The Oscar nominees for best picture take moviegoers all over the world -- such as Istanbul's Hagia Sophia, where "Argo" had a scene. Indeed, while much of "Argo" is set in Iran, filming for many of its scenes took place in Turkey. Locations in and around Washington also appear in the film directed by and starring Ben Affleck.
Inspiration at the movies —
The Oscar nominees for best picture take moviegoers all over the world -- such as Istanbul's Hagia Sophia, where "Argo" had a scene. Indeed, while much of "Argo" is set in Iran, filming for many of its scenes took place in Turkey. Locations in and around Washington also appear in the film directed by and starring Ben Affleck.
Keith Bernstein/Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc
The Hagia Sophia is a sixth-century Byzantine church that was converted to a mosque under the Ottoman Empire and now operates as a museum. In "Argo," Affleck plays a CIA operative who meets a contact inside the historic building.
Inspiration at the movies —
The Hagia Sophia is a sixth-century Byzantine church that was converted to a mosque under the Ottoman Empire and now operates as a museum. In "Argo," Affleck plays a CIA operative who meets a contact inside the historic building.
BULENT KILIC/AFP/Getty Images
"Lincoln," starring Daniel Day Lewis and Joseph Gordon-Levitt, was shot primarily in Virginia.
Inspiration at the movies —
"Lincoln," starring Daniel Day Lewis and Joseph Gordon-Levitt, was shot primarily in Virginia.
Courtesy Dreamworks
In "Lincoln," the Virginia Capitol stands in for the U.S. Capitol.
Inspiration at the movies —
In "Lincoln," the Virginia Capitol stands in for the U.S. Capitol.
Courtesy Bill Crabtree Jr./Virginia Tourism Corporation
Paris is one of the big stars in the movie adaptation of "Les Miserables." Hugh Jackman plays Jean Valjean, and Isabelle Allen plays a young Cosette.
Inspiration at the movies —
Paris is one of the big stars in the movie adaptation of "Les Miserables." Hugh Jackman plays Jean Valjean, and Isabelle Allen plays a young Cosette.
Courtesy Universal Studios
While much of Paris changed dramatically with the city's late 19th-century modernization, Ile de la Cite and its Notre Dame cathedral are still much as they were during the movie's time.
Inspiration at the movies —
While much of Paris changed dramatically with the city's late 19th-century modernization, Ile de la Cite and its Notre Dame cathedral are still much as they were during the movie's time.
THOMAS SAMSON/AFP/Getty Images
Another Best Picture contender, "Amour," is set inside a Paris apartment.
Inspiration at the movies —
Another Best Picture contender, "Amour," is set inside a Paris apartment.
Darius Khondji/ Sony Pictures Classics
"Zero Dark Thirty," tracing the hunt for Osama bin Laden, is set largely in Pakistan and Afghanistan. There are U.S. State Department travel warnings for those countries right now, and many of the film's Pakistan scenes were shot in India.
Inspiration at the movies —
"Zero Dark Thirty," tracing the hunt for Osama bin Laden, is set largely in Pakistan and Afghanistan. There are U.S. State Department travel warnings for those countries right now, and many of the film's Pakistan scenes were shot in India.
Courtesy Columbia Pictures Industries, Inc
Local actors perform on the set of "Zero Dark Thirty" in Chandigarh, India, in March 2012.
Inspiration at the movies —
Local actors perform on the set of "Zero Dark Thirty" in Chandigarh, India, in March 2012.
STRDEL/AFP/Getty Images/File
"Life of Pi," starring Suraj Sharma, was shot in a number of cities, including Puducherry on India's southeast coast.
Inspiration at the movies —
"Life of Pi," starring Suraj Sharma, was shot in a number of cities, including Puducherry on India's southeast coast.
Courtesy Twentieth Century Fox Film Corporation
Young Best Actress nominee Quvenzhane Wallis, right, stars in Best Picture nominee "Beasts of the Southern Wild," set in a fictional marshy area called the Bathtub.
Inspiration at the movies —
Young Best Actress nominee Quvenzhane Wallis, right, stars in Best Picture nominee "Beasts of the Southern Wild," set in a fictional marshy area called the Bathtub.
Jess Pinkham/Fox Searchlight Pictures
"Beasts of the Southern Wild" was filmed among the bayous and towns of southeast Louisiana.
Inspiration at the movies —
"Beasts of the Southern Wild" was filmed among the bayous and towns of southeast Louisiana.
Alex Ogle/AFP/Getty Images
Much of Quentin Tarantino's "Django Unchained," starring Jamie Foxx, left, was filmed in the Louisiana town of Edgard.
Inspiration at the movies —
Much of Quentin Tarantino's "Django Unchained," starring Jamie Foxx, left, was filmed in the Louisiana town of Edgard.
Andrew Cooper, SMPSP/ The Weinstein Company
The Llanerch Diner in the Philadelphia suburb of Upper Darby plays a role in "Silver Linings Playbook," starring Bradley Cooper and Jennifer Lawrence.
Inspiration at the movies —
The Llanerch Diner in the Philadelphia suburb of Upper Darby plays a role in "Silver Linings Playbook," starring Bradley Cooper and Jennifer Lawrence.
Courtesy The Weinstein Company
Another Philly location, Ballroom at the Ben in the former Benjamin Franklin Hotel, hosts the film's entertaining dance competition scene.
Inspiration at the movies —
Another Philly location, Ballroom at the Ben in the former Benjamin Franklin Hotel, hosts the film's entertaining dance competition scene.
J. Fusco for GPTMC