The Making of Desert Town, Asteroid City - Shot On KODAK 35mm Film

ASTEROID CITY takes place in a fictional American desert town circa 1955. Synopsis: The itinerary of a Junior Stargazer/Space Cadet convention (organized to bring together students and parents from across the country for fellowship and scholarly competition) is spectacularly disrupted by world-changing events.
ASTEROID CITY is only in cinemas starting June 16.
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[@DaringDomino3s]

“A student film on an enormous giant set in the middle of Spain” love it

[@YanFries]

Except the budget lol

[@DaringDomino3s]

@@YanFriesfr I thought he was gonna say “a student film on an enormous budget”

[@user82938]

@@DaringDomino3s I think he just means like how when you're shooting a student film, it's just the actors, the director, a couple camera people and a sound person on set.

[@nlpnt]

If Dogma 95 were written today, it would probably stipulate shooting on digital. Possibly even going as "no dedicated camera hardware, phones only". I'm not sure if Wes started out deliberately trying to do the opposite of that, but that's what the "Wes Anderson style" has evolved into.

[@shanebailey9128]

Enormous OR Giant, pick ONE!🙈

[@GamerReality]

The set designers and manufacturers carried the visuals in the movie! What an aesthetic.

[@hay_bail1]

Love that, same as Barbie.

[@TheDoomWizard]

Burning assloads of carbon emissions in the process so one day we won't even shoot with 35mm Kodak anymore ever again

[@Potatopatch]

And at some points like 1:05 they literally did carry the visuals

[@johnbuckingham6895]

Cinematographer and production designer, too.

[@jangdi.]

What the hell is "an aesthetic"??? Do you know how dumb it sounds?

[@Lobanium]

I love that he calls it a play, rather than a movie. Anderson's films really do feel like watching a quirky play rather than a full blow film.

[@davet.5493]

A quirky play costs hundreds of dollars to produce a quirky film from him cost millions of dollars to produce - and both are crap.

[@theothersmith9570]

There’s a reason he calls it a play but I won’t spoil it.

[@dog7426]

@davet.5493 You REALLY seem to not like this film given your other replies. Would you mind actually explaining your reasoning though? I’m only asking since I just saw this film so it’s nice to hear thoughts while it’s fresh in my mind.

[@AnAxolotI]

He calls it a play for a specific reason I will not be clarifying, but it means more than what you're thinking!

[@WWEMichaelGuzman]

​@@dog7426Seen it twice,the first time i felt there wasn't really a story to it,requested my refund,then I thought I give it another try,so I did,watched the whole movie but still it seemed,like there wasn't anything to it,this wasn't a movie,more of a shooting of a movie or a play,all of us watching it,the audience,just seeing a show,very disappointing,why couldn't the movie be a movie about that small town Asteroid City,people living there,made the area popular from a crash site from an alien ship making the huge crater,covered up by the us government,people rent houses hoping to get a glimpse of an alien!! 🤯😏

[@jakobowens8439]

This is one of the coolest things ever

[@laurencewhite4809]

That's the problem. It's style-porno. Can someone please wake me up when Wes Anderson manages to create real human depth? ZzZzZzz

[@jackengdall]

@@laurencewhite4809 Me when I don’t have any media literacy

[@Balthazar2242]

Idk, i don't think it even rates in the top 10 for Coolest Things Ever personally

[@jakobowens8439]

@@Balthazar2242 I’m talking about how they built the city/set. I own and run film locations and this is just very cool. I’m not talking about the movie itself.

[@AdrianStjarnfaldt]

@@jakobowens8439 sure you do sure you own film locations xD

[@TheKmanKVSC]

This is what real film making is. Not putting your actors in a massive green screen arena, but putting them in an actual set, with a real environment around them to interact with. I love the directors who still believe in actually putting the work in the craft.

[@nlpnt]

Although anyone else but Wes probably would've gone to either a real location just outside the studio zone or an existing movie "ranch" just within it.

[@patty109109]

So the other films that make far more money and have far more viewership, using the techniques you deride, aren’t real?

[@Bhatt_Hole]

@@patty109109 Shhhhh! Let the non-professionals have their attempted snobbery. They've never touched a "real" camera before. They need this! Don't take it away from them.

[@owlcircus6811]

@@Bhatt_Hole😂😂 Its so fun watching people like they went to film school and suddenly became the authority of what is is genuine filmmaking

[@rocketman-766]

@@patty109109those movie slowly lost its magic, cgi is good but using it extensively you kinda bored with it.

[@julesdrums6167]

This man knows how to create a vibe.

[@davet.5493]

But it's not a good vibe

[@sarips841]

@@davet.5493 L

[@paulytheking7365]

@@davet.5493Just like you!

[@Shyknit]

Yep and an aesthetic for sure

[@UPalooza]

Yes, he steals it from Billy Wilder's Ace in the Hole, George Stevens Giant, etc. But Mills and Gen Z don't know there's this thing called the past.

[@adamgoldsteintv]

I never liked a single Wes Anderson movie until I saw this and I was blown away.

[@leokimvideo]

It looks so awesome because this film was shot on film, glorious film.

[@MrPabgon]

Nope, it's because of all the other visual stuff (color palette, composing, camera movement, acting, framing, etc.)

[@bluebaconjake405]

take a shot for every "film" in your comment 😭

[@kangarooMonkee]

And also because of the incredibly talented people behind the camera.

[@JackofCubes]

No, it is the color grading. You can get shots exactly like this with digital

[@bluebaconjake405]

@@JackofCubes U gotta admit that film emulation sometimes is just not as good as real film even though most people wouldnt realize but its still there. And the quality of film is better too! Film also affects how they shoot the film and compose it. Makes the shot much more intentional and thoughtful

[@dragonix4k502]

I am from Spain and I never thought that this could be my country when I saw the trailer. When I saw this video I remembered that almost all Western movies or movies set in American deserts are filmed in Spain, which has the largest desert in Europe

[@LeeGee]

Spaghetti Westerns

[@itsmeaiden8788]

@@LeeGee should rename it to Paella Western lol

[@BMackProductions]

Cheers to the sculptors!

[@tiouip]

AND the PAINTERS!

[@tiendang4440]

Really loved the details on the film set Wes has created, took so long to get these props made before filming began. Wes Anderson is a pure genius.

[@ActuallyHoudini]

thank god people still shoot on film. i can't help but always notice the flatness in digital-only productions. a cross between digital and analog are my favourite in regards to understanding the pros and cons of each medium. its just that i think celluloid is better in both a look-sense and an archival sense.

[@Jay-jb2vr]

​@@AlFirous They always will be

[@paulytheking7365]

In my opinion, it depends on the style of film.

[@vinagredelmal7717]

what I notice on digital, is that the "out of focus" zones looks like a cheap green screen effect. This doesnt happens when you shoot on film, the result is more 'organic'. I dont know why.

[@jangdi.]

Lmao, no. Watch more films, seriously. Digital does wonders.

[@ActuallyHoudini]

@@jangdi. Most of the films I have seen this year were shot digitially from film to editing to screening to home movie. And I really hate to say that I don't like the look of it. It feels too flat and even with these heavy duty cinema cameras, it feels like it was shot on an iPhone. Digital can and has done wonders but film looks better in all its processes, to me at least. And in no way is it possible to replicate the look of film in digital, as David Fincher has shown in recent years. Films look better on film.

[@jayski9410]

I haven't seen the film but so much of what I've seen looks exactly like my childhood of 60 to 70 years ago. The set design is amazing. It brings back memories of coast to coast car trips with my family before the Interstate Highway System was complete (so yeah there we ramps to nowhere). Lots of quirky little motor courts and lame roadside attractions. But it makes me feel good just seeing it come to life again.

[@ghost307]

Don't waste your time or your money.

[@austinmcconnell]

Where’s the Super 8 camera, Kodak? Will you leave my heart broken?

[@ayush0477]

unexpected, nice to see you..!

[@sfnurh]

hi austin!

[@Potatostarch300]

Hello Austin!!!!

[@loudtaste1046]

That’s never going happen

[@ehbird858]

we had a super 8 in school. It was cool but I definitely hated it at times lol

[@Knulppage]

Nothing compares to movies shot on 35mm Kodak (except larger gauge film). The colors here are very distinct and only film brings their true richness. The light play - subtle halation, deep contrast, bursts of light and reflections - energizes the image where digital seems lifeless.

[@NathanMian]

Now this is a Kodak moment!

[@davet.5493]

I don't think anybody under the age of 40 would understand this comment

[@strikeflame5966]

Great stuff Kodak, love Wes! How about you keep 35mm film prices for consumers in check while you're at it, though? It'd be nice if the medium was accessible to normal people as well as movie studios LOL edit: I primarily meant 35mm for still photography purposes, as prices for it from Kodak have skyrocketed. I realize 35mm video (and really all video film formats) hasn't been priced accessibly in ages and is a completely different medium.

[@ActuallyHoudini]

16mm is onw of the most accessibke film mediums for the general public. look into that.

[@josephmeyer2788]

⁠@@ActuallyHoudiniI don’t think ~$150/$200 is really considered accessible for shooting and developing like three minutes of 16mm.

[@Jsjsjjssjs]

@@josephmeyer2788 400' rolls are 10-11 minutes

[@jordanl4051]

It is. And they’re one of many that make it.

[@tomkam9783]

@@ActuallyHoudini re: @Joseph Meyer, let's also not forget the cost of a one-lite print and then the xfer to digital because...where else are we gonna watch it??

[@1northsparrow246]

Dear Kodak, Thank you for still existing. 😁

[@truth-12345.]

Finally! I really miss watching movies made in an actual film. It hits our eyesight different.

[@Principal_Behaviour]

Even though the projection most of the audiences get to watch is (most likely only) digital? Does stock really translate regardless?

[@BeatlesUS99]

I was lucky enough to see this in limited release, it is a FANTASTIC film. Certainly Wes Anderson’s best, not only in terms of this beautiful world he created, but the performances and story are superb. Go see it!!

[@davet.5493]

hell no. i got better student films to see

[@LeeGee]

@@davet.5493 edge

[@emtpix]

what😂😂😂😂😂

[@Synky]

this movie was GARBAGEEE😂🤮🤮🤮 you can't be serious?!

[@JohnnysaidWhat]

Wes living his best life damn

[@Pontius888]

I didn't know they actually shot on location I thought it was a huge set and miniatures. This is incredible!!!

[@abussin]

Love wes and his colors

[@summerproject]

This is incredible! I absolutely loved the film and seeing how the set was constructed is really cool.

[@AndreaTornese]

Even the making of has gorgeous cinematography.

[@minseokwon6484]

his set design is getting better and better

[@javiers1557]

I am Spanish and the locations where the film was shot are between the towns of Chinchón and Colmenar de Oreja. Two beautiful towns.

[@emmasarchive]

as a film student this is so exciting to see

[@geniusonyeo]

I'm so grateful to live in the time as Wes Anderson

[@ravelrm]

It was like a live action movie set in the Looney Tunes version of the desert, amazing stuff

[@tediousmaximus1067]

Yeah you're right! It looks just like a Road Runner cartoon!

[@MyrddinREmrys]

I'm very excited to experience this world / work of art.!

[@ayush0477]

city so nice just like a postcard picture.

[@chopinho65]

Amazing visuals - looks a lot like “Radiator Springs”…

[@MrVisde]

Totally! Some sort of idealized version of the American west that never quite existed like that except for old movies.

[@fstopclick37]

Here's a bit of "food for thought" information for those noticing and/or commenting about the look of the film. 1) Color Grading is a term to describe adding additional coloring looks to your video footage. Historically, this process in the traditional film based industry is called color timing. For decades, different film stocks were used and ALL of them employed the use of color timers to achieve a certain "look" of a film. Some of these looks are achieved in the original exposure & processing of the film BEFORE it goes for color timing. The Bleach Bypass film process is an example of this. It is simply not a picture profile found in many modern mirrorless digital cameras ... it is based on a decades old photochemical darkroom process. The heavily stylized coloration of Asteroid City is very reminiscent of the look of vintage American travel postcards, a similar look and setting from the old Warner Brothers Roadrunner cartoons, as well as a similar, but exaggerated look of overexposing KODAK Portra film by 1 or 2 stops of exposure. In the last few years, the hipster crowd which dominates the resurgence of the use of analog film quite often celebrate the look of overexposed KODAK Portra film with its peachy colored highlights and pastel color palettes. It has become such a popular film emulsion that it's increasing harder to find and insanely expensive at times. I suspect Wes Anderson shot Asteroid City on KODAK Portra film. KODAK Portra film + Wes Anderson = Hipster Heaven. It has already raised a lot of buzz within that community and will most likely manifest itself to further popularizing KODAK as a brand to a newer, richer audience. 😎🎬🎞📷🎥

[@MwayiComfort]

Wow thank you so much for the insight 😊

[@SD_UK]

OK that's a great post - thanks for taking the time .

[@travis5376]

One nitpick, kodak portra film isn't available as a 35mm movie film. This was shot on kodak 50D, 200T, 250D, or 500T. I agree with the rest of your statement, though

[@fstopclick37]

@@travis5376 Good point. Never even thought about it... but, now I am interested in looking up a newer issue of American Cinematographer to see if there are any articles on Asteroid City. I wouldn't be surprised if KODAK and Wes Anderson didn't come up with a Portra-like emulsion just for this film. Some of the actual title cards for Asteroid City includes an on screen byline that reads something like "shot on KODAK film". By comparison, Steven Spielberg worked with the film lab to invent a different bleach bypass process specifically for "Saving Private Ryan". That same film processing "recipe" was later used on the multi-episode series "Band of Brothers" as well. I'm sure that process was later used on several other films since that time. May have even won a technical Oscar, but I'm not sure.

[@IvoPavlik]

Thank you, sir, this was an enlightening reading.

[@patnolan_]

I loved this film, but (per usual with a Wes film) the set design, color palette and cinematography is what really blew me away. Incredible to see how they pieced together the city

[@larrynguyen85]

Of course, Wes Anderson would need to create an entire whole-ass desert town for this film. His fastidiousness knows no bounds and I'm here for it lol

[@lamecasuelas2]

This Is the most Wes Anderson that a movie has ever Wes Andersoned

[@JoseMorales-lw5nt]

Soooooo... THIS is what a live action Road Runner/Wil E. Coyote film would look like...😂❤

[@davet.5493]

no its still crap

[@charlieyork-t1c]

More please! I'd love to hear about the cameras used. The aesthetics is absolutely fabulous. A fantastic job!.

[@claudschgi4794]

I love this passion for Detail! Every Frame of this Movie looks like a hidden object game, Which i could observe for Hours and discover so many Details.

[@DavidJReidOFFICIAL]

wow my respect for Wes Anderson just increased. A whole town. Wow

[@davet.5493]

get a good life please

[@ceetressj.3007]

Whatched it yesterday. Loved it.

[@bandysc]

The aesthetics is absolutely fabulous. A fantastic job!

[@cokebottles6919]

What a bunch of legends. Excited to see this

[@wanderingdaze7018]

Finally something worth watching

[@maxi-g]

i just love kodak

[@joaoalbertodosanjosgomes1536]

KODAK FOREVER.👍.

[@PoiPoi5189]

I love the craft that went into making this movie, gosh, more, please more.

[@iOSJailbreaksSL]

No film simulations can mimic real film, and Wes Anderson proves it time and time again

[@azv343]

They do it all the time, including this movie, they just don't show it because it's not part of the marketing and you wouldn't buy a ticket for it.

[@vishunt]

Keeping cinema alive and well

[@franklesher4459]

This film needs to get nominated by best art direction.

[@davet.5493]

and nothing else

[@ghost307]

The dancing roadrunner during the closing credits was the best part of the movie...actually it was the only good part of the movie.

[@justinreaves5364]

AMAZING FILM 📀 🎥

[@johnmcloughlin6508]

This was better than the movie. Thank you for making this video.

[@TheGavinAsh]

Damn this is awesome!

[@Project-Jaden]

Wow I can’t wait to see this

[@gwynwellliver4489]

As I watched the film in the theaterlast night, I thought, "Where are the other inhabitants and where do they live?" The set was marvelous!

[@Letmecovertheworld]

tha fact that it was shot in chinchon makes it even better like cualquier español idiría que random pero que guay a la vez

[@KyleMiko]

This is a fantastic video

[@ReelFilm2016]

Keep film alive. ❤

[@davidduke2765]

It looks like a cartoon.. Very isolating and lonely feels I get from the shots in this.

[@fantasticbirdblue]

Wes Anderson shoots his movies in those liminal spaces

[@MrVisde]

I think part of his aesthetic is recreating those set pieces that you’d find shooting an old movie or putting on a theater production. So yeah, it’s a bit surreal and looks like a cartoon. I loved that about the film.

[@thecitizenjoan]

Thank You so much for this. This is SO COOL.

[@ChrisJFilms]

Wes’s live action sets are starting to look so much like his stop motion sets, that I almost can’t tell what’s stop motion and what’s live action. And that’s not a complaint at all.

[@christophedevos3760]

Interesting color palette. And if you need a freeway going to nowhere, you should come to Belgium. 😊

[@MikeRinz]

Interesting, I googled it, but nothing relevant comes up. Could you, please, share where is it exactly!

[@christophedevos3760]

@@MikeRinz my answer is deleted, I have no idea why. But there is (maybe now taken down but still existing until 2008) a freeway bridge leading to nowhere in Varsenare, Belgium, and many other 'boondoggles'.

[@christophedevos3760]

@@MikeRinz also one in Strépy-Bracquegnies, Wallonia, Belgium, a motorway bridge with 4 driving lanes, leading to nowhere.

[@christophedevos3760]

@@MikeRinz also another one in Varsenare, Belgium, an unfinished motorway bridge over a railroad.

[@christophedevos3760]

@@MikeRinz see also the concept of 'waffle iron politics' to understand how this came about in Belgium.

[@gu9838]

this summer wes andersen presents a quircky adaption of a movie that is already coming out. with owen wilson. wow.

[@LeeGee]

you've not seen it, then

[@8KHDRVideoBySittipong]

I still love film, even I will have no change to shoot film for any project here.

[@iloper]

amazing

[@45dable]

Amazing. Everything is real, not cgi. It must be like that.

[@Alchemist1330]

Guys PLEASE make a high end Full Frame film camera. I think there really is a market for you. Or medium format would be incredible.

[@richardbrobeck2384]

That is really cool it makes me think of howq movies used to be made !

[@nv1493]

I hope this motives other filmmakers to do likewise.

[@DD-qx2mg]

Wow this looks great !

[@Joaomiranda1982]

Fantastic!

[@Argonaut121]

Interesting he calls it "our play". That is what his films often seem like. And that's a good thing, to be clear.

[@DavidTheJohnson]

There's a specific reason why, but I won't spoil it.

[@cmlewan]

I've never heard of this movie, but apparently it's a very very new movie released just a month ago.

[@TORRIKABE]

ooh wow.. speechless

[@KGDHMF]

Looks like another Wes Anderson banger.

[@moretoknowshow1887]

Already seen it and its one of Andersons best. I rank it up there with Rushmore and Life Aquatic as my personal favorites

[@muriloliborio13]

Wow!!! Awesome…

[@weirdshibainu]

This information would have been handy for me a couple of months ago-I've been roadtripping the American Southwest looking for Asteroid City...no wonder it wasn't on the map.

[@motoflyte]

Perfect. I'm definitely going to see this film

[@cgc76]

Spain does have beautiful sun!

[@saltsucker]

Wes Anderson 💕🔥

[@lf2334]

Kodak crushing it with 17.8K subs.

[@aPizzaStainedSlob]

If only Kodak would make 35mm still film to meet demand instead of strangling the consumer for profit.

[@systemG3000]

I heard in Spain the rain falls mainly on the plain.

[@ializarg]

On the plain, on the plain...

[@joaoalbertodosanjosgomes1536]

Where is Spain?

[@0xBerto]

Nice Kodak!! Keep it coming. Can’t believe you guys now have a KZbin channel and it’s under 20k subs. Let’s goo!!

[@skipstalforce]

Fascinating, half South Park, half Alamogordo.

[@yellowglove]

Such a brilliant little video, can’t wait for the film 🎉

[@carstenkoloc5226]

Kodak is great stuff to make movies.🎥🎞🎬✌️🚀🥁🥁

[@fhopson-vm2wn]

Great movie!!!!

[@kway745]

I’ve found myself unable to get into Wes Anderson movies, they just don’t click with me for some reason. This one though, I think I’ll make a point to see in the theater for the visuals alone. Maybe it’ll turn the tide, we’ll see…

[@radiofriendly]

I feel ya. Leaves me cold, but this was worth seeing.

[@UPalooza]

It's a dud. A lot of production design and no script.

[@ghost307]

Doubtful.

[@trxncxt1281]

Saw it today best movie ever 10/10

[@peace_oceans]

This sounds amazing !

[@doct0rnic]

That set looks exactly like most towns in Eastern southern California and Nevada

[@KillerTacos54]

This film just looks insane

[@davet.5493]

Because you can't understand anything an insane person says or does...

[@LeeGee]

@@davet.5493 now *that* was insane

[@grinningtiki220]

@Kodak So how about that Super 8 Camera we have been patiently waiting for?

[@MwayiComfort]

Wes being wes❤

[@GreenGiant2007]

I’m looking forward to seeing this film at the weekend. It looks terrific.

[@ghost307]

Prepare to be very disappointed.

[@GreenGiant2007]

@@ghost307 Although there was lots about it that I liked, you were right, I was disappointed. 😞

[@TylerMcNamer]

Wesley studied to be an acritarch before working on movies. He got the set designs all figured out for this feature.

[@graceonfilmsnstuff]

Celluloid will and should always be the premier medium for movies. Else it can just be a Netflix or TV thing.

[@ecurb10]

Oh, I thought this was going to talk about, gee I don't know, the Kodak film stock that was used? Why he chose it etc. Silly me.