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	Leonardo DiCaprio as Danny Archer in Blood Diamond.

Blood Diamond Production Notes

Chapter 8: Africa “…having been there, I think I can say that all of us were marked by it. We can’t help but look at the world differently now.” “Blood Diamond” was filmed almost entirely on location in Africa, which Ed Zwick says was crucial, largely for reasons that were somewhat intangible. “Africa is a place of great contrasts: everywhere you go, you are confronted by images of breathtaking beauty and heartbreaking squalor, of deep spirituality and severe deprivation. Everything is in your face, and it had an effect on all of us. It would be hard to describe what that effect was…but suffice it to say, had we filmed anywhere else, the film would not have that ineffable sense of place.” The production also filmed in Sierra Leone, although, the director acknowledges, “Equatorial West Africa just didn’t have the infrastructure to accommodate all our needs for this size production. We needed other locations, as well.” After scouting the coast of southern Africa, an area near Port Edward, South Africa, in the KwaZulu Natal province, proved the ideal site. The region’s lush jungle landscape provided the backdrop for three major sets: the diamond mine, the refugee camp and Benjamin’s school. To create the sets, production designer Dan Weil did his own research but also had the added benefit of Samura’s firsthand descriptions. The weather, however, was less than cooperative. “This is the third time I have gone to a location where I’ve been promised beautiful weather, and yet, somehow, I manage to elicit the largest rainfalls ever recorded in modern history,” Zwick laughs. “In fact, they had record-breaking rainfall in what was already the rainy season. It meant we had to keep adapting to the circumstances, and Eduardo and I were always reconceiving our shots to fit the weather,” he adds, referring to cinematographer Eduardo Serra. Paula Weinstein adds, “This is a very exciting, very alive continent”—with, she reveals, the emphasis being on alive. “Every morning, the guys would come to the set and start describing what kind of bug they’d seen in their room the night before. Every day, it was like, ‘Okay, what was in your room last night? Was it a lizard? Did you see that snake?’ You had to have a sense of humor about it; you certainly couldn’t act like some spoiled Hollywood type. That was definitely not going to go over well, but we had fun trying to top each other’s stories.” Apart from weather and wildlife concerns, the filmmakers were everconscious that they were working in an environmentally sensitive area and were determined that every location would be left in as good or, in some cases, better condition. Co-producer Kevin De La Noy notes, “Before we came into the valley, we had to have a full environmental-impact survey, and once we began working, we had to stay within an environmental management plan. We had officers of the provincial land management bureau on set with us every day to ensure that any indigenous plants we had to move were moved in the correct manner. Then those plants were maintained in a nursery to be replaced at the end of our time there.” In addition to meticulously preserving the existing plant life, the filmmakers also had the native plants and trees of Sierra Leone trucked in to dress the location. To accommodate the trucks, a system of roads had to be created where there had been little more than footpaths before. The roads had to be wide enough for large vehicles but designed to have the least impact on bordering trees and shrubs. The road itself was constructed on a frame of thick wire mesh so it could be easily pulled up at the conclusion of filming and the natural vegetation could reclaim the path. Zwick reports, “Kevin recently returned from a follow-up trip to Port Edward and said that not only has the grass grown over the place where we filmed, but other wildlife has come back in abundance, much to the delight of the local rangers and environmentalists. The restoration of the area was very important to us, and I’m proud to say we succeeded in that effort.” From Port Edward, the company moved to the country of Mozambique, where the city of Maputo doubled for Sierra Leone’s capital city, Freetown. Filming the explosive fall of Freetown presented a range of logistical challenges to the entire production team. The director points out that it took careful coordination to achieve utter turmoil. He explains, “It had to appear chaotic, but you cannot do that chaotically. It required extensive planning and focus. I can’t remember how many times we walked those streets, discussing the exact positioning of the cameras, the cast, the stunt people, the extras…” Zwick also worked closely with special effects supervisor Neil Corbould to choreograph the timing and placement of the explosions. He continues, “It’s a very redundant, very intense process and you have to be patient and unrelenting. And yet, you still have to leave room for the x-factor, the unexpected happening.” A number of the locals were used as extras for the battle sequences. For their wardrobe, costume designer Ngila Dickson, who had previously worked with Zwick on “The Last Samurai,” sent for fabrics from Sierra Leone, which she says are quite distinctive in their use of color and design. “They are bold and beautiful with a lot of floral patterns. I found them to have an island feel. We also shopped a lot of secondhand stores and brought back pieces that fit the time and place of the story.” The filmmakers were very mindful of the effect the battle scenes would have on the residents of Maputo, some of whom had vivid memories of Mozambique’s own civil war. To mitigate any unnecessary trauma, leaflets were distributed and a media campaign was launched to notify the people that what they would be hearing and seeing was entirely staged in service of a movie. Ironically, it was the local extras who gave comfort to the visiting filmmakers and cast between takes. Weinstein explains, “Sometimes after a particularly difficult sequence, they would stand in the corner and sing together. It contributed such a warm spirit to the set and made us feel happy to be there and fortunate to be telling this story. Really, they were the most gracious hosts and wonderful participants in the process.” Nevertheless, the realism hit very close to home for some working on the movie. Mende dialect coach Alfred Lavalie couldn’t bear to watch after the first day, and Samura admits, “It brought back sad memories and, I must confess, it made me realize how lucky I was to have survived. I went back to my hotel room and cried and then called my kids to tell them I love them. I hope people watching this movie can begin to understand the madness.” On the outskirts of Maputo, the small fishing village of Costa du Sol was turned into the village where the Vandy family’s peaceful life is shattered by the sudden attack of brutal rebel soldiers. Zwick reflects, “It’s hard to imagine these things are still going on in the world. You want to sit back and relax in the comfortable life that we have in America. But having been there, I think I can say that all of us were marked by it. We can’t help but look at the world differently now.” Next Chapter: Kindness Begins on Location

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