Taika Waititi shot Klara and the Sun entirely in New Zealand. The sci-fi drama splits its runtime between busy urban streets on the North Island and remote alpine basins across the South Island. That contrast matters.
Filming kicked off in January 2024 and wrapped by mid-April. Crews worked under the hush-hush production code Tears and Rain. Here’s the full filming guide.
Most interior house scenes came together on custom soundstages near Wānaka Airport. For exterior city backdrops, the crew took over downtown Auckland. It worked.
| Scene / Setting | Location | Area | Details from Set |
|---|---|---|---|
| Josie and Chrissie’s home interior | Silverlight Studios | Wānaka, Otago (South Island) | First feature production to shoot inside the new $280M purpose-built studio lot. |
| Futuristic city streets and storefronts | High Street & Chancery Square | Auckland CBD (North Island) | Downtown street closures in April 2024 with custom dystopian facade dressings. |
| Rural open roads and valley transitions | Cardrona Valley & Wānaka Basin | Otago (South Island) | Outdoor pickup plates filmed against Lake Wānaka and Southern Alps ridgelines. |
| Lakeside urban approach | Queenstown waterfront | Lake Wakatipu, Otago (South Island) | Practical location setups captured along the shoreline and downtown streets. |
Where was Klara and the Sun filmed?
Crews set up their main production hub in the Otago region of the South Island before relocating north to Auckland for urban exteriors. They moved fast.
Director Taika Waititi brought the production home to Aotearoa to capture two radically different physical environments. The rugged mountain ranges surrounding Lake Wānaka provided the isolation needed for Josie’s family home. Meanwhile, Auckland’s commercial core supplied the dense architecture for Klara’s pre-purchase retail existence. Fans noticed.
Sony Pictures released the movie theatrically on October 23, 2026, following its autumn premiere at the BFI London Film Festival. The adaptation stars Jenna Ortega as the observant solar-powered android Klara. Amy Adams plays Josie’s protective mother Chrissie, alongside Mia Tharia as Josie. Expect raw emotion.
What scenes did Taika Waititi shoot in Auckland?
High Street in the heart of the Auckland Central Business District served as the primary outdoor setting for the city sequences. Production trucks rolled into the shopping corridor during the first week of April 2024. Streets emptied out quickly.
Crews dressed existing boutique windows and heritage building fronts with minimalist props to evoke Ishiguro’s near-future world—though sharp-eyed Aucklanders still recognized the classic stone facades. Local pedestrians caught glimpses of Jenna Ortega between takes near Chancery Square. Not quite unseen.
Filming moved fast. Waititi wrapped the metropolitan setups in less than two weeks before heading into post-production.
What did the cast and studio share from the set?
Sony Pictures announced the project’s journey to the big screen with official first-look teasers highlighting Waititi’s vision and Ortega’s transformation into Klara. The hype grew.
Director Taika Waititi also shared glimpses of his homecoming production in New Zealand, documenting the creative team on location across Otago. He kept things lively.
How did Silverlight Studios host the production in Wānaka?
Soundstage construction took place at Silverlight Studios, an ambitious purpose-built film park situated beside Wānaka Airport. Klara and the Sun made history as the very first feature film to shoot on the newly developed lot. Big milestone.
The studio complex spans hundreds of acres in the Upper Clutha basin. Inside the soundstages, production designers built the intricate interior of Josie’s home—complete with specialized skylights and solar access points central to Klara’s energy source. It was slow work.
Waititi didn’t stay confined to the lot. The unit ventured along the shores of Lake Wakatipu in nearby Queenstown to film lakeside atmospheric shots. Cold alpine winds regularly swept through the basin. It kept the crew on their toes.
What is the meaning behind the working title Tears and Rain?
Call sheets and production notices across Otago and Auckland listed the project under the code name Tears and Rain. The moniker carries a clever double meaning for sci-fi fans. That was deliberate.
On one level, it directly references the unpredictable weather patterns that challenge Klara’s solar recharging in Ishiguro’s novel. On another level, crew members acknowledged it as an affectionate nod to Roy Batty’s famous ‘tears in rain’ monologue from Ridley Scott’s Blade Runner. It fit the mood.
Did they film Klara and the Sun on location or in a studio?
Klara and the Sun used a balanced mix of purpose-built studio soundstages and practical outdoor locations. The emotional domestic scenes inside Josie’s household were built on stages at Silverlight Studios in Wānaka, while all city streetscapes and regional mountain panoramas were filmed on location in Auckland and Otago. Neither approach stood alone.
Can tourists visit the filming locations in New Zealand?
High Street and Chancery Square in central Auckland are completely open to the public and easy to explore on foot. You can walk the exact pavement seen in Klara’s city scenes, browse the local fashion boutiques, and grab coffee at surrounding cafes. No permits needed.
Silverlight Studios near Wānaka Airport remains an active, closed working studio facility without general public access. However, the surrounding Otago scenery—including the public lookouts along Lake Wānaka, the Crown Range road, and Queenstown’s waterfront—is fully accessible year-round. Plan ahead.
Have you visited High Street in Auckland or the lakes around Wānaka? Drop your travel thoughts in the comments.
Explore More Production & Behind-the-Scenes Guides
