Motion picture studio watchers in southern California report that teams from Apple’s contractor are now arriving to quickly build a partial retail store set inside a sound stage for filming an unknown movie. Apple’s stores have become an icon representing technology, cutting-edge architecture and the social scene, and could be used in a film in many different ways. Studio insiders say that, naturally, Apple approved the construction by Shawmut Design and Construction at the Burbank Studios, but that the film production company is footing the bill. [ValleyWag later reported that the set was built on the Warner Brother lot, and used to film a iphone 3G promo used during Steve Jobs' WWDC keynote speech June 9th.]
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One would think it would be a million times easier to simply pay Apple to film in one of their real stores for a day or two. That is unless the film producers want to have an Apple Store without Apple logos, perhaps?
So there’s been confirmation that it is indeed an Apple store, and not one of the 100 other stores or restaurants Shawmut has designed and built? Wasn’t 3rd Street Promenade in an episode of Entourage? I also believe that an Enterprise rent-a-car commercial took place outside of an Apple store, but I was never able to confirm that.
-Brian
Nick,
Not really. Shooting a movie requires a large crew, masses of equipment, lighting etc. It’s far easier and cheaper to put up a couple of fake walls and kit out a fake store in the studio backlot than it is to move the entire production out on location.
if you were filming for just a day or 2, like 2-3 minutes of screen time it might be cheaper to shoot on location in the apple store.
however, if you have a good bit of screen time for the location – it makes every bit of sense to build the set on the backlot where you have 100% control.
remember, shooting in an actual store you have to shoot around the store’s hours, which means 10PM-ish to 7AM-ish. plus you have the logistics of parking and moving gear and talent in a mall setting.
no fun – then there’s crowd control, etc. etc.
having you own set means you can have wild walls (moveable/removeable) to facilate more camera angles and if you’re doing stunts, gunplay – you really want to be on a set.
An Apple store was also featured in episode 3 of “Californication”. I’m not sure which one, but it looked like a mall store and had a glass staircase. Great show, btw!