For filming The Acolyte, the production and their actors went out to actual filming locations, something we here at Fantha Tracks always enjoy to visit, and that’s why we have been tracking down all those filming locations. Now we’ve managed to find all of them, and will reveal them in two articles.
In Part 1 we look at the Madeira filming locations as this Portuguese island features most of the filming locations for a total of four new planets.
Madeira
Madeira is a Portuguese island, but its location in the Atlantic Ocean is closer to the coast of Morocco than Portugal. From Central Europe it’s roughly a three hour flight to get there, and with a mild climate throughout the year it is always a pleasant time to visit.
With such a climate you would think that Madeira has plenty of natural beauty to offer, and you would be right. From national parks like Parque Natural do Ribeiro Frio to gardens like Jardim do Monte Palace and Jardim Botânico and other natural wonders, the island offers many hiking routes and viewpoints (Miradouros) to explore. When it comes to those natural wonders there’s also Cascata dos Anjos, a waterfall near Ponta do Sol flowing directly on the road that you can drive under and the volcanic caves of São Vicente and Cabo Girão, one of the world’s highest ocean cliffs.
Considering that the filming locations for The Acolyte are spread around the island, it’s recommended to hire a rental car and drive to the locations. Given they are all tourism destinations, you will find ample parking space and hotels nearby.
Ueda
The show starts on the planet Ueda where Mae-ho Aniseya (Amandla Stenberg) arrives to fight and kill Jedi Master Indara (Carrie-Anne Moss).
Ueda’s establishing shot, with Mae overlooking the city from a rocky cliff was filmed near Caniçal at Ponta de São Lourenço, from a point between São Lourenço Beach and the D’Abra Bay viewpoint. This peninsula offers a hiking trail that can take several hours, but you will find the filming location much closer to the car park. The SAM Bus line 113 also stops here. This bus goes between Caniçal and Funchal, the capital of Madeira.
On 19th March 2024, Disney Plus released the trailer for The Acolyte as well as Key Art for the show. Among this Key Art was a poster that shows Mae standing on a cliff with a mountain and sea in the distance. This is at the exact same spot as this establishing shot, only without the digitally added town with the gate and the stone walkway.
Address: Ponta de São Lourenço, ER109, Caniçal, Madeira
Olega
Mae’s next target is Master Torbin (Dean-Charles Chapman) who resides in the Jedi Temple on Olega.
Episode 1×02 shows several establishing shots of Olega, and they were all filmed from Viewpoint Calhau da Furna do Bode. Also close to Caniçal, this one you could visit on the same day as the previous location. In case your navigation does not recognize the address below, try Cemitério do Caniçal (Caniçal cemetery), which is where you can park and walk a small distance to reach the viewpoint.
The first establishing shot shows Mae’s ship, the Eclipse II, with the cliff on which rests Olega City. While you would expect that the ship was digital, it was actually a three foot long miniature placed at the viewpoint. It was placed in the foreground of the shot at an angle to make it line up with the background. The background was then modified by ILM with adding a beacon tower in the sea and the city itself on the rock.
Address: Viewpoint Calhau da Furna do Bode, Rua das Feiteirinhas, Caniçal, Madeira
Khofar
While Ueda and Olega were only seen in one episode, Khofar was the first of the Madeira filmed planets that showed up in multiple episodes, and because of that multiple locations make up this forest retreat world with production moving from the most eastern to the middle of the island.
Khofar, establishing shots
A total of four establishing shots for Khofar can be seen in Episode 1×04 – Day. There are three that we can match to Pico do Arieiro. It’s the opening shot with the Khofar text, the one that can be seen between the scenes of the Jedi at the landing site and the scene of them walking. The third establishing shot is between the scene of Mae having decided to turn herself in and the scene with the Jedi realizing that their tracker Bazil (Hassan Taj) has vanished again. This one can be recognized as it shows the sun setting with mist surrounding the environment.
Address: Pico do Arieiro, Madeira
Eclipse II flying
Earlier in the episode we see the Eclipse II flying past a mountain and over the forest canopy to the landing site. This short sequence was filmed somewhere in Lombo do Moleiro as those mountains can be seen from various pictures online in this area. Considering that filming locations, even those used for drone shots like this one, should be easy enough to reach, we believe it was filmed from a platform at the below mentioned GPS Coordinates.
To get there park your car at the viewpoint or the bar/restaurant near the ER228 & ER105 intersection. From here you will see a walking path going up. Take that one to reach the platform.
GPS Coordinates: 32°45’13.08″N 17° 1’3.69″W
Address: (near) ER228 & ER105, Lombo do Moleiro, Madeira
Eclipse II landing site & Path to perimeter
Mae and Qimir (Manny Jacinto) have landed and are walking down a path to the perimeter where the deep jungle of Khofar starts.
Filmed at Poço das Casas, this is yet another popular hiking route leading to a stunning waterfall. However, this one is a more challenging hike then most. The exact spot of the landing site is the bridge seen below the Google Maps pointer for Poço das Casas. The perimeter walk is a bit to the North, closer to the houses.
Address: Poço das Casas, Boaventura, Madeira
Jedi landing site & Jedi walking
And the last Khofar related locations can be found at Parque Florestal do Fanal (National Park Fanal). This National Park can be found between the Seixal and Ribeira da Janela mountains and offers some of the most beautiful trees that you will ever see. However, these weirdly shaped trees, one of them called the Witch Tree, do not appear in the episodes at all. Instead they have filmed in the two fields at either side of the Witch Tree.
Address: Parque Florestal do Fanal (National Park Fanal), Fanal, Madeira
Unknown Planet
For the fourth and final planet to film on Madeira we find ourselves in the area of Seixal, which is more to the northwest of the island. Seixal is host to many natural pools, some of which we see in The Acolyte, but also to two black sand beaches. Nearby are the earlier mentioned volcanic caves of São Vicente and also the traditional houses of Santana village.
Beach & Qimir’s cave, exterior
The most important location on the Unknown Planet is of course Qimir’s cave, seen in that wonderful drone shot pulling back more and more. While it appears as an island, it actually is not and it was just a digital change to make it look at such. However the ledge with opening and the rocks in the water are actually there and called Ilheus da Ribeira da Janela.
And while you would expect that the establishing shot that you see right after the The Acolyte title card from 1×06 – Teach / Corrupt, to be drone footage, it is not. It was filmed from a viewpoint attached to road ER101.
Address: Ilheus da Ribeira da Janela viewpoint, Ribeira da Janela, Madeira
Meeting The Stranger
Seixal has multiple natural pools, travel to Poça das Lesmas to be at the right location. At Poça das Lesmas the ending of the first episode was filmed, with Mae meeting with The Stranger and hearing how only an Acolyte can kill without a weapon.
Address: Poça do Mata Sete and Poça das Lesmas, Seixal, Madeira
Natural Pools
The natural pool where we see Qimir having a bath while starting to seduce Osha to the Dark Side from the sixth episode is Piscinas Naturais do Aquário. In fact production had to be careful to pick angles not showing a restaurant called Cachalote that stands right behind the rocks when Qimir enters the pool.
Address: Piscinas Naturais do Aquário & Cachalote restaurant, Frente de Mar de Porto Moniz, Porto Moniz, Madeira
Eclipse II landing site
Near the end of the final episode we see Qimir and Osha, now fully turned to the Dark Side, standing on a rocky walkway that leads to their ship. This was filmed on the other side of Seixal, at Praia do Porto do Seixal. If you want to match all the shots here you’ll have to take a dip in this natural pool and make sure your camera does not get wet.
Address: Praia do Porto do Seixal, Caminho da Delfina Fernandes Correia 9270, Seixal, Madeira
Quick overview per episode:
1×01 – Lost / Found
Ueda, establishing shot – Ponta de São Lourenço, Madeira, Portugal
Ueda: City gate – Set at Shinfield Studios, Reading, UK
Ueda: Lomi Usqi Noodle Shop – Set at Shinfield Studios, Reading, UK
Fallon freighter – Sets at Shinfield Studios, Reading, UK
Coruscant: Jedi Temple, interiors – Sets at Shinfield Studios, Reading, UK
Palwick prison ship – Set at Shinfield Studios, Reading, UK
Carlac: Crash site & cave – Sets at Shinfield Studios, Reading, UK
Polan GX-8 Jedi transport, interiors – Sets at Shinfield Studios, Reading, UK
Brendok: Forest – (near) Upper Neuadd Reservoir, Merthyr Tydfil, UK
Brendok: Mae & Osha’s room – Set at Shinfield Studios, Reading, UK
Brendok: Bunta tree – Cwm Cadlan Nature Reserve, Aberdare, UK
Unknown Planet: Beach – Ribeira da Janela, Madeira, Portugal
Unknown Planet: Meeting The Stranger – Poça das Lesmas, Seixal, Madeira, Portugal
1×02 – Revenge / Justice
Olega, establishing shots – Viewpoint Calhau da Furna do Bode, Madeira
Olega: Streets & Jedi Temple, exterior – Backlot set at Shinfield Studios, Reading, UK
Olega: Jedi Temple, interior – Set at Shinfield Studios, Reading, UK
Polan GX-8 Jedi transport, interiors * – Sets at Shinfield Studios, Reading, UK
Khofar, establishing shot – Unknown plate (Madeira) with digital changes
Khofar: Kelnacca’s shelter – Set at Shinfield Studios, Reading, UK
* Location returns
1×03 – Destiny
Brendok, establishing shot – UNKNOWN
Brendok: Bunta tree – Englefield Estate, Reading, UK
Brendok: Forest * – (near) Upper Neuadd Reservoir, Merthyr Tydfil, UK
Brendok: Fortress, wall with door – Upper Neuadd Reservoir, Merthyr Tydfil, UK
Brendok: Fortress, establishing shots – Tryfan, Bangor, Wales, UK
Brendok: Fortress, interiors & courtyard – Set at Arborfield Studios, Barkham, UK
Brendok: Jedi ship landing site field – Upper Neuadd Reservoir, Merthyr Tydfil, UK
Polan GX-8 Jedi transport, interiors * – Sets at Shinfield Studios, Reading, UK
* Location returns
1×04 – Day
Khofar, establishing shot – Viewpoint Pico do Areeiro, Madeira
Khofar: Kelnacca’s shelter * – Set at Shinfield Studios, Reading, UK
Coruscant: Jedi Temple, interiors * – Sets at Shinfield Studios, Reading, UK
Khofar: Eclipse II flying – (near) ER228 & ER105, Lombo do Moleiro, Madeira
Khofar: Eclipse II landing site – Poço das Casas, Boaventura, Madeira
Khofar: Path to perimeter (near) – Poço das Casas, Boaventura, Madeira
Khofar: Path to perimeter (drone shot) – UNKNOWN, assumed to be near Poço das Casas
Khofar: Jedi landing site – Parque Florestal do Fanal, Madeira
Khofar, establishing shot – Viewpoint Pico do Areeiro, Madeira
Khofar: Jedi walking – Parque Florestal do Fanal, Madeira
Khofar: Jungle – Sets at Shinfield Studios, Reading, UK
Khofar, establishing shot (sun above mist) – UNKNOWN, possibly Viewpoint Pico do Areeiro
Khofar, establishing shot (sun sets in mist) – Viewpoint Pico do Areeiro, Madeira
* Location returns
Thanks to Daniel Louro for helping me with the Madeira locations and to Aurélien Wéry from the (French) site https://starwarsboardingpass.com/ for filling in some unknowns as well.
Join us next week for Part 2 of this series, where we look at the filming locations of the most important planet in the series: Brendok!
- Hardcover Book
- Bende, S.T. (Author)
- English (Publication Language)
- 208 Pages - 11/05/2024 (Publication Date) - Insight Editions (Publisher)
