<P> The film's shooting occurred between 1998 and 2000, but was not shot consecutively . Hanks gained 50 pounds (23 kg) during pre-production, for the purpose of making his transformation more dramatic . After a majority of the film was shot, production was halted for a year so that he could lose the weight and grow his hair and beard to look like he had been living on the island for years . During the year - long hiatus, Zemeckis used the same film crew to make another film, What Lies Beneath . </P> <P> Cast Away was filmed on Monuriki, one of the Mamanuca Islands in Fiji . It is in a subgroup of the Mamanuca archipelago, which is sited off the coast of Viti Levu, Fiji's largest island . The island became a tourist attraction following the film's release . After Chuck's return, it is identified by Kelly as being "about 600 miles south of the Cook Islands," but there is actually no land between the southernmost Cook Islands of Mangaia and Antarctica . </P> <P> The film essentially begins and ends in the same location, on the Arrington Ranch in the Texas Panhandle south of the city of Canadian, Texas . </P> <P> The film's minimal score was composed by Alan Silvestri for which he won a Grammy Award in 2002 . The film's soundtrack is most notable for its lack of score and creature sound effects (such as bird song or insect sounds) while Chuck is on the island, which is intended to reinforce the feeling of isolation . Cast Away contains no original musical score until Chuck escapes the island . However, there is a Russian choral piece heard near the start of the film that was not composed or even recorded by Silvestri, so it does not appear on the film's soundtrack list . It is a traditional Russian song written by Lev Knipper called "Oh, My Field" ("Polyushko, Polye") and it is available on various collections of Red Army hymns . </P>

Where was the final scene of castaway filmed