Atlas Studios is a film studio located about 5 km (3 miles) west of the city of Ouarzazate, the second town where we spent a night on our Merzouga-to-Essaouira road trip across Morocco. You can follow our trip to Ouarzazate on this blog here and here.
According to Wikipedia, measured by acreage, it is the world’s largest film studio. Most of the property lies in the nearby desert and mountains. Next to the studios is the Oscar Hotel which provides hospitality services to the film crew.
Scattered about are props for various movies, such as troop carrier, fighter jet … etc.
Many sets from various movies remain in place and, because of this, the studio also operates guided tours and it has become a tourist destination.
I(Chris) was rather curious about it, especially up to this point in time, we had been exposed mostly to ancient history and indigenous culture on this trip.
These are some of the movies that were made in Atlas Studio: The Jewel of the Nile, Aladdin (2019 film), The Mummy, Asterix & Obelix: Mission Cleopatra.
With rocky mountains and an arid desert nearby, this location was perfect for those movies.
They recreated the historical interiors too, so that, I suspect, they can film the dramatic open desert vista when the main character emerges from the palace.
Cleopatra’s?
Very colorful faux Egyptian decorations in a giant set.
The other movies film made here that have a medieval theme include: Gladiator, Kingdom of Heaven, and Game of Thrones.
Then, these two movies: Vikings and Atlantis were also listed as being made here (at least parts thereof) but the environment seems a bit incongruous for those stories.
Another large scale set that were kept intact after filming is the Tibetan temple built for Kundun. The film soundtrack was done by Philip Glass, one of my favs, so here is a sample.
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Kundun was made in 1997 by Martin Scorcece. The movie dramatizes Tibet’s fourteenth Dalai Lama, from childhood to adulthood, and deals with Chinese oppression and other political problems.
The Chinese Communist Party objected to the release of this film which was distributed by Disney. It took many years before the relationship has improved to the extent Disney was allowed to film in Xinjiang recently the live-action adaption of the story of Mulan.
We have never been to Tibet and would not know how authentic was the interiors (this is true for most moviegoers).
Until one goes right up to the statues and artifacts, they all looked quite authentic except a layer of dust and sand which will not be tolerated in a real life temple.
The Atlas Studios was founded in 1983 by entrepreneur Mohamed Belghmi. Since then it has been able to expand, thanks to the natural environment which can mimic the outdoor locations of many movies. The lower cost is a factor as well as the predictable and reliable weather conditions, meaning that there are few rescheduling or delays.
What we did not expect was a stable with attractive looking horses and camels, all clean and handsome, camera-ready to step onto a set.
The studio also filmed some other modern pieces here: The Amazing Race 10, The Living Daylights, The Grand Tour, The Hills have Eyes, Prison Break, and Patton.
Babel (which we saw and liked) was made here too. One of the stories in Babel (played by Brad Pitt and Cate Blanchet) took place in the desert of modern day Morocco.
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The visit was a fun way to spend a few hours after a long drive, before we headed to our hotel in Ouarzazate.
If you are interested, you can follow our trip from Merzouga up to Ouarzazate on this blog here and here.