In 1997, Titanic, one of the most successful films in movie history, and one of the most expensive, was made in Mexico.  

The director James Cameron and his production team built an almost full-size replica of the ship in Rosarito, Baja California, in the world’s biggest water tank.

Over the seven-month shoot, the budget soared to more than $200m, and there were worries about recouping costs. But when it opened, Titanic became the first film to gross over $1bn at the box office, and in 1998, won 11 Oscars.

Luisa Gomez de Silva, then an assistant co-ordinator in the art department, talks to Jane Wilkinson about working on set.

Eye-witness accounts brought to life by archive. Witness History is for those fascinated by and curious about the past. We take you to the events that have shaped our world through the eyes of the people who were there.

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(Photo: Leonardo DiCaprio and Kate Winslet in Titanic. Credit: CBS/Getty Images)