Where was The Shack filmed? Filming Locations Guide
Posted by Ra Moon
This story of faith and magic is based on the worldwide bestseller by William Paul Young, a Canadian author who self-published the novel The Shack: Where tragedy confronts eternity in 2007.
The plot explains how Mack, a man in mourning after his daughter is murdered, receives a personal and mysterious invitation to meet God at a place called "The Shack".
The plot explains how Mack, a man in mourning after his daughter is murdered, receives a personal and mysterious invitation to meet God at a place called "The Shack".
Sam Worthington (Avatar, Clash of the Titans) plays the main role together with Octavia Spencer (Hidden Figures), a controversial black Goddess.
Set in an unspecified town in Oregon, The Shack was primarily filmed in Vancouver and British Columbia.
Welcome to our guide to the filming locations of the movie. We've tried to keep spoilers at bay, below, and I think we've done a pretty good job.
The waterfall of the story of the Indian Princess is the scenic Multnomah Falls in the Columbia River Gorge, located east of Portland, Oregon.
The spectacular viewing bridge and the adjacent lodge were constructed in 1925 by American businessman and philanthropist Simon Benson.
However, the filmmakers just used some stock footage for establishing shots of the falls, as the entire production was filmed in Canada.
As you can check out comparing the upper picture and the lower image, the scene with the actors was not filmed on location in Oregon.
Also, some scenes taking place at Wallowa Lake State Park, located near the border with Idaho in Oregon, were not filmed there, but at Cultus Lake, situated about 50 miles east of Vancouver in British Columbia.
The name on the large duck statue's sign was superimposed. The iconic sculpture, erected in 1998, is located by Entrance Bay.
Image by courtesy of Summit Entertainment and Google Maps
However, the camping scene set at Wallowa Lake was actually filmed at the Sayres Lake Campground in Mission.
This small family-orientated forested campsite is located in a beautiful and quiet area with no cellular reception.
Image by courtesy of Summit Entertainment - Map
Is the real shack featured in the movie located on the shores of Cultus Lake? Only God (and the filmmakers) know.
Lorie Martin, a writer from Abbotsford, BC, was invited to the shoot of the scenes taking place at the cabin with Octavia Spencer near their home. So the shack could be on Cultus Lake.
What seems clear is that the lake and the area where the shack is located are an amalgam of locations.
Our sleuthing revealed that the small beach pictured with Mack and Jesus (played by Aviv Alush) was filmed at Minaty Bay, the same location where Percy Jackson was filmed.
Minaty Bay is located quite far from Cultus Lake, on the shores of Howe Sound near Britannia Beach at the Sea-to-Sky Corridor region.
Image by courtesy of Summit Entertainment - Map
The behind-the-scenes video revealed that the scenes on the boat were filmed using a water tank, so the hills inserted via CGI in the background could be from anywhere.
The cave with God's wisdom Sophia (played by Alice Braga) was a set filmed at the studios.
The aerial view of the exuberant garden was also digitally created. Sumire Matsubara plays Sarayu, the Holy Spirit.
The mountain in the scene where Mark follows the path that only he can take looks like a computer-generated image, made using the near-vertical Grand Wall of Stawamus Chief as a model.
The production was actually filmed on the grounds of Stawamus Chief Park, the stunning granite dome located near Squamish (not to be confused with Squahamish, The Half of It movie town).
The lush forests of the Squamish area look very much like the landscapes that the characters are trekking through in the film.
Image by courtesy of Summit Entertainment - Map
The establishing shot of a snow-covered mountain is the stratovolcano Mount Baker in Washington State, located about 20 miles southeast of Cultus Lake as the crow flies.
Image by courtesy of Summit Entertainment -Map
The house was probably filmed in a suburb near Vancouver, using fake snow. There is a shot where we can read that Mack’s family home has the 1853 number, but the street name is missing.
Can you help to improve this post about the shooting locations for The Shack? To complete and correct this report, any feedback, info, or images that you may have are more than welcome, thank you!
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Ra Moon
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Lost Lake, Whistler, BC, Canada
ReplyDeleteThanks Kathleen, but do you mean that the shack of The Shack was filmed in Lost Lake?
DeleteNo, we did not shoot in Whistler
DeleteThe falls appear to actually be Multnomah Falls, just east of Portlabd, Oregon
ReplyDeleteCool, many thanks!
DeleteSp check - Portland (;
Deletehttps://www.fs.usda.gov/recarea/crgnsa/recarea/?recid=30026
DeleteSnow covered mountain appears to be mount rainier Washington state
ReplyDeleteThe waterfall where he told the story of the Indian girl was filmed at Multnomah Falls in the Columbia River Gorge in Oregon. I've hiked there many times.
ReplyDeleteMount Baker is the snow-covered mountain - shows up twice
ReplyDeleteYep, it's Baker. I live near Cultus and that's the angle I see everyday.
DeleteThanks a lot, updated!
DeleteThe church is in Milner, Langley, BC. I think the semi truck road is too.
ReplyDeleteThe one in 216 St? I reckon it doesn't look like the one in the film...
DeleteThe image captioned "It is also confirmed that the production was shooting on the lake Cultus." is actually a picture of Sayres Lake. It has been a favorite secluded swimming spot for me and my friends for years, but it is getting a lot less secluded now. I was surprised to see a few shots in the trailer that looked like Sayres, so I did a quick search and found this web page. The image above confirms it for me.
ReplyDeleteThe snowy suburb shot looks a lot like my home town, Mission, not far from Sayres. That street looks familiar, but I can't quite place it. Could be another town though
I think the lake is Harrison Lake. British Columbia
DeleteThe lake that the family camp at where Missy is taken is definitely Sayers Lake north of Mission, BC. It's close to home for me and I camp there at least 2x per year. The water is amazingly clear there, perfect for the underwater shot of the canoe accident. It's not a big lake though. It's possible that the other lake where they walk on the water and go to that beach may possibly be on Stave Lake? Also, the final scenes look to me like some lakeside property's on Hayward Lake between Mission and Maple Ridge, I stayed there for few weeks.Traffic can be seen in the background on the Lougheed Highway.
ReplyDeleteInteresting, thanks a lot for the info!
DeleteWe filmed the snowy house in the summer and along with almost everything else. Turned out pretty good the CG snow huh?
ReplyDeleteHaha, yeah it is... umm, you could give some more clues about the locations, by the way :)
DeleteNot cg snow
DeleteI'd love to see more pics and a floor plan of the shack as it was with Papa and the rest. Is that available anywhere, by any chance?
ReplyDeleteI would like to know that, too! It's a beautiful cabin...of what they show of it. It could be a set...but, I hope not.
DeleteWe just visited Multnomah falls for the first time and recognized the waterfall right away,since we just watched the movie.
ReplyDeleteOne thing is for sure, none of it was filmed at Wallowa lake or even in Wallowa county.
ReplyDeleteI love the house and the layout of that house that was used for the main home area at the lake. I would love to have house plans for that home! Anyone know if they can be found and purchased?
ReplyDeleteI really love this movie. Right now it's being shown on HBO. The sites that
ReplyDeleteWere chosen were really beautiful. They were perfect for the story. And a very
Beautiful story it is.
I read the book long before I found out
About the movie. Love the book and the
Movie. The wisdom that was in every
Every scene of that movie had to have
Come from God. It was just to perfect
Just to havecome from a Man.But a Man
Of God, Yeah! Beautiful movie.
There appeared to be a brief shot of Index Mountain in Index, WA.
ReplyDeletePorteau Cove provincial ParK
ReplyDeleteThe campground was filmed in Wallowa Lake State Park in Joseph, Oregon. I don't see any reason to debate on this. They showed it in the movie. I know it can be filmed somewhere else but it only made sense before they went to the campground they made a stop at Multnomah Falls which is in Oregon.
ReplyDeleteMy family has lived in Wallowa County and Joseph, Oregon since the 1880's and I've lived there for 54 years and that campground is definitely not Wallowa Lake State Park in Joseph, Oregon.
DeleteWhere was the garden and flower scene filmed? Who was the set gardner for this movie?
ReplyDeleteLorie Martin, a writer in Abbotsford, BC says the shack of the Shack is near their home. So could be on Cultus Lake. http://loriemartin.com/about-lorie/her-shack-story/
ReplyDeleteAll comments are reviewed prior to publication