If you’re a fan of the movies, and you live in Southern
California, one place you should visit is Malibu Creek State Park. This area, once owned by Fox Studios, is
where many movies and TV shows were shot.
You won’t find much in the way of existing film sets, so you’ll need to
do some Internet research to get a sense of which of your favorite scenes was
filmed where. But knowing exactly where
this or that story element took place isn’t necessary to gain an appreciation
for this area. Once you know that your
favorite stories were filmed here, the imagination takes over. The mind starts the projector rolling, and as
you walk the trail, Fiction overlays Reality.
This isn’t the lush landscape of England, where constant
rainfall converts your surroundings into varying but vivid shades of
green. Yet the landscape offers up its
own arid beauty. Your footsteps may
hasten across the sunbaked portions of the trail, then slow beneath the shadows
cast from the Oak, Sycamore, Willow, and other trees that somehow survive such
dry conditions. But if you love old
movies and TV shows, there is meaning here beyond what physically exists.
The old Fox Ranch may be owned by the State of California
now, but movies are still shot here. We happened
upon one production as we approached Century Lake. We passed an equipment truck humming with generators, and followed the power cables to a large camera. Twenty to thirty people waited
or worked or chatted as key members debated where and how to set up
their next shot. The company allowed us through, and we walked along the shore until we reached the dam. The water reflected the surrounding hills,
trees, and reeds that sprouted up along the shore. A couple men picked up a big light on a tall stand,
and carried it to its next position. A
lifeguard, there in case anyone fell in the lake, sat reading a paperback. After we took our photographs, we followed
the trail (the only way out) back through their “set.” I asked a woman if she needed two
extras. She smiled and said, “Not
today.”
When we discovered that the crew had used the only picnic
table by the lake, we walked another mile or so until we finally gave in and
climbed onto a concrete cistern. While
it would have been nice to eat our lunch by the lake, the company’s presence
served as a pleasant reminder that filmmakers still use this area to weave their
transforming magic. I wonder: if I ever see the finished TV show or movie, will I recognize
that particular scene?
Dragon Dave
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