The exotic real-life locations where scenes in the new 'Star Wars' were shot

Though "Star Wars" takes place in a galaxy far, far away, some locations are much closer to home.

Principle filming for "The Force Awakens" took place at Pinewood Studios, located near London, but the cast and crew traveled to several locations around the world to film scenes for different fictional planets.

In a new video released by Discover Ireland, director J.J. Abrams talks about the importance of filming in real locations.

"When I saw 'Star Wars' for the first time, it was all practical and real," he said of the 1977 original film and its impact on "Force Awakens." "You knew it when you saw the movie, so I felt that the standard had to be authenticity. The standard had to be reality."

One of the locations featured in the new "Star Wars" is Skellig Michael, a rocky island off the western coast of Ireland.

"I can't believe they let us shoot there," Abrams said of the island in the video. "It was so beautiful."

See some of the filming locations for "Force Awakens" below: