On Set with Rush: Transported to the '70s F3 Racing Era at Crystal Palace

Crystal Palace on a summer’s day, surrounded by Formula 3 cars, mechanics, team trucks and racing drivers. Did I mention it was the early 1970s? Well, everywhere you turn it looks like the ’70s, but really this is 2012 and the cast of Rush is filming an F3 meeting at the old London track.

None of the cars are running today, but when I arrive I’m informed that they’ll be filming James Hunt’s arrival at the circuit in a Mini, Niki Lauda getting into his car and “other scenes if there’s time”. It soon becomes apparent that time is something a film set devours at a remarkable rate.

The first thing that strikes you as you walk into the ‘paddock’ is the attention to detail. Trucks that probably won’t even be in shot are branded as they were in period and everyone is dressed as they should be. There isn’t an iPhone to be seen. That’s peculiar, but not half as strange as the silence during filming. Chris Hemsworth, who plays Hunt, chats at normal volume during each take, while in the background the support actors and actresses silently mouth dialogue – and there isn’t a single engine noise to be heard. The background noise is added in post-production.