The Secret Woman (Den hemmelige kvinde) Filming Locations

Netflix’s “The Secret Woman” begins with the kind of life its heroine would have little reason to question. Louise Andersen lives with her partner Joachim on the Norwegian island of Hidra, where she runs a small cafe and appears to have found a quiet corner of the world for herself. Then a stranger tells her that Louise Andersen is not her real identity at all. He claims she is Helene Söderberg, a Danish woman who disappeared three years earlier, leaving behind a husband, a young son and a wealthy family connected to a shipping empire.

Directed by Barbara Topsøe-Rothenborg and based on Anna Ekberg’s novel, the mystery needed two very different visual worlds. The production found them in Norway and Denmark, using the peaceful coastal landscape of western Norway for Louise’s present and grand estates and modern architecture in Denmark for the life she cannot remember. Major filming locations included Tysnes, Uggdal, Hardanger, Gurrehus in North Zealand and Copenhagen.

Tysnes, Norway, Doubles for Louise’s Island Life

Although Louise is said to live on Hidra, the movie did not rely on Hidra for its principal Norwegian setting. Filming instead took place around Tysnes in Vestland County, south of Bergen, with additional work elsewhere in Sunnhordland and Hardanger. Tysnes provides exactly the sort of landscape the opening of the story needs, with quiet water, green hills, small settlements and an immediate sense of separation from the busier world Louise has apparently left behind.

The production’s presence in the region was reported while filming was still underway in 2025. Work began first in Denmark before the company moved to western Norway for part of the summer shoot. Rather than treating Norway as a handful of establishing shots, the filmmakers used real local properties and landscapes to build Louise and Joachim’s everyday environment.

E.H. Vaage Landhandleri Was Used in Uggdal

One of the most interesting confirmed locations is E.H. Vaage Landhandleri in Uggdal on Tysnes. The old waterfront trading post is operated by Haaheim Gaard and was specifically identified as one of the locations selected for the Netflix production. Its position beside the water and its traditional wooden buildings make it an unusually natural fit for Louise’s small cafe life.

E.H. Vaage has genuine local history behind the picturesque facade. The site developed as a general store and steamship expedition point, with commercial activity there dating back to the late 19th century. Haaheim Gaard later restored the property, and it now operates as a seasonal food and hospitality venue where visitors can still experience the character of an old Norwegian coastal trading post.

That makes its appearance in “The Secret Woman” more than convenient production dressing. Louise’s Norwegian world is supposed to feel intimate and lived-in, not like a polished resort created for a movie. A real waterfront business with more than a century of history gives those scenes precisely that texture.

Haaheim Gaard and the Tysnes Countryside

Haaheim Gaard itself is another location associated with the production’s work on Tysnes. The historic hotel is located at Dalsvegen 182, 5685 Uggdal, around 4.5 kilometers from E.H. Vaage. Surrounded by gardens and the mountainous landscape of western Norway, the property has the secluded appearance that runs through the first part of Louise’s story.

The hotel traces its modern form to the early 20th century, although the land has a considerably longer history. Today it combines accommodation, food, gardens and cultural events. On screen, locations around this part of Tysnes help establish a version of Louise’s life that feels almost deliberately removed from the wealth and corporate power waiting for her in Denmark.

Hardanger Bridge Adds a Larger Norwegian Backdrop

The production also traveled into the Hardanger region, where the Hardanger Bridge appears among the movie’s Norwegian locations. The suspension bridge crosses the Hardangerfjord between Bu and Vallavik, linking the Ullensvang and Ulvik sides of the fjord. At 1,380 meters long, with a 1,310-meter main span, it is one of western Norway’s most striking pieces of infrastructure.

For a film built around a woman moving between two identities, the bridge is a particularly effective visual location. It places the characters against huge mountains and open water while also providing a literal passage through the landscape. The Norwegian scenes consequently range from the intimate scale of an old cafe to some of the region’s broadest cinematic views.

Gurrehus Becomes the Söderberg Family Estate

Once the story shifts toward Helene’s forgotten life, the locations become noticeably grander. Production-location reporting identifies Gurrehus in Kvistgard, within Helsingor Municipality in North Zealand, as the property used for the Söderberg family’s imposing residence. The historic estate sits near Gurre Lake and the ruins of medieval Gurre Castle.

Its large rooms, formal grounds and secluded position provide a sharp change from the modest Norwegian setting. That contrast does much of the visual storytelling without requiring an explanation. Louise’s life is small, warm and manageable, while Helene’s old world is built around money, status and spaces large enough to conceal uncomfortable family history.

BIG Headquarters Plays the Shipping Company

Copenhagen supplies the most contemporary location in the film. The headquarters of Bjarke Ingels Group at Sundkaj 165 in Nordhavn was used to represent the business world connected to the Söderberg family’s shipping empire. The real building is BIG’s Copenhagen office, a seven-level concrete structure positioned at the end of Sundmolen pier.

Its architecture is difficult to mistake for an anonymous office block. Stacked concrete elements, broad harbor views and interconnected floors give the building a powerful corporate presence, which makes it convincing as the headquarters of a wealthy shipping family. It also completes the film’s visual progression from rural Norway to inherited Danish wealth.

“The Secret Woman” could have recreated that contrast with interiors and generic establishing shots, but shooting across Norway and Denmark gives Louise’s identity crisis a physical geography. Tysnes and Hardanger represent a life she knows and trusts, while Gurrehus and Copenhagen belong to a past that is far grander and far less comforting. As Louise tries to determine whether she is really Louise or Helene, the places around her quietly make the same argument: these two lives could hardly look more different.