The Hollywood sign is seen during a bright storm.
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For more than 100 years, Hollywood has transported audiences to worlds beyond their own, from the slick streets of New York to the yellow bricks of Oz.
Hundreds of acres of land in Los Angeles are devoted to creating stories for the biggest and smallest screens, and movie studios offer cinema lovers more ways than ever to get a behind-the-scenes look at how and where the magic is. made.
“The journey after the studies, being able to go where it happened, to be in the physical space of all these things that people have been watching for over 100 years, seems like the most natural kind of tourist destination in the world,” said Robert. Thompson, a professor at Syracuse University.
He is moderating Universal, Warner Bros., Sony and Paramountstudio tours show the filmmaking process from set design and sound recording to costumes and props. These paid experiences not only bring revenue to the studios, but can also act as a training program for lower-level employees just starting out at the companies and as supplemental marketing for upcoming projects.
“Los Angeles is the only destination in the world where guests can visit multiple working studios in different neighborhoods of our city,” said Adam Burke, president and CEO of the Los Angeles Tourism Board and Convention Board.
The film industry brings in more than $100 billion in tourism, according to the Los Angeles Department of Public Works. Attractions such as studio tours, the Hollywood sign, Grauman’s Chinese Theater and the Hollywood Walk of Fame attract tourists from near and far.
“While visitors are often drawn to studio tours by their favorite TV shows or movies … we hope they leave with a deeper understanding of the entertainment industry, LA’s unique culture and the city’s vibrant creative heritage,” Burke said.
Universal, Warner Bros., Sony and Paramount declined to say how much their studio tours generate each year or how many people pass through their gates, but both noted that attendance and demand for their offerings remain strong.
“[Studio lot tours] it can appeal to all different levels of people, people who are really fascinated behind the scenes and how it works and how it’s made, and even ordinary people who don’t have that level of curiosity, just the excitement of being present in a place where all these things they really do,” Thompson said.
Sony
Located in Culver City, Sony Pictures Studio is the newest tenant of its 45-acre property. The complex was the original studios of Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer and is now home to the popular television stars “Jeopardy” and “Wheel of Fortune.”
“Seinfeld” set at Sony Pictures Studio.
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Sony’s two-hour walking tour, which costs $55 per person, begins by taking guests through a recreation of the “Seinfeld” set and through a prop exhibit featuring items from famous movies and TV shows such as “Spider-Man,” “Justified,” “Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle,” “Groundhog Day,” “A League of Their Own” and “The Social Network.”
Guests will quickly spot the massive 94-foot rainbow, built in 2012 by artist Tony Tasset, towering over the studio. It’s a tribute to The Wizard of Oz, which was filmed on the property more than 85 years ago. Guides are eager to point out which soundstages were the setting for various moments from the film, including the infamous Wicked Witch melting sequence.
A lot of film studio Sony Pictures Entertainment.
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These include modern day tenants, “Jeopardy” and “Wheel of Fortune”. the most watched programs on television outside of live sports. When shows are not being filmed, guests can enter the stage; otherwise the guide will show different places. Tours change daily depending on which studio spaces are open to the public and which are closed for production use.
Additionally, Sony allows guests to enter its Foley studio to see how sound is created for movies and television.
A crowded collection of kitchen utensils used in Foley’s stage at Sony Pictures Studio.
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The crowded space has a bunch of floors – wood, concrete, stone, gravel – several door handles with different types of locks, shelves for different shoes, a kitchen with an assortment of plastic and metal bottles, cups, cutlery and, yes, some coconut shells, as well as a closet full of jackets that can make different zipping sounds.
Vehicles from “Breaking Bad” and “Ghostbusters” are also on display.
A “Ghostbusters” vehicle spotted during the Sony Pictures Studio Tour.
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Warner Bros.
Warner Bros. she is very popular with patrons on her studio tours.
In addition to a guided tour of the grounds, which can range from one to three hours depending on the package, the company has created a fully interactive soundstage, known as Stage 48, to demonstrate how movies and TV shows are made. providing guests with plenty of free and paid photo opportunities.
The tour is a combination of walking and driving through remote neighborhoods. Guests can walk through the suburban filming locations of “Friends,” “The Big Bang Theory” and “Gilmore Girls,” as well as the jungle area used by all of “Jurassic Park,” “True Blood” and “Aquaman.”
Facades of buildings on the Warner Bros. studio lot.
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Tourists will notice that a number of non-Warner Bros. productions take place on the property, common to all Los Angeles studios. Productions will rent a studio in other studios as needed. For example, the famous upside-down fire escape kiss from 2002’s “Spider-Man” was produced by Sony, but filmed at Warner Bros.’ much.
The guided tour also includes a short walk through the Warner Bros.’ extensive prop house. This area has replica falcon sculptures from “The Maltese Falcon”, an entire section of marble and faux marble busts, and a room filled floor to ceiling with lamps, sconces and chandeliers.
Floor-to-ceiling shelves filled with marble and faux marble busts at the Warner Bros.” studio tour prop shop.
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After the guided tour portion, guests arrive at Stage 48. This area offers a recreation of the Central Perk from “Friends,” including purchased food and beverages.
Fans of “Friends,” “The Big Bang Theory,” “Lord of the Rings,” Batman movies, and “Harry Potter” can take photos on recreated sets and green screens. Some of these photo ops are at extra cost.
A view of Central Perk at Stage 48 during the Warner Bros. tour. Hollywood Grand Re-Opening at Warner Bros. Studios
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This area also has a number of costumes from famous classic films and interactive stations representing various elements of the post-production process.
Guests are then taken back to the Welcome Center to tour the area where Warner Bros. showcases costumes and props from DC Cinematic Universe films such as “Wonder Woman,” “Aquaman” and “The Flash,” costumes from “Game of Thrones.” ” and props and costumes from the Harry Potter and Fantastic Beasts franchises.
A look at the costumes on display in Action Made Here: DC Universe during the Warner Bros. studio tour. Hollywood Grand Re-Opening at Warner Bros. Studios on June 24, 2021 in Burbank, California.
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A one-hour guided tour plus two unguided hours at Stage 48 costs $73 per ticket. Meanwhile, a two-hour guided tour, which comes with Stage 48 admission and lunch, costs $160, and a deluxe three-hour guided tour, which comes with a delicious lunch and Stage 48 admission, costs $330 per ticket.
Warner Bros. also recently launched the Turner Classic Movies tour, which takes guests through parts of the property that have been used for films such as “Casablanca,” “My Fair Lady” and “The Music Man.”
Paramount
While touring Warner Bros. focuses much of its attention on the finished works of film and television, the Paramount Studio Tour delves deep into how these films and shows are made.
This tour is a combination of walking and driving around the property as a tour guide – part of the Paramount site program – brings guests to meet the people who keep the production going.
For the first six months of their employment at the studio, these pages serve as a study guide. They then become eligible to work in support positions around the property, helping with audience management for TV shows and even being hired for VIP tours.
Paramount Studios in Los Angeles, California.
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The Paramount tour has three levels: the regular studio tour, which lasts two hours and costs $65 per person; a premiere tour that lasts three hours and gives guests access to the archives and other facilities and costs $150 per person; and a VIP tour that lasts four hours and costs $215 per person.
This most in-depth option introduces guests to a variety of on-property tradespeople, including lighting crew members and signmakers, as well as an archivist who guides them through a collection of archival costumes and props, including jewelry. The VIP option also includes a private lunch or breakfast.
Signs created at Paramount Studios sign studio.
Paul Dergarabedian
Guests will see where director Alfred Hitchcock’s office was, walk around “New York” and see the “blue sky tank” used in “Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home,” “The Truman Show” and “The Curious Case of Benjamin Button.”
The prop warehouse features a variety of vehicles, including the “egg mobile” from “Sonic the Hedgehog” and the pod from “Star Trek: Beyond,” as well as a life-size Bumblebee from the Transformer franchise.
Universal Studios
Universal Studios Hollywood theme park actually started as a studio tour. Beginning in the 1960s, guests had exclusive access to the manufacturing plant, and over time Universal began introducing attractions with special effects.
These have evolved to include a cascading flash flood where 10,000 gallons of water rush down towards guests, a simulated earthquake, and of course, terrifying Jaws erupting from a small pond.
A scene from Steven Spielberg’s “Jaws” is shown at Universal Studios in Hollywood.
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The hour-long studio attraction, which is included in theme park admission, also features two immersive rides: one shows King Kong battling dinosaurs, and the other sees the Fast and Furious cast go into high gear. street chase. Guests remain in their trams during these rides.
The standard tour also takes parkgoers through several classic scenes including the Bates Motel from “Psycho,” the plane crash from “War of the Worlds” and the courthouse from “Back to the Future.”
The press takes a tram tour of Universal Studios along the newly renovated New York Street, which was destroyed by fire two years ago. On Friday, Universal Studios Hollywood will open a tour of the New York streetcar, which was rebuilt after a fire destroyed the New York Street area in 2008.
Allen J. Schaben | Los Angeles Times | Getty Images
General admission to the theme park starts at $109 per person, but can vary depending on the time of year – the holiday season is often more expensive.
Those looking to take a deeper look at the studio’s grounds can purchase VIP tour packages that include extended behind-the-scenes access, a private trolley, a buffet lunch, and direct access to all of the park’s rides and attractions. A VIP experience can cost between $379 and $499 per person.
“The concept of Hollywood is so elusive, and when guests visit Los Angeles, there’s always a part that wonders, ‘Am I going to see a movie star?'” said Dennis Satterfield, studio director of Universal Studios Hollywood tours. “The studio tour helps take away some of that wonder. Guests have access to a real movie studio, a chance to see production, movie sets and maybe sometimes movie stars in their own environment.”
Disclosure: Comcast is the parent company of NBCUniversal and CNBC.