Contact (1997) – Filming Locations
Drama / Science Fiction / Mystery · Directed by Robert Zemeckis · Starring Matthew McConaughey, Jodie Foster
A radio astronomer receives the first extraterrestrial radio signal ever picked up on Earth. As the world powers scramble to decipher the message and decide upon a course of action, she must make some difficult decisions between her beliefs, the truth, and reality.
Where was Contact filmed?
- Washington, D.C., United States, Washington – Ellie attends a political rally and encounters Palmer Joss. The iconic monument serves as a backdrop for a pivotal early encounter between the two main characters
- Arecibo, Puerto Rico, Arecibo – Ellie works as a radio astronomer searching for extraterrestrial signals. The real world's largest radio telescope provides the primary setting for Ellie's scientific work and the discovery of the alien signal
- Las Vegas, Nevada, United States, Las Vegas – The Machine is constructed and tested in a vast underground complex. This secret government facility was used to represent the technological center where the alien-designed machine is built and assembled
- Mauna Kea, Hawaii, United States, Hilo – Observatory sequences showing Ellie's continued astronomical research. The real-world observatories atop Hawaii's highest peak represent the cutting edge of scientific research facilities used in the film
- Cape Canaveral, Florida, United States, Cape Canaveral – Mission control sequences and spacecraft launch preparations. The actual space center provides authentic NASA facilities and legitimacy to the film's high-stakes space mission sequences