Page 64 - 2015 Travel Guide to California

CA.MOVIES
and around Los Angeles. Those that offer
behind-the-scenes studio tours include
Warner Bros. (peek into the costume and
prop room for the Harry Potter movies), Uni-
versal (Hollywood’s most famous backlot, 13
city blocks on four acres in the world’s
largest working movie studio), Sony Pictures
(formerly the historic MGM studios famous
for Gone with the Wind and The Wizard of Oz)
and Paramount studios (the one remaining
studio that is still located in Hollywood).
Many movies that are shot on location out-
side LA also often have scenes shot on a
studio soundstage.
Check for tickets before going on a studio
tour because many require advance tick-
eting or reservations. Ask your guide if you
can take a peek into a current movie shoot
and you may spot a celebrity walking by.
Game shows, talk shows and TV
comedy shows often need a live audience.
Free studio audience tickets are handled
through distributors such as Audiences
Unlimited and Audience Associates.
Becoming a film extra isn’t as easy as it
might seem. There are a number of serv-
ices that do casting calls for extras such as
Central Casting in Los Angeles or Casting
Networks in San Francisco. Often you are
required to sign up and provide a head-
shot. If you do get cast as an extra, it
requires patience as you can stand around
all day with nothing to do.
62 2015 T R AV E L G U I D E TO C A L I F O R N I A
HOLLYWOOD BOULEVARD,
above; Batman exhibit at Warner
Bros. studios, left.
Watch a Movie
While in LA, consider doing what Angelenos
love to do: watch movies. During the
summer, enjoy a classic film under starlight
with the dead and the living at the Hollywood
Forever Cemetery, going on its 14th season.
Catch a movie where many directors
screen their films and sometimes key off
audience reactions to tweak a scene or two
at the AMC/IMAX Century City 15 Theatres
at Westfield Century City shopping center.
Pay homage to the pioneers of the motion
picture era by watching a silent film on the
first Saturday of the month at The Silent
Movie Theatre, a recently restored, Art Deco
cultural landmark built in 1942.
When you next watch a movie filmed in
the state, remember that not only are you
experiencing the drama of life, you’re also
getting a taste of California.
» GO TO
THE MOVIES
MOVIE LOCATIONS
Beverly Hills
greystonemansion.org
Inglewood
randys-donuts.com
Los Angeles
hollywoodmovietours.com
dearlydepartedtours.com
ultimatehollywoodtours.com
Monterey
montereymovietours.com
San Francisco
sanfranciscomovietours.com
Santa Barbara
sbbike.org/region/rides/rides
Sonoma County
sonoma-county.org/film
Stockton
riverboatdaves.com/docs/cmovies.html
Regional Film Offices
film.ca.gov
Statewide
movie-locations.com
STUDIO TOURS
Paramount
paramountstudiotour.com
Sony
sonypicturesstudiostours.com
Universal
universalstudioshollywood.com
Warner Bros.
wbtour.com
JOIN A STUDIO AUDIENCE
Audience Associates
tvtix.com
Audiences Unlimited
tvtickets.com
BECOME AN EXTRA
Central Casting
centralcasting.com/LA/actors
Casting Networks
home.sfcasting.com/casting-calls
Be in a Movie
beinamovie.com
FILM BUFF
Hollywood Forever Cemetery
summer movie screenings
cinespia.org
Pacific Film Archive
bampfa.berkeley.edu
The Silent Movie Theatre
cinefamily.org/films/
the-silent-treatment
Westfield Century City
westfield.com/centurycity/movies
WARNER BROS.; PE3K/SHUTTERSTOCK