Ardent ‘Titanic’ fans may already know that the film wasn’t made in the United States. Instead, the production crew and actors all headed down to Mexico for cheaper labor and easy ocean access. Not to mention, amazing sunsets that made for epic on-screen moments.
And while on the face of it cutting down the film’s extravagant $200 million cost sounded like a good idea, it wasn’t exactly a defining moment for the town where Kate Winslet and Leonardo DiCaprio became stars. While Kate missed the premiere of ‘Titanic,’ she and Leo were both on set for excruciatingly long days (and super cold dips in the ocean).
But plenty of people who never made it on screen put in a ton of work as well.
As Vice explains, there were “faceless extras” from the town of Rosarito, Mexico hard at work behind the scenes of the film. In 2012, journalists from the publication explored what was left after filming wrapped on ‘Titanic,’ and it wasn’t pretty.
James Cameron and his deep-pocketed Hollywood backers bought 34 acres of land in Rosarito (near Tijuana) and literally built not only an RMS Titanic replica, but an entire studio and huge water tank to sink their fake ship in.
As Vice echoed, Cameron and producers saved cash on their transportation costs, since the trip back to LA only took four hours. Plus, the labor in Mexico was far less expensive than hiring wannabe actors in the states.
Fox Baja Studios, as it came to be known, even continued filming after ‘Titanic’ wrapped. They also created a tourist attraction complete with a Titanic museum. Knowing James Cameron’s passion for the sunken treasure of a ship, a quaint museum in a small Mexican town sounds idyllic.
Vice even interviewed four of the film’s extras, who said that a bus would pick them up early in the morning for work. Filming often lasted longer than 12 hours a day, but the extras earned less than $100 per day; many even half of that.
And so goes the story of how ‘Titanic’ came to town and only took advantage of the people and resources in Rosarito. When the interest in the spring break hotspot waned, and Mexico’s notorious narcos took over, Fox bailed.
In 2007, they sold the Baja studio and ditched Rosarito, notes Vice. Baja Films Studios is still churning out films, though Fox is apparently no longer involved.
These days, the studio still takes advantage of locals and attracts big-budget movies that need either ocean access or a fake ocean to film in. Unfortunately for residents there, the commercialization of the town hasn’t done much for locals.
The legacy of ‘Titanic,’ and the infrastructure it brought, lives on. But it’s only turned Rosarito into the “Mexican Hollywood” none of its citizens asked for.
