Where it was filmed 'Blanca'

The events of Blanca, a character created by Patrizia Rinaldi, move from Pozzuoli where the writer set her story originally, to Genoa, with its alleyways, the sea and harbour, staircases, industrial areas, historical centre and many other lesser-known places. Blanca (Maria Chiara Giannetta) is a young blind woman with heightened senses: her disability is her strength at work where she is a key element in investigations thanks to her immense sensitivity and refined hearing. She lives with her service dog Linneo in the picturesque borgo of Camogli.

Blanca: locations in Season 1

Inspired by recent events, the collapse of the Morandi Bridge on 14 August 2018, episode 1 tells the story of a woman who attempts to start over but is murdered. The body is found near the new San Giorgio Bridge. It is mostly set in the harbour of Genoa, amidst the industrial warehouses of the Messina terminal, with docked ships, and people busy with port activities. Both the harbour and the porto antico appear often during the series. The episode also features the pastel-coloured houses with green shutters of the seaside village Boccadasse and several glimpses of the Staglieno cemetery.

In episode 2, the corpse of a sixteen-year-old is found in an imposing building in the historical centre of Genoa,Palazzo Lorenzo Cattaneo: the episode opens with youths racing scooters down Galleria Mazzini, heads to the caruggi and moves towards piazza Grillo Cattaneo where the building is located. However, the picturesque, frescoed spiral staircase is actually in Palazzo Farnese, Caprarola (province of Viterbo).

A recurring location over the episodes is the lawyers’ office where the mother of Michele Liguori (Giuseppe Zeno) works, set up in the Castello D'Albertis, built in neoGothic style in 1886. Meanwhile, the borgo of Dolceacqua is home to Blanca’s father (Ugo Dighero).

The Ligurian Riviera was often used over the various episodes: a car falls into the sea and is pulled out by a crane in Arenzano with a clear view of passeggiata lungomare Fabrizio De André, a cycle-pedestrian path linking Cogoleto and Arenzano.

In Rapallo shooting was principally focused on San Michele and the Trelo beach which served as the setting for scenes featuring Blanca’s childhood.

Blanca: locations in Season 2

Blanca in Season 2 (directed by Jan Maria Michelini and Michele Soavi, written by Francesco Arlanch and Mario Ruggeri) is now a fully-fledged police consultant although she has lost none of her recklessness or craziness.  She has new personal and professional challenges ahead flanked by her colleagues at the San Teodoro police station.

She is flanked by her beloved partners in adventure: her faithful dog, Linneo; Lucia (Sara Ciocca) who takes on an even bigger role in Blanca’s life; her friend Stella (Federica Cacciola); Inspector Liguori (Giuseppe Zeno) who makes Blanca jealous with a new flame from his past; Commissioner Bacigalupo (Enzo Paci); and Nanni (Pierpaolo Spollon) who reveals his hidden sides. The discovery of unexpected secrets about Blanca’s family upsets her life and creates shockwaves that ripple even further.

Some interior scenes shot in Rome aside, Blanca is again set in Genoa, with the focus on picturesque Camogli, where the central character lives.

The main set is the centre of Genoa; in particular, the fountain in piazza De Ferrari; the area around the police station of San Teodoro in piazza Manzoni; the end of molo Vecchio; and the area around piazza Matteotti, piazza San Matteo, piazza delle Fontane Marose and via Interiano.

The investigation into the attack on a homeless man looking for his son takes Blanca and Liguori to the historic park of Villa Durazzo Pallavicini, not far from the seaside promenade of Pegli.

The Church of St., Matthew, which houses the institute where Lucia lives after her father’s disappearance, appears several times, while Staglieno Cemetery is a place of interest in the investigation into the death of a night watchman by Blanca and her colleagues.

Unusually, the town of San Felice Circeo (Latina) in Lazio stood in for Liguria for several scenes. Locations included Lungomare di San Felice, piazza Valenti and the Punta Rossa lighthouse.