Star Wars: The Force Awakens is a film.
The Academy Awards , now known officially as the Oscars , is a set of twenty-four awards for artistic and technical merit in the American film industry , given annually by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences ( AMPAS ) , to recognize excellence in cinematic achievements as assessed by the Academy 's voting membership . Principal photography . Principal photography is the phase of film production in which the movie is filmed , with actors on set and cameras rolling , as distinct from pre-production and post-production . Star Wars: The Force Awakens . Filming began in April 2014 in Abu Dhabi and Iceland , with principal photography also taking place in Ireland and Pinewood Studios in England , and concluded in November 2014 .