· Travel · 5 min read
Contagion Filming Locations: Casablanca and Beyond
Contagion filming locations: Casablanca sits in the location record but in no scene list. What is documented, plus a city walk you can do.
A virus thriller by Steven Soderbergh climbed back into the most-watched titles on a streaming catalogue during a real outbreak. Viewers wanted to know where it was shot, and the contagion filming locations cover three continents of confirmed shooting. Morocco holds one short, oddly quiet line at the edge of that list: Contagion (2011) is credited to Casablanca in Moroccan press coverage and in location records, and nowhere beyond that.
In this guide we break down the confirmed shooting map and separate what is documented about Casablanca from what gets assumed. Then we walk the parts of the city that made film crews keep coming back.
Where Contagion Was Actually Filmed - A Global Map
Soderbergh and writer Scott Z. Burns built the outbreak as a relay of handshakes, so the camera follows the infection instead of the plot. That rule kept the map tight.
- Chicago carried most of the American work, doubling for Minneapolis and for Atlanta streets.
- Atlanta supplied CDC exteriors only, plus a parking garage and a museum reception.
- Hong Kong, London, Geneva and San Francisco were shot on location.
Soderbergh acted as his own cinematographer under the name Peter Andrews and shot on a RED One MX at 4.5K. He avoided studio work almost entirely, which is why the film has the flat light and busy background of real streets. It earned $136.5 million worldwide on a $60 million budget.
Morocco appears in the location list and in no scene breakdown.
Casablanca in Contagion - What Is Documented
So the honest answer to where was contagion filmed in Morocco is Casablanca, if you trust the record, and nowhere you can point at. Moroccan press reported at the time that several scenes were shot in the city, and location records list it. No interview, production note or film-commission report names a scene, street, hotel or landmark.
If you came looking for casablanca filming locations, most lists give you the city name and stop there. That leaves you hunting for a doorway nobody ever identified.
On the record:
- Casablanca as a shooting city: reported in Moroccan press and listed in location records.
- A named scene, street or building: none found in any published source.
- Hassan II Mosque in the film: no evidence at all.
With no shot list to follow, you read the city itself: the Atlantic light crews come back for, the working port, the protectorate-era downtown. For a Casablanca built entirely on a soundstage, see where Allied was really shot.
Hassan II Mosque and the Atlantic Edge of the City
The hassan ii mosque is the one Casablanca image that needs no film credit. Its minaret rises 210 m, the second tallest in the world, and the building is a modern one, designed by Michel Pinseau. It holds 25,000 worshippers inside, with room for another 80,000 on the esplanade. Part of it stands on a platform over the Atlantic, between the port and the El Hank lighthouse.
Non-Muslims enter on a guided visit only. The foreign adult ticket runs around 140 dirhams, with morning slots and one or two in the afternoon, Saturday to Thursday. Friday is closed to visits, and the hours shift with the season.
Casa-Port station is about 20 minutes on foot from the esplanade, which makes the mosque an easy first stop off the train. No source places this building in Contagion.
Walking Casablanca’s Film Landmarks and Art Deco Core
Crews come to Casablanca for the city, not for a studio lot. Atlas Studios sit far inland at Ouarzazate, and that mix-up turns up in a lot of Casablanca film writing. Start at the old medina, about 2 km from the mosque or 25 to 30 minutes along the coast road.
The loop that works:
- Old medina and its walls: the oldest fabric in the city, and the quickest way to feel the port.
- Boulevard Mohammed V: arcaded Art Deco frontage, with the Rialto cinema on Mohammed El Qori Street close by.
- Marché Central: under 1 km from the medina gates, good for a coffee between stops.
- Habous: about 3 km south, a French-built new medina of pale arcades and quiet squares.
- The Corniche: the Atlantic side, best saved for the end of the day.
On foot the loop takes around four hours. A car and driver cut it to two and add the Corniche without the walk back. The mosque plaza also carried the chase in Mission: Impossible - Rogue Nation, covered in our Rogue Nation locations guide.
Planning a Casablanca Stop on the Film Trail
Half a day covers the medina, the Art Deco core and Marché Central. A full day adds the mosque interior and Habous without hurrying any of them.
Mohammed V airport sits outside the city, and the airport train runs into Casa-Port, a short walk from the mosque. Land in the morning and you can be on the esplanade for an afternoon slot.
Transfers are where a short stop loses hours. A private driver waits while you walk and moves the car between stops, which turns that four-hour walk into a two-hour loop.
You can fold the city into a longer route with our 8-day Casablanca to imperial cities tour. For the city on its own, see 48 hours in Casablanca.
If the film brought you here, Casablanca will keep you a day longer than you planned. Our 10-day Casablanca to the Sahara tour via Fes starts in the city and ends in the dunes, with the imperial cities in between.
We can customize a tour to match your needs - design your perfect itinerary
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Frequently Asked Questions
Was Contagion filmed in Casablanca?
Yes, at city level. Moroccan press reported at the time that several scenes were shot in Casablanca, and location records list the city. No interview, production note or film-commission report names a scene, street or building, so treat it as a confirmed credit without a confirmed stop.
Where was Contagion filmed?
Principal photography ran from late September to mid-February across Hong Kong, Chicago (doubling Minneapolis and Atlanta), Atlanta for the CDC exteriors, London, Geneva and San Francisco. Soderbergh shot on a RED One MX with himself as cinematographer under the name Peter Andrews, and he avoided studio work almost entirely.
Does the Hassan II Mosque appear in Contagion?
No source places the mosque in the film. The Casablanca credit stays at city level, and no scene list or interview mentions the mosque. It is worth a morning on its own: a 210 m minaret, 25,000 worshippers inside, and a floor built partly over the Atlantic.
How much time do you need for Casablanca's film landmarks?
A half day covers the old medina, the Art Deco core around Boulevard Mohammed V and Marché Central. A full day adds the Hassan II Mosque interior and Habous. A car links the stops in about two hours of driving, while the same route on foot takes four.
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