Film
Revisiting the Urban (L.A.) Dystopia of SE7EN, 30 Years Later
The classic neo-noir psychological horror thriller "SE7EN" wasn't filmed in New York or a nameless city—it was shot in a dystopian version of 1990s downtown L.A. Here's how they hid the sun and palm trees to create a masterpiece.
With Film Production Down, Is the Sun Setting on the Hollywood Dream?
In the past five years, the whirlwind effects of the COVID-19 pandemic, the 2008 and 2023 actors’ and writers’ strikes, the advent of AI, and productions filming outside of California and the greater U.S. have meant that the glamorous “Hollywood” industry has become more of an ideal rather than a physical setting.
Retracing the Steps of Cheech and Chong’s ‘Next Movie’ in L.A., 45 Years Later
The location manager from the classic stoner comedy walks us through the film's iconic locations, from the vanished Texaco on Sunset to an infamous massage parlor.
Revisiting ‘Mi Familia’ and the Main Filming Location In Boyle Heights 30 Years Later
Boyle Heights has changed since Gregory Nava filmed 'Mi Familia' 30 years ago, and gentrification threatens the neighborhood’s very essence. Unchangeable, however, is the commanding presence of the concrete viaduct at 4th and Lorena where he shot most of the iconic film.
Revisiting the Iconic Film Locations from ‘Friday,’ 30 Years Later
Many fans of the classic L.A. film make the pilgrimage to the world famous house from Friday and equate it to being a tourist destinations as important as visiting the Hollywood Walk of Fame or the Santa Monica Pier. “It’s definitely a life experience coming here,” said one visitors who drove down Normandie boulevard to take photos in the iconic front porch.
What ‘Die Like a Man’ Gets Right that Other L.A. Hood Movies Don’t
Shot on a shoestring budget in just 14 days, Die Like a Man is an intimate portrait of a naïve teenage boy striving to live up to misguided masculine codes while struggling to accept the female affection that seems agonizingly close to saving him.
How the Old L.A. Zoo Was Turned Into Police Academy 2’s Punk Hideout, 40 Years Ago
A large portion of Police Academy 2 was filmed in and around the Toy District, as well as bits of Skid Row and the Fashion District. But it was our Old Zoo that enjoyed the most screen-time.
A ‘Nightmare on Elm Street’ Star Looks Back On Filming at Evergreen Cemetery in Boyle Heights After 40 Years
“I remember driving early in the morning, in the dark, to get to the cemetery,” says Heather Langenkamp, who played Nancy. “I remember thinking to myself, 'I’ve never been over here, but I’ve heard that there’s really great tacos over here on Soto. Robert Englund was such a foodie. He probably told me that the best food in town was over there.”
How a Vacant Wilmington Lot Became Tyler Durden’s House in ‘Fight Club’ 25 Years Ago
The first rule of this article is… do not read further unless you’ve seen Fight Club. This is how the filming locations for the classic film shot in Wilmas look like now—25 years later.
Ten (Mostly) Recognizable ‘Repo Man’ Locations You Can Visit 40 Years Later
The original film somehow managed to cohesively fuse weathered, jaded repo men, L.A.’s burgeoning punk scene, UFO cultists, generically-labeled food items, and nuclear proliferation into a dark comedy that is both a product of its time and yet feels somewhat timeless.
