Abhiroop Das
Created by Sarah Haasz, ‘Gangnam Project’ follows Hannah Shin, a Korean Canadian who secretly dreams of becoming a K-pop idol and ruling hearts around the globe. As such, when she is offered a job in Seoul as an English tutor at an elite K-pop training academy, Hanna is left pinching herself. Still, the world of music is as challenging as it is inspiring, and the more she ventures into its depths, the more her sense of self is put into question. Unsurprisingly, the academy is teeming with both talent and competition, and if Hannah wants to make her voice heard, she has to work twice as hard as everyone else, forging alliances and winning over her competitors till she reaches the summit of the K-pop world. The coming-of-age music series directly places its characters in the heart of Seoul’s music scene, often letting the atmosphere itself do the talking, and the result is an enchanting tapestry of music and reality.
Gangnam Project Filming Locations
‘Gangnam Project’ was primarily taped in the cities of Toronto and Hamilton, in Canada’s Ontario province. Additional scenes were also shot in South Korea over the period of a week, with the crew taking over the capital city of Seoul. Series creator Sarah Haasz told Content Asia that the show took about six years to make, but this timespan likely includes the entire planning and pre-production process. Filming for the first season reportedly began on July 10, 2023, and wrapped up production by September 1 of the same year. Principal photography for season 2 began the following year, with reports indicating that shooting wrapped up sometime around fall 2024.
Greater Toronto and Hamilton Area
Situated on the western tip of Lake Ontario, the port city of Hamilton served as the primary filming location for ‘Gangnam Project.’ More specifically, the production set up camp in the Mohawk College campus, which doubles as the film’s main setting, a K-pop training school. Situated at 135 Fennell Avenue West, the college specializes in applied arts and technology and is among the largest training institutions in The Heartland Province, making it the perfect setting to capture the show’s scope and feel. To that end, many of the college’s real-life exterior and interior locations can be mapped out in the show.
The list of such locations on campus includes a student lounge, which was reportedly remodelled into a lounge for aspiring K-pop artists at the Korean academy. For Sarah Haasz, the creator of the show, filming at Mohawk College was also a full-circle experience, as it is the place where her mother studied English as a second language, and also where her father took courses in machine shop training. The college is no stranger to being a lensing location either, as it also doubles as the backdrop of a movie named ‘Slumberland.’
Alongside on-site filming in Hamilton, the crew also headed to Ontario’s capital city, Toronto, where high-tech virtual production elements were added to the show with the help of Dark Slope Studios. Located at 793 Pharmacy Avenue in the Scarborough district of the city, Dark Slope is renowned for its LED volume stages that pour additional life and depth to scenes. The team behind ‘Gangnam Project’ relied on the studio for the taping of several key segments, with virtual production methods expanding the range of filming possibilities while also making the overall process easier. Dark Slope has also helped with the creation of other acclaimed titles, such as ‘Babble Bop!,’ ‘The Heiress and the Handyman,’ and ‘Heated Rivalry.’
Seoul, South Korea
A chunk of the filming also extended to South Korea’s capital city, Seoul, where the creative team reportedly spent a week filming major sequences on-site. The ambience and atmosphere of a real Korean city were likely key to boosting the show’s immersion factor, and it is likely that many exterior scenes with large crowds were filmed here. Despite a limited budget, the crew made the most out of the vibrant urban expanses of Seoul, which creator Sarah Haasz described as the “icing on the cake,” in an interview with Content Asia. She also added that this filming experience was not only memorable but also necessary, and one that she would engage in once again without a doubt. As such, a blend of Korean and Canadian locations defines the visual canvas of ‘Gangnam Project,’ echoing the show’s premise in and of itself.
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