The Netflix series “Once Upon a Small Town” created by Kwon Seog-Jang and Paek Eun-kyoung is a South Korean romantic drama Tv series. The story revolves around a veterinarian named Han Ji-Yul who is forced to move from the city to the countryside to take over his grandfather’s veterinary hospital.
After reluctantly relocating, he meets a policewoman named Ahn Ja-young, who is an insider to the town with a friendly secret, and local nuclear man Lee Sang-Hyeon, who runs a peach farm in the village. However, Han Ji-Yul still hopes to escape the village sooner rather than later.
The K-drama explores the fun and tribulations of individuals in the village of Heedong, focusing on the romance between the three protagonists. The theme of love triangles is nothing new or unusual as most of you may have seen them in real life.
So it’s natural to wonder if the show’s story has anything to do with reality. In addition, the picturesque and deep green locations in the background will make you curious about the Once Upon a Small Town shooting locations.
Where Was Once Upon a Small Town Series Filmed?
“Once Upon a Small Town” is entirely shot in South Korea, specifically in one of the country’s rural areas. Principal photography for the inaugural iteration of the Netflix series reportedly began in May 2022 and wrapped in early September of that year. Officially known as the Republic of Korea, South Korea is a country in East Asia and forms the southern part of the Korean Peninsula.
Its terrain is mostly mountainous, making it an ideal location for filming a series like ‘Once Upon a Small Town.’
South Korea
All key sequences of “Once Upon a Small Town” are shot on location in one of the rural areas in South Korea. The production team seems to be using the lush green locales of the countryside to depict various scenes against suitable backdrops.
In an interview with MBC Entertainment in early September 2022, the cast and crew revealed how they prepared to film with all the animals in the series debut season. They said: “From the script writing process, we got suggestions from the vets and tweaked them to make it safe to shoot.”
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“In scenes where real animals appear, we first set up a safe environment with the help of veterinarians and then shoot them under the supervision of veterinarians and professional trainers.
All props that come into contact with the animals are specially made of silicone to ensure safety, and anything that could be dangerous is excluded as much as possible. Many vets work very hard with us to create the safest possible environment,” they added.
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Regarding the team’s challenges due to the scorching heat, while shooting, they commented, “There were many places where there was no shade, so we had some difficulties. However, we really enjoyed the cleansing feeling that comes from pure, unpolluted nature (in the countryside). There were many moments when the cast and crew forgot about the heat and gazed in awe at the beautiful scenery.
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One day, when we were on our way to dinner after filming, the sunset was so beautiful that everyone stopped and started taking pictures of each other. We are so proud to have captured that beauty on screen.” “Once Upon a Small Town.”
