<P> Footage aboard a steam train was filmed in October inside a refurbished wooden "bird cage" passenger carriage from the Pleasant Point Railway in South Canterbury . Mainline Steam Heritage Trust used Ja 1240 "Jessica" for the movie and it was transferred from the trust's Christchurch depot to Dunedin for filming to take place . While the scene in which the locomotive is used was set in 1918, locomotive Ja 1240 was built in 1947 and was the second New Zealand Railways JA class locomotive to be built . Built at New Zealand Railways Hillside workshops in Dunedin it ran exclusively in the South Island of New Zealand from 1947 until 1971 . </P> <P> In November the production moved to Australia and filming began in Stanley, Tasmania where the crews transformed some locations in the town including the pier, which was refurbished, and the road, which was covered in gravel . Production wrapped on November 24, 2014 . </P> <P> Cianfrance spent a year editing the film, with little breaks in between with the first cut of the film ending up at 2 hours and 20 minutes . </P> <P> The Light Between Oceans held its world premiere at the 73rd Venice International Film Festival on September 1, 2016 . The film was distributed by Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures through the Touchstone Pictures banner, being the last DreamWorks film to be released under the original agreement with Walt Disney Studios . Disney released the film in the United States on September 2, 2016 . Disney opted not to give the film a limited release, a method often used by studios for adult dramas, and instead issued the film in general wide release at 1,500 locations with focus on upscale venues . </P>

Where was the light between the oceans filmed