Netflix’s New ‘Little House on the Prairie’ Was Filmed in Canada—Here’s Why That Matters

For generations, Laura Ingalls Wilder’s Little House on the Prairie books have painted a vivid picture of pioneer life on the American frontier. But when Netflix set out to adapt the beloved series for a new audience, they didn’t shoot in Kansas or Minnesota. Instead, the entire first season was filmed in Manitoba, Canada—primarily in and around Winnipeg. Showrunner Rebecca Sonnenshine says the choice came down to two things: the region’s robust film infrastructure and its breathtaking, wide-open landscapes. “Shooting this far north, you get these very long golden hours that are incredibly beautiful,” she explains. “During the summer, it doesn’t get dark until 10 p.m.”

The series follows young Laura Ingalls (Alice Halsey) as she travels with her family from Wisconsin to Kansas, where her father accepts a land grant. Sonnenshine and her team worked closely with Osage cultural consultant Julie O’Keefe to ensure accurate portrayals of the Osage Nation—a dimension largely absent from earlier adaptations. “The thing I learned the most about was the Osage, which is not taught on any kind of school curriculum,” Sonnenshine says. The production built the Ingalls’ cabin by hand using period-appropriate tools and techniques, and filmed the town’s construction chronologically to show it growing on screen. The cabin, built with real logs and no nails, has since been dismantled. “Sadly, it’s a pile of logs again,” she adds.

The prairie itself became a central character, evoking both beauty and danger. “I wanted the prairie to go on as far as the eye could see,” Sonnenshine says. “It could be both dangerous and beautiful at the same time.” The crew used real locations like Birds Hill Provincial Park for the Wisconsin woods and a private property in Cooks Creek for the Ingalls’ homestead. For the river crossing in Episode 1, the team shot on location but relied on studio tank work for safety. Looking ahead, Season 2 will adapt On the Banks of Plum Creek, and Sonnenshine notes that the landscape around Walnut Grove, Minnesota, is remarkably similar to Winnipeg’s. “We are really trying to lean into all the little details of that book,” she says. “It is delightful to us to recreate those moments for audiences to be immersed in this world.”