Though the setting is the fictional seaside town of Sowell Bay, Washington, the dreamy Pacific Northwest vibe was created in coastal British Columbia in Netflix’s Remarkably Bright Creatures. The film was shot in the Vancouver and North Vancouver waterfront areas, amongst misty harbors, beaches, and cozy cafés, giving the film the quiet, emotional atmosphere of the story.
Much of the film focuses on Deep Cove, home to a picturesque marina and coastal beauty which served as the setting for Sowell Bay. The Remarkably Bright Creatures adaptation of Shelby Van Pelt’s eponymous novel, is enriched by the warmth, loneliness and magic found in the various locations such as the aquarium inspired by Marcellus the octopus and Tova’s waterfront.
Deep Cove basically became Sowell Bay in Remarkably Bright Creatures
Remarkably Bright Creatures is a story about a single place, namely Deep Cove. The quiet harbor, the wooded mountains, the cafés, the docks, the coastal streets, the waterfront community, it all became the quaint Pacific Northwest town of Sowell Bay, the setting for this film.
Scenes were shot along Gallant Avenue, with storefronts turning into locations such as Olympus Realty and Avery’s paddleboard shop. The exterior of the aquarium in the film was made based on the Deep Cove Yacht Club, with the help of digital effects, it became the Sowell Bay Aquarium.
The reflective dock scenes in Remarkably Bright Creatures were captured at the Deep Cove Government Dock with some small props added to enhance the feel of the docks being more intimate and lived-in.
The aquarium scenes
The Vancouver Aquarium was another perfect location for a film set in an aquarium and the setting had to seem as realistic as possible. There were several scenes in the aquarium; the sequences in the tanks and the underground viewing area were filmed there during many of Tova’s nighttime cleaning shifts.
Marcellus’s real-life inspiration was also from the aquarium, as it was based on the giant Pacific octopus, Agnetha. Remarkably Bright Creatures‘ production team allegedly poured over hours of footage of her to sculpt the CG image, in some scenes even faking the footage alongside some visual effects in order for Marcellus to seem more realistic.
The aquarium, used inside Stanley Park, helped to lend an atmospheric Pacific Northwest feel to the film. The filmmakers opted to highlight the beauty of the natural world and the realism of Tova and Marcellus’ characters, eliminating the fantastical elements that might otherwise have been included. Even Sally Field said Vancouver’s waterfront was a key part of the film’s feelings.
The movie quietly turned British Columbia into a cozy fantasy world
Remarkably Bright Creatures is set in one of the most memorable places, Tova’s waterfront house in Deep Cove, which was shot on a serene coastal home around a refurbished 1920s log cabin. Other significant scenes filmed in the area were at Whytecliff Park near Horseshoe Bay, and at restaurant locations such as Blue Canoe Waterfront Restaurant in Steveston Village and Bufala River District.
The film is not overly garish with conspicuous landmarks; it favors warm and lived-in marinas, docks, cafes and beaches, lending Sowell Bay a warm, lived-in feel that is perfect with the film’s intimate tone.
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Edited by Subho Mukhopadhyay