Where was the movie September 5 filmed? All filming locations explored

September 5 is a historical drama film directed by Tim Fehlbaum, who has co-written the screenplay with Moritz Binder and Alex David. The film is a retelling of the 1972 Munich massacre, where several Israeli athletes were taken hostage by the Palestinian militant group named Black September. Moreover, the story is told through the lens of the ABC Sports crew, who covered the attack and its aftermath in real time.

The movie premiered at the Venice Film Festival on August 29, 2024. It was released in limited theaters in the United States on December 13, 2024, and is scheduled for a wider release on January 17, 2025.

Rotten Tomatoes described the film's official synopsis as follows:

"During the 1972 Munich Olympics, an American sports broadcasting crew finds itself thrust into covering the hostage crisis involving Israeli athletes."

As reported by Variety, the primary shooting location for September 5 is the city of Munich in Bavaria, Germany.

A detailed look at the filming locations of September 5

September 5 was filmed in the summer and early fall of 2023 in Munich as the summer weather offered the right conditions to recreate the 1972 Summer Olympics.

Munich, Bavaria

The movie was primarily shot at the Bavaria Studios. The ABC Sports broadcast facility control room was carefully recreated, replete with 1970s broadcast equipment, as most of the scenes were filmed within the confines of the ABC studio.

Additional sequences featuring indoor and outdoor scenes of the Olympic Village were captured at the real location in Munich. Furthermore, filming also took place in various streets around the city to showcase the 1970s Munich.

On November 10, 2024, production designer, Julian R. Wagner, told Variety that the film's director wanted the film to look "as realistic as possible." He further elaborated on the thought-process that went into bringing the story to life by saying:

"Tim always wanted to have it as realistic as possible, and I wanted to have it designed in a way that fits to the drama and the thriller. We had to create a space that captured the confines of the TV studio and entrap the cast within it, (and it) needed to be visually designed in such a way that it could carry the plot over 90 minutes."

Plot summary

September 5 is set in 1972 and depicts the tense hostage situation that unfolds during the second week of the Munich Summer Olympic Games. After the Palestinian militia group Black September infiltrate the Olympic village, they kill two Israeli athletes and hold nine others captive.

However, the film focuses its attention inside the ABC newsroom where top executives debate over how best to cover the escalating hostage crisis. Producer Geoff Mason makes the critical decision to report the news live, which is watched by close to one billion people worldwide.

The unprecedented move also marks the first time that a terrorist attack is broadcast live to viewers at home. However, Geoff and his team later realize that their coverage is also watched by the terrorists, giving them undue advantage to plot their next move.

Cast and characters

Ben Chaplin as seen in the historical drama film September 5 (Image via Instagram/@constantinfilm)

The film's full cast list is listed below:

Ben Chaplin as Marvin Bader
John Magaro as Geoffrey Mason
Leonie Benesch as Marianne Gebhardt
Peter Sarsgaard as Roone Arledge
Corey Johnson as Hank Hanson
Marcus Rutherford as Carter Jeffrey
Daniel Adeosun as Gary Slaughter
Ferdinand Dörfler as Hermann Jäger
Georgina Rich as Gladys Deist
Caroline Ebner as Judy
Zinedine Soualem as Jacques Lesgards
David Iselin as Mark Spitz
Daniel Betts as Swim Race
Benjamin Walker as Peter Jennings
Rony Herman as David Berger
Jeff Book as Berger's father
Solomon Mousley as Roone's assistant
Leif Eisenberg as Ben
Sebastian Jehkul as Police officer
Rony Herman as David Berger
Stephen Fraser as Communicator
Leon Dragoi as Lighting Technician
Doris Meier as Content Assistant
Mark Ruppel as Sound Engineer
Robert Porter Templeton as Director's assistant
Christian Ulrich as Camera Control Technician
Antje Westermann as Script Assistant
Harry Waterstone as Stage Assistant Larry
Günther Wernhard as Content Manager
Andreas Honold as Stage Runner JJ
Stefan Mittermaier as VTR Tech Chuck
Kim Hanfland as Ulrike Meyfarth
Miguel Abrantes Ostrowski as Hans Klein
Nikita Borisov as Werner Lampe
Karolina Gabinger as Anneliese Graess
Robert Glade as Hans-Dietrich Genscher
Paul Böhme as Masked Man / German Athlete
Dirk Schepanek as ZDF Interviewer
Brendan Todd as American Interviewer
Immanuel Rahman as Terrorist Issa
Saeid Yazdani as Mohamed Tarabulsi
Matthias Schum as Jim McKay Double
Stiev Neubert as Tuvia Sokolsky Double
Rafael Peña as Translator Double
John Figueroa as On Set Off Speaker
Jordan Prince as On Set Off Speaker

Edited by DEEPALI