The film was shot almost entirely in New York. Director Barry Levinson demanded that the film must have a documentary realism and documentary quality, full of textured graininess, making the film look more like good night news. The film's cinematographer, Dick Pope, started his career by shooting documentaries. Barry Levinson was very interested in Dick Pope's method of filming with a camera in hand. The direct impact of this shooting method is that the number of NGs is very small, almost coherent and in one go, from the director to the actors can follow their whim, and then make necessary repairs in post-editing.
And when the film was filmed, it was the coldest days of winter in the Northeast of the United States, but they were about to shoot the location of Robin Williams in pajamas wandering the streets, and had to be forced to stop because of the weather. Director Barry Levinson had to pull the crew into the studio and completed a set of shots showing the interior of "Air Force One"
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