Jer

Hey,

Im new here and really don't read much here. Its because I never got into the show until recently and I don't want to spoil anything for myself. Im a big James Van Der Beek fan, but I have a filming question.

Was Dawson's house a setting or an actual house? If so, does anyone know what state is located in? I love how it looks with that porch.

pacenjen

From what I understand Jer, the exterior shots of the house is a real house located in Wilmington, North Carolina where the show was shot.

The interior of the house is a set.

I agree the house is very beautiful and the porch is very nice.

Welcome!

TrueLovePJer

pacenjen you're right, they only used the outside of the house and the crew would come only a fews times a year and get the shots they needed and then head to the studio for the rest. I've been to the house and it's like surreal being at the Leery household. Lots of drama happened there!

Jer

So they got all the outside shots done first? I wonder how they got all that to match up with the rest of the episodes...

TrueLovePJer

Well they would go throughout the year and be there for about a week, so it wouldn't be like they were filming everything from the entire season. But you can tell in some scenes where for instance Joey's hair is slightly different when she was outside than from when she walked inside the house.

KraZ4OTH

They would get all of the external shots for each episode done on the same day. The residents of the houses were paid a flat fee (per day) to allow filming there- this way they minimized the costs associated with on location filming.

Jer

Oh wow, thats kinda cool to know. Was it the same with Joey and Jen's houses? Even though those houses looked like junk lol.

jlh4480

Hello all,

I didn't even look to see when this thread was started, but it seems the original question was never answered. So, to answer your question, "Dawson's House" is on the outskirts of Wilmington, NC. It actually sits on a fairly secluded road named Head Road. I think you can mapquest Head Road, if not, Greenville Loop would be the next closest road. The part of the house you always see on the show is actually the back. I went kayaking on the creek to get a better view. Hope this helps.

J

Jer

I wasn't actually going to go there (lol). I live nowhere near NC, I was just wondering. I figured it was kinda odd because of the pirch and all.

KraZ4OTH

They used the house next to "Dawsons's" as Jen's, so yes, it worked the same there. The road (or really, 'private drive') was all dirt, so it was kind of a pain to get all of the trucks and such down there.

I've heard different stories about Joey's house. A lot of people said the location used for the Potter B&B was owned by Screen Gems- and the interior of the house actually had movable walls (to allow for the best shots). But on my last visit to Wilmington, I ran into the lady who lives there, and she told me she's always owned the house. So, whether the studios just rented it off of her, and paid to have the interior remodeled, or they actually did 'own' it, I'm not sure!

*The house doesn't look much like the B&B now- it was painted different colors shortly after DC ended (perhaps to keep the trespassing DC fans away?? lol)

Jer

does dawsons house look the same?

TrueLovePJer

outside? yes They didn't use the inside. That was designated for the studio and their creativity.

Jer

yeah i was told that.

Mandy

Also in regards to Dawson's House, you'll notice in Season Six (the first two episodes), that they're on the ScreenGems set showing Dawson's House. A porch and all the fixin's was built as well, when in need to mimic shots that couldn't be done.

I always thought it was a riot when they'd have Joey at Dawson's door (in the finale) and you can see all the real background behind her, but yet when she comes in to hug Dawson, his family and the 'real' interiors are there. Again, they had to film multiple times and locations for that shot.

They had to do the same thing for Grams' Boston house as well.