse throughout the series. Designed by Francis Rattenbury and opened in 1911 as the British Columbia Provincial Courthouse, the building was designated a National Historic Site of Canada in 1980 and converted to its current use as the Vancouver Art Gallery in 1983.

Both the building's exterior and interior were used. In the pilot, Joseph Adama practices law in one of the Vancouver Art Gallery's heritage courtrooms, specifically what visitcaprica.com identifies as room 301, one of the original courtroom spaces retained during the conversion and available for event rental. The exterior fountain and steps appear in the same episode when Joseph and Sam Adama speak outside the courthouse, and the fountain's distinctive radial pattern is visible in a CGI aerial establishing shot used in "Blowback".

Vancouver Public Library

The main branch of the Vancouver Public Library at 350 West Georgia Street was used in multiple capacities across the series. Its exterior stood in for Caprica City Hall in the unaired DVD version of the pilot, visible when Joseph Adama and Daniel Graystone meet outside the building following the GDD briefing; in the broadcast version, this exterior was replaced with a computer-generated establishing shot.

The library's interior atrium appeared as a Gemenon spaceport arrival terminal in "Blowback", and its exterior area served as a Caprica City street location in both "Gravedancing," where Sister Clarice steals an e-sheet, and "Blowback" again, for the Joseph Adama/Guatrau scene and the Duram/GDD Director Singh scene.

Centre in Vancouver for Performing Arts

The Centre in Vancouver for Performing Arts at 777 Homer Street, directly across from the Vancouver Public Library, served as a recurring Caprica City street-level location. In "Blowback", scenes involving the Guatrau and his party were filmed at the intersection of Georgia and Homer and in front of the Centre's main entrance, with the Guatrau's party beginning their walk at Georgia and Homer before continuing to the Centre's doors.

Orpheum Theatre

The Orpheum Theatre at 884 Granville Street, the same venue used as the BSG Opera House in the Re-imagined Series, served as the V-Club virtual reality nightclub throughout Caprica. The pilot's extended V-Club rave sequence was filmed in the Orpheum's upper lobby and balcony areas; shots of Zoe Graystone on the balcony place the camera roughly eye-level with the chandeliers, confirming the upper level was used. The pilot DVD commentary track confirms the Orpheum identification.

Additional V-Club scenes filmed at the Orpheum during the pilot shoot were held back for use in later episodes. The social club where Philomon and Zoe/Rachel meet in "Know Thy Enemy" was also shot there; the podcast commentary for that episode notes it was among several V-World scenes filmed simultaneously with the pilot.

Granville SkyTrain Station

The underground Granville Station on TransLink's Expo Line, beneath Granville Street in downtown Vancouver, served as the Maglev Light Rail Transit station from which the bombing of the MLMT train departs in the pilot. Vancouver signage was covered or replaced with Caprican equivalents, the SkyTrain cars were replaced with a digital model of the Colonial Maglev, and the train was digitally composited into the station environment. A H&M retail advertisement is briefly visible in one shot, apparently overlooked during visual effects work.

Oceanic Plaza

The plaza and staircase of Oceanic Plaza in downtown Vancouver, near Guinness Tower, appeared in "End of Line" as a Caprica City exterior location where Tomas Vergis and Colonel Patel depart a building in the rain. The distinctive concrete railings, recessed staircase, and plaza fountain provided the key visual identification.

Coal Harbour and Convention Centre waterfront

The Coal Harbour waterfront, including the area west of the Vancouver Convention Centre at 999 Canada Place, was used throughout the series for establishing shots of Caprica City's steel-and-glass skyline. Location scouts Don Kanna and Tom Firth described Coal Harbour as their go-to location for Caprica City establishing shots in a January 2010 Los Angeles Times interview. The Convention Centre area also appeared in "Rebirth" during the unloading of the U-87 Cyber Combat Unit, with harbor construction visible in background shots helping to identify the location.

Jack Poole Plaza / Vancouver Convention Centre

Apollo Park, the site of the memorial service for Metropolitan Levitation Mass Transit bombing victims in "Rebirth," was filmed at Jack Poole Plaza atop the Vancouver Convention Centre's west building, augmented by a digital matte painting and set extensions. Filming photographs of the location were posted to Flickr in July 2009 during production.

David Lam Park

The north end of David Lam Park, at the intersection of Drake and Pacific Streets in Vancouver's Concord Pacific neighborhood, served as a Caprica City waterfront meeting location in the pilot, where Joseph Adama has a conversation with the Guatrau. The distinctive concrete pillar installations at the park's northern edge are visible in the scene and provided the key visual match.

Smile Restaurant, Pender Street

The Smile Restaurant at 424 West Pender Street appeared in the pilot as the diner where Joseph Adama and Daniel Graystone meet to smoke and drink coffee. The neon "Smile" sign visible through the window of the scene confirms the identification; additional commercial signage including a Yagger's awning and a reflected Ramada logo across the street are also visible in the scene.

SFU Segal Graduate School of Business

Simon Fraser University's downtown Vancouver campus at 500 Granville Street, the Segal Graduate School of Business occupying a former department store building at Granville and West Hastings, was used in the pilot for the interior scene where Joseph Adama meets with Minister Chambers. The pilot DVD commentary describes the location as "SFU's downtown campus, a turn-of-the-century building"; room 1900 is the likely specific space, based on floor plan comparison.

Rogers Arena (General Motors Place)

General Motors Place (renamed Rogers Arena on July 6, 2010, after filming concluded) at 800 Griffiths Way in downtown Vancouver was used for the Atlas Arena Pyramid stadium sequence in the unaired, direct-to-video pilot. For the broadcast version, the Pyramid arena footage was entirely reshot on sound stages and the GM Place material was not used. Doug Drexler discussed the arena's use and the subsequent design of the CGI Atlas Arena replacement on the Drex Files blog.

King George Secondary School

King George Secondary School on Barclay Street at Denman Street in the West End of Vancouver was used as Promethia High School in "Rebirth," where Joseph Adama waits outside for Tamara.

CPR Roundhouse

The former Canadian Pacific Railway Roundhouse community center and surrounding plaza in Yaletown, at 181 Roundhouse Mews, appeared in the pilot as the exterior surroundings for Wilson Elementary School, where young William Adama attends school. The red checkerboard paving of the plaza and the distinctive curved walkway over the former locomotive turntable are visible as Joseph picks up William after school.

Burrard Bridge

The Burrard Bridge, an art deco span across False Creek at Burrard Street, served as the Pantheon Bridge throughout the series. Amanda Graystone is seen approaching and standing at the bridge in "End of Line" and "Retribution", with her position near the Vancouver Aquatic Centre visible in aerial-perspective shots.

Chan Centre for the Performing Arts, UBC

The Chan Centre for the Performing Arts on the UBC campus was used in the pilot for the interior GDD briefing scene on the STO following the MLMT bombing. Both the Chan Centre's interior and exterior had also been used in the Re-imagined Series.

NRC Institute for Machinery Research, UBC

Amanda Graystone's Caprican surgical workplace was filmed at the National Research Council Institute for Industrial Technology at 3250 E. Mall on the UBC campus. The identification is based on visual comparison of the exterior and was reported as an unconfirmed tip as of visitcaprica.com's last update, pending interior access for verification.

Little Tauron

Vancouver Chinatown

The Pender Street corridor in Vancouver's Chinatown district provided the street-level exterior of Little Tauron throughout the series, with production adding Greek-language signage to suggest the Tauron immigrant enclave. Location scouts Kanna and Firth described Chinatown as the go-to location for Little Tauron in their January 2010 Los Angeles Times interview, noting "we would go to Chinatown for that."

Specific Chinatown locations confirmed by visitcaprica.com include the corner of Georgia and Gore Streets, which appears in "Rebirth" when Sam Adama and Willie walk through Little Tauron, and the block along Gore Street where Sam carries out an act of intimidation in the same episode. The building address 667 Gore is briefly visible on screen, establishing the location without ambiguity. The intersection of Powell and Gore served as the ha'la'tha gathering spot across multiple episodes.

The CG matte painting of Little Tauron used in the broadcast cut of the pilot incorporated the "Public Market" sign from Seattle's Pike Place Market, visible in the digital composite, a production continuity error identified through frame-by-frame image analysis.

Waterfall Building

Joseph Adama's Little Tauron apartment in the pilot episode was filmed at the Waterfall Building, 1540 West 2nd Avenue, Vancouver, a loft-style residential building near Granville Island that served as a recurring location throughout both the Re-imagined Series and Caprica. The pilot DVD commentary confirms its use for the Adama apartment interior. In subsequent episodes, the apartment was replaced by a purpose-built sound stage set.

The exterior of the apartment shown in the unaired pilot was filmed at a work/live building near the intersection of 6th Avenue and Granville Street, identifiable by its distinctive cantilevered walkways.

Graystone Industries

BCIT Aerospace Technology Campus

BCIT's Aerospace Technology Campus at 3800 Cessna Drive in Richmond, adjacent to Vancouver International Airport, served as the primary real-world location for Graystone Industries throughout the entire series. The campus opened in 2007. visitcaprica.com notes its consistent use from the pilot through the full series.

Schools

Iona Building, UBC (Athena Academy)

The Iona Building at the University of British Columbia served as Athena Academy, the private school attended by Zoe Graystone and Lacy Rand, in the pilot episode. The identification was confirmed through a personal site visit and photographic comparison.

Simon Fraser University — Burnaby Campus

Simon Fraser University's main Burnaby campus was one of the most frequently used location settings across the entire BSG franchise, and Caprica continued this tradition. The SFU Academic Quadrangle had served as the Caprica City Riverwalk market area since the Re-imagined Series Miniseries, and the same spaces were used for Riverwalk scenes in Caprica.

Simon Fraser University — Surrey Campus (Central City)

The SFU Surrey campus within the Central City development at 10153 King George Boulevard above the Surrey Central SkyTrain station, designed by architect Bing Thom and opened in 2006, provided two distinct locations for Caprica. The Inter-Colonial Spaceport arrival hall was filmed there for the pilot, and the same complex served as the exterior of Vergis Corporation's Tauron headquarters in "Know Thy Enemy". visitcaprica.com confirmed the latter through the building's distinctive new construction profile and roof form.

Museum of Anthropology, UBC

The Museum of Anthropology at UBC at 6393 NW Marine Drive, designed by Arthur Erickson and opened in 1976 with a post-and-beam structure inspired by Northwest Coast Indigenous longhouses, provided the setting for Daniel Graystone and Amanda Graystone dancing at a museum fundraiser in "Know Thy Enemy". The episode also depicts Daniel "seeing" Tomas Vergis across the museum, though the room where the dancing occurs and the room from which Vergis would be visible are not adjacent in the actual building; production used artistic license with the interior geography. Bill Reid's sculpture The Raven and the First Men, which appears on the Canadian twenty-dollar bill, is visible in background shots.

Gemenon exterior

Burnaby Lake Rugby Club

Several outdoor scenes set on Gemenon in "Blowback" were filmed at and around the Burnaby Lake Rugby Club, located just north of Burnaby Lake. The rugby goalposts visible in the background of one shot provided the key identification; the surrounding deciduous tree line and field layout confirmed the match against aerial imagery.

V-World natural environments

Sasamat Lake

The lake setting for V-World scenes in "End of Line" was filmed at Sasamat Lake near Coquitlam in the Lower Mainland, identified by moviemaps.org.

Residential locations

Graystone family home ("Willow House")

The Graystone family home, referred to informally as the "Willow House," was located at the corner of Park Avenue and First Street in New Westminster, British Columbia. It was used for all exterior Graystone home scenes throughout the series; the location was identified through background detail matching in a later episode and confirmed through a personal site visit in the summer of 2012.

Lacy Rand's house

Lacy Rand's residence, first seen in "Rebirth" and used in subsequent episodes, was filmed at 685 West 71st Avenue in Vancouver, identified through clues appearing in a later episode.

Notes

A significant complication for researchers is the existence of two distinct versions of the pilot episode: an unaired extended cut released on DVD in April 2009, and a broadcast version that aired in January 2010 with substantial re-editing, new CGI, and several replaced location shots. Several major locations, including the Rogers Arena Pyramid stadium sequence and the Vancouver Public Library's use as Caprica City Hall exterior, appear only in the unaired DVD version and were not seen by broadcast audiences. These distinctions are noted throughout this article.

The primary reference for Caprica filming locations is visitcaprica.com, a fan-maintained site whose author personally visited and photographically documented the majority of confirmed locations. Additional sources include the Caprica pilot DVD commentary track, the battlestarlocations.com PDF guide compiled with input from BSG location manager Kent Sponagle, and a January 24, 2010 Los Angeles Times interview with location scouts Don Kanna and Tom Firth.

References

External links

• visitcaprica.com — Episode-by-episode Caprica location guide with personal site visits and photographic documentation
• battlestarlocations.com — BSG Re-imagined Series location guide compiled with input from location manager Kent Sponagle; includes Caprica City locations shared with RDM
• moviemaps.org — Caprica — Interactive location map
• 13th Colony blog — Vancouver fan club with on-set and location reporting during production

See also

• Filming locations (RDM)
• Filming locations (TOS)
• Filming locations (1980)
• Caprica City
• Little Tauron