Monterey County on the Silver Screen

Two of the earliest films ever made, “Surf at Monterey” and “Hotel Del Monte,” were shot in Monterey in 1897. The area’s spectacular scenery and friendly locals have drawn filmmakers to the area ever since. Films such as the Oscar-winning “Mutiny on the Bounty” and “Rebecca,” as well as “Basic Instinct,” “Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home” and many more have used Monterey County as their backdrop.

Nearly 200 films have been shot in Monterey County, but locals still thrill to see the area on the silver screen.  “We’re a very film-friendly community,” says the Monterey County Film Commission’s Karen Nordstrand. “People still get a kick out of movies being shot here.”

“From Here to Eternity” and Other Surprises

Films set in Monterey County like “Cannery Row,” “East of Eden,” “Play Misty For Me” and “Turner and Hooch” have been shot here, but filmmakers have also loved the area for its resemblance to more distant lands. Parts of Monterey County stood in for Scotland in “Lassie Come Home,” England in “National Velvet,” Ireland in “Dr. Dolittle,” Vietnam in “We Were Solders,” Louisiana in “The Muppet Movie” and Maine in “A Summer Place.”

Monterey County has even substituted for other locations in California. The beach at Garrapata State Park in Big Sur appears in “Basic Instinct” as Marin County’s Stinson Beach. The Monterey Bay Aquarium doubled as Sausalito’s fictional Cetacean Institute in “Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home.” In the film, the character Spock swims with humpback whales (inserted via special effects) in the Kelp Forest exhibit. For years after, visitors to the aquarium asked where the whales were.

Monterey County’s most surprising stand-in moment, however, was in one of the most famous movie scenes of all time – the beach love scene in “From Here to Eternity.” Though the entire film had been shot in Hawaii, Doug Lumsden of Monterey Movie Tours says, “Director Fred Zinneman did not like the beach scene that they had filmed over in Hawaii.” Rather than take the crew back to Hawaii, “where they ended up was Pfeiffer Beach” in Big Sur, says Lumsden. He thinks Big Sur’s legendary frigid water may be the reason that the characters only have a brief clinch in the surf, racing to a blanket for the rest of the scene. Elizabeth Taylor and Richard Burton later romped on the same beach in the film “The Sandpiper,” which also shot at legendary Big Sur restaurant Nepenthe.

Cinematic Time Capsule

“What’s wonderful about having movies filmed in your area is that they actually capture buildings in the background of their scenes,” Lumsden says, giving viewers a chance to see the area as it once was. His favorite “time capsule” film is Marilyn Monroe’s “Clash By Night,” made just four years after she was crowned Queen of the Castroville Artichoke Festival. It’s not just the chance to see a young Marilyn Monroe in one of her first co-starring roles, he says; the film has some of the only existing footage of Monterey’s sardine industry at its height.

Another great portal into the past is Clint Eastwood’s “Play Misty For Me.”  The movie was filmed throughout the Monterey area, frequently at venues still open today such as the Sardine Factory. The four-minute sequence filmed at the Monterey Jazz Festival is a special delight for both fans of the area and jazz enthusiasts.

Silent Film Star: Point Lobos

During the silent film era, the area that is now Point Lobos State Natural Reserve was a popular location with filmmakers. An entire Monte Carlo-style chateau was built at Sea Lion Point for the film “Foolish Wives.”  Locals were enthusiastic about the filmmakers’ work until 1929 when, while shooting the film “Evangeline,” producers burnt a village they’d built above Headland Cove. The ensuing fire also burned trees, brush and grassland, and scarred Point Lobos for almost 20 years.

Aghast locals fought to ensure that Point Lobos would be protected from danger in future film shoots. The damage was used as one argument for incorporating Point Lobos into the State Park system. The new restrictions did not dissuade producers from filming at Point Lobos, however, which has featured in films such as “Rebecca,” “Edge of Darkness,” “Lassie Come Home,” “The Graduate,” “The Sandpiper,” “Blind Date” and “Turner and Hooch.”

If you’re visiting Point Lobos, you can learn more about its cinematic past at the Whalers Cabin and Whaling Station Museum at Whalers Cove.

Touring Monterey’s Movie Locations

With over 190 movies filmed in Monterey County, a dedicated visitor could spend an entire vacation doing nothing but visiting spots where films were shot. The Monterey County Film Commission provides a map (click here to view in PDF) that visitors can use to arrange their own self-guided tour.

For a tour that’s packed with fascinating tidbits and trivia, hop on to the Monterey Movie Tours bus. As the tour bus drives by each location, video monitors inside the bus show scenes from famous movies that were shot at that spot. Driver and host Doug Lumsden shares trivia about the making of the movies along the tour route. Watching Elizabeth Taylor and Mickey Rooney in National Velvet, for example, is a very different experience when you’re also seeing the spot in person while Lumsden points out the fairways clearly visible in the background of the scene. This tour is a can’t-miss for anyone who would like to see the scenic beauty of the area through the eyes of Hollywood. Click here to reserve your ticket online at the Monterey Movie Tours website, or call 800-979-3370.

“What A Night!” Oscar Gala

With so many films shot in the area, it’s no surprise that Monterey County is no stranger to Oscar-winning films. Movies filmed in Monterey that have received at least one Oscar include 1935’s “Mutiny on the Bounty,” “East of Eden,” Alfred Hitchcock’s “Suspicion,” “The Sandpiper,” and 1967’s “Dr. Dolittle.” In honor of the Academy Awards, the Monterey County Film Commission will host its 20th annual “What a Night” Oscar gala at the Inn at Spanish Bay in Pebble Beach. Actress Barbara Eden will be the special guest for the black-tie event, which begins at 4:30pm with a red carpet entry and features champagne, hors d’oeuvres, wine tasting, a four-course dinner, and a silent auction. Tickets are $195 and can be reserved by calling the Monterey County Film Commission at 831-646-0910.

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