How Jeff Daniels-Jared Harris Drama ’Reykjavik’ Used Authentic Locations to Tell the Story of a Cold War Summit in Iceland

variety.com:

Stuart Miller When Ronald Reagan and Mikhail Gorbachev sit down to discuss a potential nuclear arms treaty in the upcoming film “Reykjavik,” the actors portraying them, Jeff Daniels and Jared Harris, will be lowering themselves into the actual chairs in the actual building where the historic 1986 meeting took place.

Writer-director Michael Russell Gunn, who previously shot “Thai Cave Rescue,” says he loves the “authenticity” of shooting at the actual Höfði House in Iceland.

Producer John Logan Pierson adds, “there’s an energy and spirit that comes from shooting in the real place.” (Indeed, the official photographer from the 1986 summit, Pete Souza, is charged with on set photography for the film.) This authenticity was only feasible because of Iceland’s rebates and professional crews. “We needed to make this for a competitive number and sometimes you want to film in a place that isn’t production friendly and lacks a robust infrastructure,” Pierson says. “The people of Iceland have been so welcoming to our production,” says Mark O’Connor, exec VP of film production at producer SK Global, adding that he along with producing partner 2521 Entertainment, has been “incredibly impressed by the film community here.” In the exclusive photo above, writer, director and Producer Michael Russell Gunn lines up a shot with cinematographer Magdalena Görka looking over his shoulder at the Blue Lagoon in Iceland.

Elli Cassata, who runs Pegasus Pictures in Iceland and is working with Gunn and Pierson in country, says the industry is “getting busier and bigger.