Where Was The Rise And Fall Of The Dinosaurs Filmed Worldwide?

Tracking the real-world locations behind 'Rise and Fall of the Dinosaurs' felt like following a globe-trotting field diary — the show pulls from classic fossil hotspots and dramatic landscapes all over the planet.

A lot of the exterior, on-location sequences were shot in South America and North America: Patagonia in Argentina (Neuquén and other Patagonian fossil beds) for those sweeping, almost primeval plains; Alberta in Canada around Drumheller and Dinosaur Provincial Park for layered badlands and rich Cretaceous exposures; and the Badlands of South Dakota plus Montana’s Hell Creek region in the U.S. for late-Cretaceous scenes. In the American West you can feel the scale, which is why so many documentaries go there.

Asia plays a huge role too — Liaoning Province in northeastern China (the Jehol Biota) and the Gobi Desert regions in Mongolia and China for feathered dinosaurs and desert fossils. Africa turns up through the Karoo Basin in South Africa and the Tendaguru area of Tanzania for early dinosaur records from Gondwana. The team also filmed coastal, cliff and shoreline shots along England’s Jurassic Coast in Dorset when they needed chalky, seaside exposures.

On the technical side, a lot of the creature animation, interior studio shoots, and interview sequences were produced in Britain — the BBC Natural History Unit in Bristol and studio facilities around London — and integrated with footage from museums like the Natural History Museum in London, the Royal Tyrrell Museum in Drumheller, and major American museums where fossil exhibits and researchers were filmed. The effect is this fantastic patchwork of deserts, badlands, shoreline cliffs, museum halls and controlled studio sets — a world tour that mirrors the global story of dinosaur rise and fall. I loved spotting familiar places while watching it; it made the science feel alive and local to places I’ve actually visited.

My brain always maps documentaries geographically, so watching 'Rise and Fall of the Dinosaurs' was like taking a rapid world tour of fossil hotspots in one sitting: Patagonia (Argentina) for sweeping Triassic–Jurassic scenes, Alberta (Drumheller and Dinosaur Provincial Park) plus the U.S. Badlands and Hell Creek for Cretaceous landscapes, Liaoning and the Gobi in China and Mongolia for feathered and desert fossils, and African basins like the Karoo and Tendaguru for Gondwanan chapters. The production mixes on-site digs, museum shoots (Natural History Museum, Royal Tyrrell, etc.), and heavy CGI/studio work from U.K. teams, so what you see is a stitched tapestry of real places and crafted scenes. It’s the kind of travelogue that makes paleontology feel cinematic and global, and I came away wanting to visit Drumheller and actually smell the badlands myself.

My eyes kept darting between maps and the credits while watching 'Rise and Fall of the Dinosaurs', because the series stitches together fieldwork from across continents to tell one connected story.

Key field locations included Patagonian digs in Argentina for Triassic and Jurassic early-giant finds, China’s Liaoning and the Gobi for feathered specimens and rich fossil beds, and Mongolia’s Nemegt/Djadochta regions for desert-preserved fossils. In North America, Alberta’s badlands (Drumheller) and the U.S. western states like Utah and Montana (Morrison Formation exposures and Hell Creek) supplied iconic landscapes and important specimens. African chapters leaned on South Africa’s Karoo Basin and historical localities like Tendaguru in Tanzania to represent Gondwanan chapters.

Beyond field sites, the series heavily used museum archive footage and interviews shot in major institutions (think the Natural History Museum, the American Museum of Natural History, and the Royal Tyrrell) plus studio-based CGI and green-screen work in the U.K. The result feels global both in story and in screen — every continent that matters to dinosaur history has a visual voice here, which made the whole show feel impressively comprehensive and oddly comforting to me as a curious viewer.

Peeling apart the filming footprint, I found a strong pattern: producers chase the best paleontological evidence and dramatic landscapes while relying on studio work for creatures and behavioral reconstructions. I’ve spent time reading production notes and interviews tied to 'The Rise and Fall of the Dinosaurs,' and the map keeps returning to a handful of star locations.

Field sequences were commonly shot in Argentine Patagonia (for brimful bonebeds and sweeping plateaus), the Gobi Desert (for late Mesozoic desert scenes), and North America’s badlands (Montana, Alberta, Utah) where exposures are textbook. China’s Liaoning Province is essential for feathered dinosaurs and fine-grained fossil sites, and North Africa — Morocco’s Kem Kem beds — supplies that Saharan aesthetic and unique fossil finds. Lesser-known but important stops include Madagascar, Tanzania’s Tendaguru region, and Brazil’s Araripe Basin. Producers will often use coastal archipelagos or volcanic terrain in countries like Iceland or New Zealand for strange, primeval landscapes too.

Logistically, that means permits, local paleontologists, and a lot of liaison work; the advantage is authenticity — showing bones in situ, local geology, and real dig teams. Then the heavy lifting shifts to VFX houses and studio stages where the animals are animated, composited, and given voice. It’s a fascinating dance of field science and cinematic craft, and it made me appreciate both the fossil hunters and the artists who bring them to life.