It's the new Netflix film with a Hollywood husband and wife duo behind the making of it. And fans want to know where was Windfall filmed?
There's nothing like a dark, psychological thriller movie to settle down and watch with your partner or friends on a Friday night. And luckily Netflix have delivered the goods with new film Windfall that promises tension by the bucketload. Fans will be taken in by the sunshine and luxury aesthetics that make up the setting of this film. Yet whilst the location and initial premise suggests 'holiday', viewers will soon discover it's anything but.
The "classic noir" film - as director Charlie McDowell describes it - is worlds away from the sunny Emily in Paris set of actress Lily Collins. Who both stars in it and happens to be married to said director. Made for uncomfortable viewing, Windfall is set to be another talked about Netflix hit, following mystery film The Weekend Away, the popular Anna Delvey series and addictive Love is Blind season 2.
Where is Windfall filmed?
Windfall was filmed in Ojai, California. The couple's holiday home - where most of the action takes place - is reported to be the three-star hotel Casa Ojai Inn, near the Soule Park Golf Course and town centre. Ojai is the birthplace of director Charlie McDowell and the film's location is about a mile away from where he shot his first movie, The One I Love.
Those familiar to Ojai and it's stunning scenery will recognise the TopaTopa Mountains in the background of several outdoor scenes. Surrounding the Valley and just north of Ojai - the range is part of the Los Padres National Forest. And fans can visit the natural site in real-life.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BaPdGDBcY5A&t=1s
Sharing a picture of a clapperboard on Instagram, director Charlie wrote: “I was lucky enough to make a movie in my hometown (Ojai, in California) during a pandemic with some of my best friends and collaborators. I think we made something unique and completely outside the box and I’m so excited to share it with you all.”
Filming for Windfall began on March 4 2021, in the height of the pandemic, and wrapped in July 2021.
Speaking about the experience of making Windfall, Charlie revealed that it was actually the epidemic that inspired the film:
"During the pandemic, me and a few friends started thinking, ‘How do we continue to be creative?" he said. "Every single space you see is somewhere on the property. When we went through the gates on day one, we didn't leave until we wrapped the film. We literally shot the whole movie behind those gates."
He added: “I really felt like this is a film about being imprisoned in your own space, which felt very much like what we've been going through in a pandemic. We didn't want to make a ‘pandemic movie.’ But we wanted to make something that captured the feeling of this moment and being trapped and how, even when it’s a beautiful space, we start to break down and go crazy. I found that really interesting.”
What is Netflix film Windfall about?
Windfall is a Hitchcockian thriller which follows the story of an ordinary man who breaks into the empty vacation property of a tech CEO. But things turn upside down when the owner comes to visit the house along with his wife at the last minute.
The tech billionaire starts to behave rudely with the thief. However, his wife decides to keep a quiet eye on both of the men. She doesn’t want to create any more commotion and wants to leave the place happily. But the intruder holds them hostage. And finds ways to steal assets from the CEO, even negotiating with him to make a deal of $150,000.
The film is focused solely on the three characters. And viewers will soon learn that nobody isn’t your average passerby. Windfall is set to create a lot of suspense and mystery as the story unfolds.
Windfall: cast
- Jason Segel (Forgetting Sarah Marshall, Sex Tape) plays Jasper Queller
- Lily Collins (Emily in Paris, Mirror Mirror) plays Laura Oliver
- Jesse Plemons (Power of the Dog, The Irishman, Game Night) plays Andy Oliver
- Omar Leyva (Icebox, Grey’s Anatomy) plays Gardener
Lily Collins both starred and produced the film alongside husband and director Charlie McDowell. Speaking about working on the film together, she said: “I thought it would be harder, I have to say. I thought it would be more stressful to have to work with him. But it honestly was really amazing and freeing.”
She added: "It was great, and I'm really, really proud of the movie and I'm proud of him. It's a different type of role for me. Honestly, it was so easy working together. I would forget that it was him.”
While Charlie added: “With Lily there, I felt a lot of pressure with making sure that her character was well-rounded and three-dimensional. Because I knew that me working with Lily would be the safest space imaginable for her as an actor and for me as a director.”
Is Windfall a true story?
No, Windfall is not based on a true story. Director Charlie McDowell said he created the story alongside the film's star Jason Segel to fit a particular filming location. The script was penned by Justin Lader and Andrew Kevin Walker.
"We wrote the film to fit that specific house," said Charlie, referring to the Ojai-based property that appears in the film. "We knew we could shoot at this property, but we didn't have a story yet. So we let the space dictate who inhabited it and where the story would go.”
Lily said of the film: “The story really exposes all three of us. We're all flawed, and the story showcases and starts to unearth how those flaws come about and that none of us are innocent.
“And I feel like it is about choice and the choices we make and the choices we don't make and how that does set you off on a very specific path. When one circumstance comes up, it's unexpected how that changes your course and your perspective of yourself and the world."
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