‘Carnival Row’, with Orlando Bloom and Cara Delevingne, returns to Prague from May

Carnival Row will return to Prague to finish production on its second season this month. Stars Orlando Bloom and Cara Delevingne will soon be headed back to the Czech capital for the four-month shoot, if they’re not already here.

The Amazon fantasy series is currently slated to begin production from late May, with filming scheduled to run through September.

Local casting agency Extrafilms is currently seeking extras to appear in Carnival Row. You can register with the company through this online form.

Carnival Row has been the most lucrative production to ever film in the Czech Republic over the course of its first two seasons. According to the State Fund for Cinematography, the series has already spent 3.1 billion crowns (about 140 million dollars) in the country, with more on the way.

Production on the first season of Carnival Row began in Prague in the autumn of 2017 through spring 2018, with reshoots done later in the year. A second season was greenlit before the first had even aired, and began production in late 2019 before being interrupted by the ongoing coronavirus pandemic.

Like The Wheel of Time, another Amazon fantasy production shooting in Prague that has seen significant delays due to the pandemic, Carnival Row’s filming was delayed due to the pandemic; the show wrapped filming for the first half of its second season in Prague last summer.

Despite the production delays, producers had nothing but praise for the Czech crew working on the series.

“The craftsmanship of our Czech crew is second to none, among the best I have ever seen in 30+ years in the business,” showrunner Erik Oleson stated in a press release.

“The massive sets of Carnival Row are built out in such meticulous detail that you wouldn’t know you’re on a back lot. You can walk its streets and alleys and directly into buildings that are functional working sets of their own.”

“What would be prohibitively expensive to construct and film elsewhere is not only possible in the Czech Republic, the locals make it happen for a reasonable price and with a smile. Filming there is a pinch-yourself fantasy for any producer.”

Carnival Row stars Bloom as Rycroft Philostrate, human detective in The Burgue, a fantasy metropolis where humans cohabitate with a variety of mythical creatures. While investigating the death of a fairy, here called fae, he develops a relationship with fae refugee Vignette Stonemoss, played by Delevingne.

Tamzin Merchant, Simon McBurney, David Gyasi, Andrew Gower, Karla Crome, and Arty Froushan also feature among Carnival Row’s primary cast. Jared Harris and Indira Varma appeared in the first season, but did not return for season two.

Locations in and around Prague, with a healthy dose of CGI effects, stand in for Carnival Row’s The Burgue. Extensive studio production was conducted at Barrandov Studio in Prague, and locations such as Liberec, the Prachov rocks, Frýdlant Castle, and Krnsko Castle can be spotted in the show’s first season.

Season one premiered on Amazon in August 2019, but a release date for season two has yet to be confirmed. Critic reviews for Carnival Row’s first season were mixed-to-positive, but audience scores were generally higher.

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Jason Pirodsky

Jason Pirodsky has been writing about the Prague film scene and reviewing films in print and online media since 2005. A member of the Online Film Critics Society, you can also catch his musings on life in Prague at expats.cz and tips on mindfulness sourced from ancient principles at MaArtial.com.

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