Okay guys…. At this point I might as well own Warner Brothers. I’ve been there so times now… like, at least 3. We mustn’t forget the most recent visit I made with Aryeh in SOME CRAZY LUCK (AND A DUCK).
Oh, and speaking of ducks…
I made the trek back [across the street] to the Warner Brothers studio where I joined Brando (creator of the Kick-Ass trailer) on a VIP tour of Warner Brothers backlot. This tour is exclusive shité people!
Well… exclusive to anyone with 40 dollars.
But it’s totally worth it. Out of all the studios in LA, Warner Brothers probably has the largest backlot. They frequently rent out their sets to other studios – which is interesting because they’re all competing with each other at the same time. Must make for an awkward christmas party…
Now, I’ll be honest, the tour guide listed off a plethora of TV shows and movies on the tour and I cannot remember exactly which set was used for which film… But these titles were definitely mentioned at some point or another:
And many more that I can’t remember. Anyways, the first place they took us to was the “downtown” city. Almost all of these buildings are just decorative one-sided structures with no real inside. “Facades” I believe is what they call them.
As we walked down the street there were people working all around us. These sets are definitely active and some of them are used almost every day. By changing the signs, furniture, plants, and other street decoration they can reuse them for many different settings.
See? All of a sudden we’re in the 1950’s. With a guy waiving at his car…. sort of….
Next they took us into “the jungle”, a small area they use to shoot scenes that need to take place in… well, a jungle. They also have a cabin here that has been used in several productions… True Blood and The Mentalist to name a few.
And I’m quite sure I remember the tour guide saying this is the spot they used for the T-Rex chasing the jeep in Jurassic Park. They changed the plants around to make the road seem a lot longer then it actually was.
After that we took a drive down Suburbia street, USA.
Most of these houses have an inside to them too, so when they aren’t being used for filming they’re used as office space for Warner Brothers.
“Uhh.. Mr. Warner, this isn’t exactly what I meant when I said I wanted a work from home job….”
A little further down the road we entered a quaint town square. Notice the lack of signs on the buildings? These are filled in later when they need the set for specific shots.
And just around the corner was an industrial looking city for anytime you might need a subway station scene.
At one point in the tour they took us into a small building where several famous cars had been parked for our viewing pleasure. From closest to farthest: The Austin Powers mobile, Dukes of Hazzard car, and the Green Hornet! In the back you can see the famous Mystery Machine from Scooby-Doo.
After that they took us to the most famous TV set in Hollywood history (in my mind anyways).
DUDE! WE’RE ON THE FRIENDS SET!
I KNOW!!
IT’S CRAZY!
I KNOW!!
Bonus picture… beauteous sunset from the Oakwood apartments.
Coming up next: being an extra for a Funny or Die video. Wooo!