Witcher crew rolls in to start filming as Netflix brings the series home
A Netflix’s production crew has arrived in Poland to film the Witcher, a series based on the books by Andrzej Sapkowski. The news of their arrival leaked out after producer Lauren Schmidt Hissrich posted a picture on her Twitter account of herself with the foreboding ruins of a castle in the background. Fans were quick to identify the ruins as Ogrodzieniec Castle in the south of Poland.
The Witcher tells the story of a mutated monster hunter Geralt of Rivia, whose life gets entangled with ancient prophecies, witches, kings and queens, which all leads to a fight for the future of the entire continent. The series of books, which has built up a loyal following in the region, was turned into an award-winning computer game by the Polish company CD Project Red. Their success gave the character of the Witcher a world-wide audience.
It’s not yet clear which location Ogordzieniec Castle will be, though fans suspect it could well be Kaer Morhen, the ruined fortress, where witchers were made and trained. The castle itself was built in 14th-15th century, though the first strongholds built its mountain-top location were constructed several centuries earlier. It served as the seat of the Włodkowie Sulimczycy family, and was an important defence bastion.
This is not the first film role Ogrodzieniec has had. Andrzej Wajda shot some scenes there for his film Revenge (Zemsta) based on Aleksander Fredro’s play.
