World Film Locations: Los Angeles

'There are lots of books that take you behind the scenes in Hollywood.  This is a book that takes you to the scenes themselves, those rare places where fantasy and reality exist at the same time.'

'Film locations exist in a magical dimension at the intersection of fantasy and reality.  This is the definitive guidebook to that twilight zone.  The authors take you to famous sites from which you can  simultaneously see today, yesterday, and the world you visit when you enter the movies that were filmed in these locations.'  

'A brilliant guidebook to an archipelago of sites that exists at the intersection of fantasy and reality.'

-- Gary Goldman, Screenwriter of Total Recall and Minority Report

'A must-read for cinephiles and history buffs, World Film Locations: Los Angeles explores LA’s iconic and obscure film locations, revealing the symbiotic relationship between the city and its politics, people, and culture. This book is an enlightening and provocative journey through LA's filmic landscape – as much movie reference as history book. To truly understand LA, start with its movies.'

-- François Audouy, Production Designer of Ford v Ferrari, Logan and Ghostbusters: Afterlife

'Scouting for movie locations in LA is like casting a speaking part, especially when some places actually seem to want to audition to "become" a place in the production. I’ve experienced this over and over again … from Back To The Future Part II to The Fabelmans. And I think it’s this spirit of the wide variety and deep cinematic quality of so many places in and around LA that this book evokes so magnificently.'

-- Rick Carter, production designer of Jurassic Park, Forrest Gump and Avatar

'I enjoyed this book tremendously and am thinking that it’s much more than a mere book of movie locations but could be a text to accompany a class in motion picture appreciation! The knowledgeable comments that accompany the films are helpful and the illustrations from the films are a unique addition.'

'Now I’m tempted to go and check out the locations in person!'

-- Robert Schulenberg, Production Designer of Eating Raoul and Not for Publication

'World Film Locations: Los Angeles, Volume 2 is a comprehensive and engaging guide that takes readers on a captivating journey through the iconic film settings of Los Angeles, whether it be a contemporary studio blockbuster, cult classic, a true independent, or a film from the Golden Age of Hollywood.'

'Beautifully illustrated with photographs that juxtapose famous movie scenes with present day views of the locations, this book promises to inform and inspire, making it an essential edition to any cinephile’s library and anyone who is a craftsman in the art of film making.'

'Having spent over 30 years in the film business in Los Angeles , I still get a thrill when I walk into a location where a great movie was filmed.'

'Bravo to the editors and all the contributors that brought this book to life.'

-- Clay A. Griffith, Production Designer of Dolemite Is My Name, We Bought a Zoo and Lucky You

"'Los Angeles plays itself" in this book, revealing something about who and what it is to the world through films that are actually set in Los Angeles, not just shot in Los Angeles. In these pages you will discover places you have never visited and films you have never seen, even if you have lived in the city your entire life.  You will learn something about lost Los Angeles, noir Los Angeles, iconic Los Angeles, as well as obscure Los Angeles.' 

'The carefully selected locales and films featured in this book bring the reader to a new understanding: the unsung heroes of filmed Los Angeles are the talented location scouts and designers whose job it has always been to function as the secular shamans of the film industry, the intermediaries between the physical built environment and the narrative spirit and meaning of the story. It is this creative work that the editors and contributors of World Film Locations:  Los Angeles, Volume 2 have explored, interpreted, distilled and revealed.' 

-- Jeannine Oppewall, Production Designer of L.A. Confidential, Pleasantville and Catch Me If Can

'Far from being a book on filmcraft, World Film Locations: Los Angeles, Volume 2 pays poetic and loving tribute to its complicated subject. We are shown the city in all of its diversity, well beyond the couple of dozen locations that are often used over and over again. Like Joan Didion's deceptively simple prose, this beautifully edited book gets to the heart of what makes Los Angeles such a special place: it's inherent visual messiness; it's short but tumultuous architectural history, and its role as the setting for some unforgettable cinema. I had been feeling a little jaded about shooting in LA, but this book restored my love for this visually unique city, in all its filth and glory.'

-- Judy Becker, Production Designer of Brokeback Mountain, Hitchcock and American Hustle

'Like walking into the frame, World Film Locations: Los Angeles is a perfect tour guide through film history and the hallowed grounds of the city's movie locations. Visit where Spicoli went to high school, Kelly Leak hit his home runs, the Karate Kid met Mr. Miyagi, and Orson Welles constructed the opening shot to Touch of Evil.'

-- Grant Moninger, Artistic Director, American Cinemath