Data Story

The Set Map

A stamped passport of production vs shooting: how often films travel to get made.

filmimdbtmdblocationsproductionlogistics

Dataset scope

46847

rows

1912–2024

years

origin codes

548

raw locations

Location labels include noise from upstream sources; the visualization applies a conservative cleaning pass and reports exclusions.

Loading set map data

Hypothesis

The location–production gap grows over time; more films are shot outside the production company’s country in recent decades.

Question: Are films increasingly shot outside the production country?

Method: Compare production-company country vs location country by decade; measure mismatch rate and top routes.

Prediction: Mismatch share rises in recent decades; a handful of location hubs dominate across many origins.

Test: Trend mismatch rate by decade and inspect top origin→location routes.

Narrative Arc

Act I

A slate clap: production origins anchor the plan.

Act II

Pins appear as locations spread across countries.

Act III

Mismatches glow: logistics migrate, and the gap becomes the pattern.

Datasets

Limitations

Location metadata includes noisy labels; the chart filters aggressively to reduce false routes.
Production country is a proxy for origin; co-productions complicate attribution.
Filming location is logistics, not story setting.

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