Shot on location - Films and TV-series: Italy

25 December 2025

Segesta, Italy

The British author E.M. Forster (1879–1970) published five novels during his lifetime, four of which were made into films within ten years: “A Passage to India” (1924) in 1984, “A Room with a View” (1908) in 1985, “Where Angels Fear to Tread” (1905) in 1991 and “Howards End” (1910) in 1992. Only “The Longest Journey” from 1907 has not yet been adapted for film or television. In 1971, MAURICE, Forster's sixth novel, was published posthumously and filmed in 1987.

Maurice, 0:29:14

Forster wrote the story about gay love in 1913 and 1914 and adapted it in 1932 and again between 1952 and 1960. Being homosexual himself, Forster did not dare to publish the book because of its controversial subject matter; until 1967, sex between men was illegal in England. After director James Ivory and producer Ismail Merchant had enjoyed success with the film adaptation of “A Room with a View”, it was decided to adapt this novel for the screen as well.

Main character is Maurice Hall (James Wilby), a young man from a wealthy family who studies at Cambridge University at the beginning of the 20th century. He befriends Clive Durham (Hugh Grant), with whom he enters into a romantic relationship. Afraid of losing his social position, Clive wants their relationship to remain platonic and, under pressure from his mother, eventually marries a woman.

Filming took place in the autumn of 1986 at various locations in England and on the Italian island of Sicily. Coincidentally, we visited both countries this year and visited locations from the film. An overview of all locations can be found on the website ReelStreets.

Tempio di Segesta, 6 July 2025

During their years at university, Clive visits Greece, a scene that lasts just over a minute. The film was not shot in the Hellenic Republic but in the Parco Archeologico di Segesta, located in north-western Sicily. Segesta was a city inhabited by the Elymians. This indigenous people were strongly influenced by Greek culture. An example is the Doric-style temple built in the 5th century BC, seen briefly in the film. For unknown reasons, the temple, also featured in Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny, was never completed but is very well preserved.

Maurice, 0:56:34

Tempio di Segesta, 6 July 2025

Clive reads a letter from Maurice in the theatre, which was built in the 3rd century BC and, like the temple, is located on a hill. During our visit, the temperature was 30°C (86°F). It is about a half-hour walk from the park entrance, but fortunately there are also buses. The theatre has been restored several times and is still used for performances.

Maurice, 0:56:53

Teatro di Segesta, 6 July 2025

Maurice, 0:57:03

Teatro di Segesta, 6 July 2025

Maurice, 0:57:08

Teatro di Segesta, 6 July 2025

Maurice, 0:57:53

Teatro di Segesta, 6 July 2025

Information about opening hours and prices can be found on the website Parco di Segesta. Read more about one of the English locations from Maurice in the blog post London, England.

Screenshots © Merchant Ivory Productions

6 September 2025

Sicily, Italy

In INDIANA JONES AND THE DIAL OF DESTINY, the fifth film in the series about the archaeology professor's adventures, Indiana Jones (Harrison Ford) searches for a mechanism designed by the mathematician Archimedes. This dial can reveal fissures in time and may even be used for time travel. The story is largely set in 1969, against the backdrop of the first moon landing.

Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny, 1:40:09

Indiana Jones has since retired, but his goddaughter Helena Shaw (Phoebe Waller-Bridge) persuades him to help her ensure that the ancient artefact does not fall into the hands of Dr. Jürgen Voller (Mads Mikkelsen), a former Nazi who now works for NASA under the name Dr. Schmidt on the Apollo moon landing program. Filming began on 4 June 2021 at the British Pinewood Studios and ended there on 26 February 2022.

Besides in the studio, filming also took place on various locations in Great Britain, including London, Glasgow (seen in the film as New York), Glencoe and Bamburgh Castle.

Neapolis Parco Archeologico, Syracuse, 9 July 2025

In the autumn of 2021, filming took place in the Moroccan cities of Fez and Oujda, preceded by a shooting period in October at various sites and cities in Sicily. Between 4 July and 15 July 2025, we were on the Italian island where we visited several locations. I usually blog about one location, but this time I choose to write a blog post about different locations from one film, all of them in Sicily.

After escaping from Voller, Indiana and Helena, together with the young Moroccan boy Teddy Kumar (Ethann Isidore), travel by boat from Greece to Sicily in search of Archimedes' tomb. In the film, the map shows that they go ashore in Syracuse, the place where Archimedes was born and died in the third century BC.

Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny, 1:37:07

However, the scene that follows was filmed in Cefalù on the north coast of the island. In Piazza del Duomo (Cathedral Square), named after the cathedral that also appears in the film, Teddy sits on the steps in front of the church while Helena buys sandwiches.

Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny, 1:37:10

Duomo, Cefalù, 14 July 2025

Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny, 1:37:29

Piazza del Duomo, Cefalù, 14 July 2025

Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny, 1:37:52

Piazza del Duomo, Cefalù, 14 July 2025

Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny, 1:38:18

Piazza del Duomo, Cefalù, 14 July 2025

A little later, she walks over to Indiana, who is buying supplies for their expedition. The shop is located on the same square, on the corner of Via Seminario and Via Mandralisca.

Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny, 1:38:41

Via Seminario, Cefalù, 14 July 2025

Teddy buys an ice cream and walks to the beach. He stands in Porto Pescare (Fishing Port) and looks out over the Molo di Cefalú (Cefalú Pier). A moment later, he sees Voller.

Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny, 1:39:16

Porto Pescare, Cefalù, 14 July 2025

Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny, 1:39:26

Porto Pescare, Cefalù, 14 July 2025

From Via Vittore Emanuele, Indiana sees Teddy being kidnapped by Voller and his henchmen. The streets of Cefalù were modified in detail to resemble an Italian town in the 1960s.

Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny, 1:39:41

Via Vittore Emanuele, Cefalù, 14 July 2025

The scene that follows, in which Indiana and Helena steal a car from a newlywed couple, was filmed in Castellammare del Golfo, west of Palermo on the other side of the island. We did not visit this village, but we did visit the next location: the temple of Segesta in the Parco Archeologico, located in north-western Sicily. This Doric-style sanctuary was built around 425 BC but was never completed. Indiana and Helena stop their car here but pay no attention to the temple; they walk straight to the cave where Archimedes' tomb is said to be located.

Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny, 1:40:52

Tempio di Segesta, 6 July 2025

Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny, 1:41:03

Tempio di Segesta, 6 July 2025

Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny, 1:41:04

Tempio di Segesta, 6 July 2025

The entrance to the cave is called Orecchio di Dionisio (Ear of Dionysius) in both the film and in real life. It is not located near the temple of Segesta but in the Neapolis Parco Archeologico in Syracuse. The painter Caravaggio came up with the name in 1586. It is not a natural cave but a limestone quarry that was excavated in Greco-Roman times to store water. The cave is 65 metres deep and there is no tomb. In the film, the cave appears much deeper, but these scenes were shot in the studio.