freebies : movies

AFI Fest is back in town starting this Thursday and it’s better than ever.

Not only did it snag hit movie premieres, such as Black Swan; amazing panels, LA Times Young Adult Panel but they’re all FREE!!!! That’s right you don’t need to spend a dime. Downfall – free means everyone and their brother are interested and unfortunately a lot of the screenings are already sold out.

But don’t fret because additional tickets will be released the day of the show, and you can always wait in the standby line just in case people with tickets don’t show up.

I’ve been a part of this festival in the past, and truth be told it’s one of the best film festivals LA offers, shorts, documentaries, thrillers, love stories, you name it.

Be sure to head on over to their Hollywood & Highland box office to get your free tickets.

bright lights : movie stars

Now it wouldn’t be Hollywood or Los Angeles if I didn’t include something that had to do with movies and televisions. So behold the following post dedicated to Studio Tours. All the main ones offer one – Sony, Paramount, Warner Brothers, NBC, Universal, etc etc. And they offer have tapings where you can be in the studio audience of your favorite show (CLICK ME CLICK ME)

Warner Brothers VIP Tour : The King of all Tours if you ask me. Not only is it worth every penny for the regular tram tour, but if you pay some more you get a VIP Deluxe tour that could include being on set for a taping, and lunch in the official WB dining hall (aka cafeteria, but it’s still pretty cool if you’re a tv geek like me) The general 2 hour 25 minute tour takes you on numerous backlots, informs you of movies that have filmed there, what needed to be changed around to make you believe it was New York, Chicago, the 1940s, you get my drift. You see the famous movie vehicles, head to the Warner Brothers Museum to get lost in the movie magic, and constantly keep your eyes peeled hoping that Leonardo DiCaprio just might be leaving George Clooney’s studio at the precise moment your tram drives by…

PS – Follow their twitter to answer fun trivia questions and possibly win prizes.

Universal Studios Hollywood Tour: Now this one is different. It’s like an amusement park / legitimate tour. You do have to buy tickets to the park, but just think afterwards you can ride The Simpson’s Ride, The Mummy, and Jurassic Park. And a lot of the tour is enhanced like a ride, I won’t tell you exactly because it’s still enjoyable. Your tram guide has DVD clips of past movies to keep you enthralled as you past the not so exciting parts of the tour, but soon you’ll stumble across Whisteria Lane from Desperate Housewives, and a set that you’ve seen as “a quaint European town” in oh so many movies. They have wreckage from War of the Worlds that puts you right into the movie, and their newest King Kong 3D Action Ride that literally does put you right in the movie.

Sony Pictures Studios Daily Tours: Want classic movies, Wizard of Oz, hit television shows – Wheel of Fortune, action and adventure – Spiderman. Then Sony is your stop. Right now they’re offering ‘Twilight Tours’ of the set through the end of October where tours begin at 6:30pm

Paramount Studio Tours: “Walk in the footsteps of legends and get an intimate, sneak peek behind the scenes of your favorite movies and TV shows with a VIP tour on The Studios at Paramount lot. As the longest operating and only remaining major studio in Hollywood, you’ll see where some of the most celebrated motion pictures were made and leave feeling like a part of film history” If you work for Viacom, you’re able to see movies for free on the lot. So make sure you view those mass company emails before hitting delete.

So lights. Camera. Action.

castles and mansions

While at lunch today (at the delicious Wurstkuche) I was chatting it up with my friends about what they’ve been up to. Long story short, one mentioned Greystone Castle. I’ve never heard of any castles in CA besides Hearst Castle, and that is 4 hours north of Los Angeles.

Greystone Castle is located in Beverly Hills – and its free!!!! Now you can’t actually go in the building, but the gardens and fountains are more than enough to keep you occupied. Tons of movies filmed at the historic site, and if you have a special event you’re more than welcomed to rent out Greystone (for a fee of course)

Think Alice in Wonderland meets Princess Diaries (you know, the end scene where Mia and the guy from Rooney have that perfect kiss in the garden) The trees are trimmed perfectly, having the fountains be the showpieces of the garden. Every where you go there’s paths that wind down and around and soon you discovered yet another fountain. It’s labyrinth type pathways immediately bring me back to The Secret Garden where she’s discovering new things around every turn.

You’re welcomed with a beautiful view of downtown LA, and can see the rooftop of the mansion. Stay for a little while, or the whole afternoon.

After you’re done shopping on Rodeo, head on over to this secret treasure.

festivals of films

The Los Angeles Film Festival is going on right now and that is something I love, love, love about LA. There’s too many to name throughout the year, all of which worthy of checking out. I’ve been fortunate enough to work on both the LA Film Festival and AFI Festival.

Not only are there red carpet premieres of anticipated movies (LAFF snagged the premiere of Twilight: Eclipse) but if you’re into independent films, foreign, shorts, documentaries you’re in luck.

Complete Guide of Movies – HERE

It’s going on Downtown till June 27th so be sure to metro it up (avoid traffic and parking fees) and enjoy the festival.