Willow: The streaming series that made Wales its home – Fantha Tracks

While it would be easy – all too easy – to focus on the negative aspects that have sadly seen Willow marked a failure, there are plenty of positives to take away from the series production. One is the huge lift the series gave to the Welsh filmmaking community, a process which saw significant financial boost to the Welsh economy. The production was based at Dragon Studios in South Wales and filmed at 32 locations across the country. They included Morlais Quarry, where the opening scenes were set, and Merthyr Mawr, which was the backdrop for Willow’s home. Lucasfilm built five sets at Dragon Studios totalling 28,000 square feet as well as 20 additional buildings for the purposes of creature creation, puppeteering work, special effects and costumes. It made its mark on the local film industry. Lucasfilm hired 25 trainees for six months as well as 206 Welsh citizens who were members of the crew. As a result, 17 of the 29 production departments were led by Welsh citizens whilst non-Welsh crew were also paired with Welsh citizens. In December, Creative Wales, the government agency that promotes the development of creative industries in Wales, reported that brands such as Lucasfilm
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