Announcing the Seen On the Screen Blogathon

Posted on by rebeccadeniston

It’s always interesting to see how places are portrayed onscreen, whether the place is another character in the story or just the background. It’s also funny to see locations stand in for other locations, such as a movie set in New York or Chicago being filmed in Toronto, or Vancouver, British Columbia pretending to be Los Angeles or Seattle. It’s OK, Hollywood guys, we’ll suspend our disbelief. A little bit, anyway.

Naturally, it adds a whole new dimension when we see a locale we recognize, maybe even our own hometown or someplace we took a vacation in. It can be a proud feeling because something we know has been immortalized, giving us a connection to that film. Or maybe we feel annoyed because the filmmakers clearly didn’t do their homework.

There were a couple of inspirations for this blogathon. One, I’ve been thinking about how Hollywood pretty much never gets Sacramento right, not that there are a lot of movies set there anyway. I’ve lived outside of it for over thirty years, and in Hollywood’s hands it looks nothing like the riverside capitol city it is. In the case of The Jane Austen Fan Club, for instance, it looks too much like Encino.

The other inspiration was this Lorde song, which we’ve probably all heard a thousand times but it’s going in here anyway for reference’s sake:

So yeah, that’s what this blogathon is about: The places seen or not seen on the screen.

The Rules

  1. Review a film or TV show shot or set in your hometown, the general place where you grew up, or somewhere that’s at least somewhat familiar to you. Your pick can be from any era and any country. As long as you know something about it, it’s in.
  2. While your approach to your topic is up to you, please try to answer this question in some way: Did the filmmakers get your place right, or did they botch it?
  3. Here’s a different angle if you prefer to write about something less specific to you: Is there a place you think would make a good setting for a film or TV show and why?
  4. Nothing derogatory will be accepted, even if you don’t like the place you’re writing about. Diplomacy is the order of the day.
  5. Participants are limited to three posts total, and since certain locales are film and TV favorites (New York City, London, Rome, etc.) duplicates (or multiples) are allowed. New material only, please.
  6. The blogathon will take place between April fourteenth and April sixteenth, with a wee wrapup post on April seventeenth. Posts can be sent to me on or around those days, either via the Comment section, my Contact page, Twitter and Instagram (both @TakingUpRoom), or e-mail (rebeccadeniston@gmail.com).
  7. If anyone would like to participate, please send me your topic and blog title by the avenues listed above.
  8. Grab a banner and advertise the blogathon!

The Roster

Taking Up Room: Phenomenon (1996) (Auburn, California)

Realweegiemidget Reviews: Billion Dollar Brain (1967) (Finland)

Silver Screenings: River of No Return (1954) (Canadian Rockies)

Whimsically Classic: One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest (1975) (Salem and Depoe Bay, Oregon)

Hamlette’s Soliloquy: New In Town (2009) (New Ulm, Minnesota)

Poppity Talks Classic Film: Hud (1963) and The Last Picture Show (1971) (Northern Texas)

Dubsism: Fargo (1994) (Fargo, North Dakota)

Crítica Retrô: The Three Caballeros (1944) (Bahia, Brazil)

Thoughts All Sorts: Dredd (2012) (Johannesburg, South Africa)

Smoke In the Library: The Killers (1946) (Hackensack, New Jersey)

Films From Beyond the Time Barrier: Sasquatch Mountain (2006) (Cocorino National Forest, Northern Arizona)

The Banners

seenonscreen1seenonscreen2seenonscreen3seenonscreen4seenonscreen5

31 thoughts on “Announcing the Seen On the Screen Blogathon”

  4. Can I write about “One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest” which was filmed in my hometown of Salem, OR ? I believe that part of this movie was also filmed in Depoe Bay, OR on the Oregon Coast. This is another locale with which I’m familiar.

    I’ve never seen this movie before, so it’ll be my first impression of a movie depicting a building that I’ve driven past my entire life and knew of it as “the old mental hospital where ‘One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest’ was filmed.”

    Liked by 1 person

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  5. Hi Rebecca! I’d like to write up Sasquatch Mountain (2006) with Lance Henriksen, which was filmed in my old haunts of Northern Arizona. – Brian

    Liked by 1 person

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  6. Hi Rebecca!
    I’ve had this blogathon on my mind for a while but was having difficulty coming up with a subject. I think I may have found it now, however. 😉
    I would like to talk about northern Texas, in particular the parallels between HUD (1963) and THE LAST PICTURE SHOW (1971). I will be making mention of other movies filmed in the area, as there are quite a number of them but would like to primarily focus on these two movies. I have only visited the city of Austin, never this part of Texas. Would my idea still qualify under your blog rules?

    Liked by 1 person

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  7. Wonderful idea for a blogathon!
    I’d lik to write about The Three Caballeros (1944), the Disney movie that showcases Bahia, my favorite place in Brazil.
    Cheers!
    Le from Critica retro

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply
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