Eric85's San Pedro Trip

From Eric:

Hey gang. I was in Los Angeles last week and took a day to drive down to San Pedro to check out as many Shelter movie locations as I could find. The super mapping by Baileybrat and others made it a piece of cake. I took some photos so you could see how the locations have changed over the last (almost) two years. My stuff isn't great -- the streets were lined by cars or trucks and except for the Pacific Diner, I missed the best light in the early morning and late afternoon. You'll still get an idea of what everything looks like these days.

Shots 1-3 are of Zach's house. I couldn't quite duplicate the angle in the film. Cars were parked bumper-to-bumper on both Palos Verdes and O'Farrell street. In fact, O'Farrell drops down very quickly and you can barely see the backyard. I could make out two or maybe three cars or vans, however. There was an elderly Hispanic man in the side yard yelling to someone inside. It didn't seem like the best time to ask for a tour.

Shots 4 is the wall where Zach paints his "tree of life" mural. Five is the small street that Zack skates down during the opening scenes of the film. It's a dusty area and nothing much has changed. Shot 6 is of the Pacific Diner. I had breakfast there. It is SMALL as someone on the forum pointed out. Two booths on the left and maybe eight or nine stools around a counter. there's a room in the back but I didn't check it out. Good food, however. Shot 7 is the "Welcome to San Pedro" bridge. There's a lot of traffic at this point and hard to find a spot to just stand and take a picture. Shots 8 and 9 are of the coatal point where Zach and Tori have their "talk." This is a narrow piece of land, folks. The movie people had to cram into a thin strip as you can probably tell. Shot 10 is the location where McCowans Market once stood. As you can see, it's just an empty lot at the moment.

I didn't have time to drive along the Pacific Coast Highway or track down the beach scene locations. Maybe next trip. But it was still fun. Everything is pretty much the way you see it in the film, except that it looks better in the film -- better camera positions and lighting. But just parked, or walking around, you almost expect to run into Zack on his skateboard...





















EDIT:

Okay folks, three more photos of Shelter locations in San Pedro. The first two are of Zach's house that I took as I was leaving San Pedro to back to central L.A. It was late afternoon and the light was good for photographing the front of the house. As I drove down the street --Palos Verdes -- I suddenly saw that for once no one was parked in front of the house. Outstanding! I took these two shots from my car and then turned on O'Farrell to find a parking spot to come back and try to more accurately duplicate the film scenes. It took me maybe two minutes to find a parking space but in the meantime some kind of delivery truck had pulled in. Next time? the third shot is one that someone sent me. It's an aerial view of the point where Zach and Tori have their talk. It looks like it was taken from an airplance because the view is slightly different from what has been posted on the forum before which I assume is some sort of GoggleEarth shot. As you can tell, the point narrows quickly and the camera crew would have had to be very very careful setting up equipment.

That's it. Maybe Wizarad and Sriver can fill in the blanks. Would love to find the beach scenes but I agree with Striver -- if we can get a shot of the backyard "hug scene" that would be awesome!

Nice pics Eric. Man i've been lagging it hahahahah!! I live like an hour and some minutes aways from San Pedro. And I still have not gone to see all these locations. Hahahahaha I just laugh at myself. I have to make a little trip down there, maybe rent a hotel. So I will be able to take pics of every location from morning, to night. Most likely some time this year I will do this. I'll let you guys know when I will do this.

Hey Eric, many thanks for the pics. It's really interesting to see what all those pertinent locations look like now. The changes are pretty minor, and that's good in a way as it helps to keep the movie feel very recent (if that makes sense) by not dating it to a particular time... although I suppose the demolition of the McCowan Supermarket has done that to a certain degree. Still, it's great that you were able to get to see the other locations looking more or less the same as they did in the film.

Nice mural on the market wall, but I'm going to let my personal bias dictate that it's still second best to Zach's Tree of Life Lol!

B:

Thanks! It was a fun day and frankly made possible because of all your online detective work. I knew where to drive and where to look.

The biggest hassle is simply all the cars and vans parked along the streets. Tori's house on 21st Street was blocked by two large vans that didn't move all day. I could make out the top third or so of the duplex -- enough to see that it was her house for real -- but that was all. Same with many of the locations you see briefly in the opening credit sequence. Some locations along South Pacific Avenue were visible but frankly not all that interesting up close. Skate scenes along 22nd were often blocked by parked cars. The store where Zack buys shoes for Cody was blocked first by a double-parked UPS truck, then by large SUV's. So, you can see where stuff was shot but not every location lent itself to being photographed. Still, it's easy to place almost every scene in the film.

I have three more photos to post -- two of mine of Zach's house WITHOUT parked cars in front and an aerial shot someone on the forum sent me.

I'm having trouble uploading but I guess I can ask Danny to help out again.

Hey Eric -- really fun stuff!! Thanks so much for posting. I agree with ya bailey -- I like Zach's Tree of Life better, since it was so original and different than anything else.

The demolition of the market doesn't bother me too much, because the movie is a timeline, so it's expected that things will change in time. So when I watch the film now, I feel like I'm going back and seeing how Zach and Shaun got to the point they are now, instead of it unfolding before my eyes.

Speaking of that, I need to see it again -- it's been a few months....

Both you guys (bailey and eric) have done incredible work -- really a lot of fun. Sorry I can 't contribute yet. Next time I get out to LA, my goal will be to get a pic of the patio where Zach and Shaun have that awesome hug! Now that will be a challenge for me, but it's the least I can do for you both!

Nice!!!!!



Congratulations for the photos.
Me ha gustado las fotos.

Thanks for the additional pics and your 'Edit' comments... always good to read your thoughts. The photos really show what good photography in a film can do.... I might get to LA next year -- I'll work on that hug-scene shot!

why i can't see anything ,any pic .why

Hey guys - Been awhile since I've been on here. I'll be in LA in two weeks... any shots you want me to try to get??? Man I'd love to get the scene that Zach is drawing at dusk from his outdoor studio in back of the house.... Now if you hear of anyone being arrested for trespassing, it's me trying to get a shot of where the 'hug scene' took place!!!

I have not seen this movie for quite awhile now. I needed to take a break, because I knew it too well (if that makes any sense). Time to see it again though, before I get to LA.

take care guys!

Striver,

Great news! Shots from Zach's backyard and the scene of the "great hug" would be fantastic (as long as you don't get arrested)! But if you're gonna visit Zach's house, why not knock on the door and see if you can get in and grab a shot of his bedroom? An earlier poster on this forum said he got in and the art work from the film was still on the walls. Good luck! We'll be waiting for your photos.

Eric

Hey Eric -

I'll see what I can do. Not promising much though.... I hope I just have time to even make it to San Pedro.

Hey Eric - Sad to say, I was so busy when I was in LA, I never got a chance to get to San Pedro. I'll be there again next year, so I will try again. I want a pic of that bedroom wall!! take care...

Hey Striver,

Too bad but I understand. And it's not like you can get from most of L.A. to San Pedro in a few minutes.

Maybe someone else will have the opportunity.

Hey guys! I have found this topic very interesting. You guys are not even from California and you have been to San Pedro, (well eric has) and have taken pics of the places seen in shelter. I live in the the desert, and mountains up in the Antelope Valley. I practically live like an hour and 30 minutes, maybe even 2 hours away from San Pedro. Depends on the traffic flow. But last year I said I was going to San Pedro, but I never did. I apologize for that! But now were in 2010, and I am telling everyone here that some time during this year. Most likely during the Spring or Summer, I will take a little trip down to San Pedro. I will stay down there in a hotel, to take pics of the locations Danny put on the google maps. From morning till night. This is going to be awesome haha!! I'll let you guys know when i'll do this.

Hey Wizard! This is great. It'll be fun to see how the locations used in Shelter change over time. It's hard to believe, but the movie was filmed in December 2006 with a few pick-up scenes shot sometime in 2007 -- enough time for Brad Rowe to grow his hair back. Last September when I was in San Pedro almost everything was still there and looked the same except for the grocery store and of course, Zach's large wall painting on the side of a liquor store. The google maps were dead on. Let us know when you go.

That'd be great Wizard! Please let us know.

Yeah Eric, I was pretty bummed I couldn't make it down to San Pedro. I was so busy the entire time I was there, I never had the time. I'll probably be there again next year, so will make a better attempt. I STILL want to get a shot of the backyard (where the hug took place)! Sounds impossible, but you never know.

It IS amazing that most of the film was shot in 2006 -- I keep forgetting that.

hey striver, hey Eric

ich habe schon seit vielen Monaten eure Fotos hier im Forum gesehen und finde, es ist eine sehr gute Arbeit und eine tolle Idee, all diese Orte in San Pedro zu fotografieren, wo Shelter gedreht wurde. Schade, dass schon seit langer Zeit nichts mehr von euch zu hören ist. Ich freue mich sehr, dass es dieses Forum gibt, wo ein paar Romantiker die Gelegenheit haben, ihre Ideen und Gedanken zu tauschen. Vielen Dank auch an Danny. Hoffentlich kommt irgendwann noch das versprochene Foto von dieser Wand im Schlafzimmer und die "große Umarmung". Ich würde mich sehr freuen wenn es diese Möglichkeit noch gibt. Shelter ist ein ganz besonderer Film gewesen und auch wenn schon einige Jahre vergangen sind, glaube ich, dass er seine Aktualität nie verlieren wird.

Thanks to a (not-so-good) web-based German-to-English translator program, this is what our friend BaniLo said:

"I have had for many months your photos seen here in the forum and think it is a very good job and a great idea to photograph all these places in San Pedro, where shelter was shot. Too bad that can be heard for a long time for nothing more from you. I am very pleased that there is this forum where a few romantics will have the opportunity to exchange their ideas and thoughts. Many thanks also to Danny. Hopefully someday comes the promised photo of this wall in the bedroom and the "big hug". I would be very happy if there is this possibility. Shelter is a very special film was and even though some years have passed, I believe that he will never lose its topicality."

Well, I am pleased to say that I have a number of new photos taken last Friday in So Cal which I will post in the next few days. It what was a whirlwind day I made it to Malibu in the morning to get some beach shots and hit San Pedro in the afternoon/early evening. Some things have changed, some things have not.

But the film (for some of us anyway) has stayed so fresh that it's hard to remember that Shelter was filmed in December 2006 -- almost four years ago!

And yes, I know this is super-geeky on my part but I can't help it.

More in a day or two.

ooo I can't wait.

who can help me that in ch

inese

Hey Eric - Thanks for the translation! And definitely looking forward to your pics. I was bummed I couldn't make it to San Pedro when I was in LA back in January.
I lent my copy of Shelter to a friend of mine about 6 months ago.... I wonder if he's been 'bitten by the bug' and if I'll ever get it back from him. lol I need to see it again sometime soon... Hope you are doing well.

Hi, Eric, thanks for the translation of my text. Even if my English is not so good, I'll try to wrote in the future in English.
I did not expect an answer so quickly and i'm very glad to get. I also never expected that so many years after this movie, the effect of Shelter is still so strong. I think you will agree with me, that it would be nice, if Trevor would make other movies to be remembered for a long time...

Hey Striver! You're not off the hook yet. We're counting on you to get a shot of the backyard where the great "hug" took place.

Small drama this trip. I almost got into Zach's house. Well, sort of. After driving around the block and shooting the house from several directions, I confirmed what someone had posted earlier on this forum: that the "house" is actually a triplex, or three units back-to-back. There are actually six entrances, two per unit, one that's a sort of formal entrance and the other a back door. This means that Jonah had to rent/borrow at least the front and back units. You'll see what I mean when you look at the photos. For once, there was no car parked in front but just a motorcycle. I found a place to park with the intention of just knocking on doors, mentioning a movie had been shot there, and asking if I could take a photo or two -- the living room where Zach and his sister talk, the dining room, etc., and of course Zach's bedroom which -- hopefully -- still had the artwork on the walls. But just as I got out of my car three bikers stepped out of the front unit, complete with leather jackets, chains, boots, the whole deal. Two walked around back and reappeared on bikes, the third took the cycle on the street. This didn't seem like the time to ask if they had seen a movie called Shelter or if I could take of few photos of their living room. They roared off and I walked over to the driveway and, big luck city, there was a Hispanic woman starting to step out of the rear unit's back door. I waved and started back but she stepped inside and a man appeared. I managed to say hello and started to say something else when he said something in Spanish and then slammed the door. I was wearing shorts so I don't think I looked like either the police on someone from Immigration, but apparently this was also not the time to talk photography. Maybe next visit, or maybe someone else will have better luck. Or different residents.

A quick word to BaniLo: your English is fine and in fact is better than the computer-generated English translation of your German.

I hope to post photos later tonight but once again I am having trouble uploading to the forum. Nothing works. I've sent Danny an email asking for help.

Shelter lives!

Hi guys!
About a year ago I had a terrible depression (its because of the darkness, coldness and the loneliness of the north) and I watched Shelter over and over again. I was like one-click-away from buying airline tickets to Los Angeles and visiting movie locations then I realized that I didn't have enough money (like 700€ tickets) I even had arranged a place to stay via couchsurfing.org.

This winter has been a bit better but I still want to visit San Pedro and I have promised myself that next foreign trip will be to LA.

Hi cetc,
If you can make this trip, do it.
It's better than watching the movie over and over again.
I wish you the fulfillment of all your dreams...