The new film stars Sally Field as a woman who befriends an octopus.

Netflix’s must-watch film for May is an inspiring story of a woman who forms an unlikely friendship, based on the acclaimed novel by Shelby Van Pelt.

Remarkably Bright Creatures is being hailed as one of the best feel-good movies of the year and was added to the streaming service on Friday (8th May).

Sally Field stars as widow Tova Sullivan, who begins working night shifts at her local aquarium following the death of her husband.

After striking up a connection with a Giant Octopus named Marcellus (voiced by Alfred Molina), a troubled drifter named Cameron (Lewis Pullman) comes to town, and the three of them begin to piece together the mystery of Tova’s missing son, who vanished decades earlier.

Older smiling woman and young man with his eyes closed sit on a bench, the man's arm around the woman

Remarkably Bright Creatures is now streaming on Netflix(Image: NETFLIX)

Hailed as a tender and enchanting story of family and friendship, critics have so far awarded Remarkably Bright Creatures a strong 76 percent score on Rotten Tomatoes, while audiences have championed the film even more with an impressive 89 percent.

It’s set in the fictional seaside town of Sowell Bay, on the Puget Sound of Washington state in the USA. But where was it actually filmed?

Where was Remarkably Bright Creatures filmed?

Woman sits on a pier next to a large yellow bucket at night with a lit-up town behind her

It’s set in the fictional coastal town of Sowell Bay(Image: NETFLIX)

Sowell Bay is not a real place, so director Olivia Newman and the rest of the production crew needed to make use of various locations to recreate the coastal setting described in Van Pelt’s original novel.

The film was therefore shot in Vancouver, in the Canadian province of British Columbia, with parts of the city’s Deep Cove neighbourhood standing in for Sowell Bay’s seaside locations.

This included the Deep Cove Yacht Club on Gallant Avenue standing in for the Sowell Bay Aquarium for exterior shots.

However, interior aquarium scenes were filmed inside the real Vancouver Aquarium, located in the heart of Stanley Park at 845 Avison Way. Many of the aquarium’s thousands of aquatic exhibits can be spotted in the background of various scenes.

Older woman in red cardigan with a cleaner's trolley by a large aquarium fish tank housing a red octopus

The real Vancouver Aquarium was used for the film(Image: NETFLIX)

Plus, a real-life Giant Octopus named Agnetha was used for certain moments, in tandem with a CGI octopus in certain scenes.

Other parts of British Columbia were also used, including the small town of Lions Bay which resides in between Vancouver and Squamish. A few minor scenes were also shot in the city of Maple Ridge.