Motion Pictures and Films
Shot in Arizona
Blare Films | Phoenix Films and Video Production
Arizona Motion Pictures and Films
When one thinks of movie making everyone automatically thinks of Hollywood. Well how many silent movies do you recall seeing with beaches and palm tree? Not many right? Truth is most of the first silent movies started in New York. And yes eventually they made it to Hollywood. However, Arizona was a huge real to the Los Angeles film industry.
Arizona’s diverse whether and topography lends it to offer the most scenic and breathe taking backdrops perfect for motion pictures and films. To no surprise many motion pictures and films have been shot in Arizona. What not too many people are aware of, is how rich the history actually is and how many films have been shot i Arizona. Big blockbuster movies such at Star Wars, Superman and Indiana Jones have all shot parts of their movies in Arizona. A large majority of Western Films were completely shot in Tucson. Old Tucson Studios was the go to place for Western movies and TV Series. Many other none Westerns were also entirely shot in Tucson. Revenge of the Nerds for example.
[Fantastic writeup on Arizona film production history]
Up and down Arizona you can find places where you might think are great to shoot a film. Chances are many other people have though and done that. From the Grand Canyon to Bisbee, Arizona.
Other states such as New Mexico and Texas have been Taking away business from Arizona. They have increased their tax incentives for Motion Pictures and Films, while Arizona has let their incentives lapse. Legislators believe they are giving Hollywood productions house corporate welfare. Thus the revenue created from the product of these million pallor productions has dried up. Recently, Transformers – The Last Night, shot “A” scene in North Phoenix. It made local people excited because they have no idea of the rich history of filming in their state. A majority if the desert scenes were shot in New Mexico. All of those desert scenes should have been shot in Arizona. It is not a glass half-full half-empty argument. It’s a, “we used to get a full glass poured, now we only get a sip,” argument.
Well the one thing aArizona won’t be shorted of is it’s film history. Below is a list of movies that have been partially and completely shot in Arizona. The list does not include every single movie, but most of the well known films. The majority of these films have a budget over 1 million dollars.
1920’s Motion Pictures and Films
1924
The Mine with the Iron Door (Tucson)
1927
Wings (Tucson)
1930’s Motion Pictures and Films
1931
The Painted Desert (Dinosaur Canyon, Painted Desert, Petrified Forest National Park, Tuba City)
1931
Arizona (Tucson)
1933
Lost Horizon (Tucson)
1936
The Garden of Allah (Yuma)
1936
Under Two Flags (Yuma)
1939
Stagecoach (Mesa)
1939
Gunga Din (Yuma)
1939
The Gentlemen from Arizona (Phoenix, Gillespie Ranch)
1938
Stagecoach (Kayenta, Monument Valley, view of Superstition Mtn. from Mesa)
1940’s Motion Pictures and Films
1940
The Grapes of Wrath (Chambers, Petrified Forest National Park, Topock bridge crossing into California)
1940
The Thief of Bagdad (Grand Canyon)
1940
The Westerner is a (Tucson)
1942
Casablanca (Flagstaff’s Hotel Monte Vista)
1942
Road to Morocco (Yuma)
1943
The Outlaw (Yuma)
1943
Sahara (Yuma)
1944
The Uninvited (Phoenix)
1945
Along Came Jones (Nogales)
1945
Leave Her to Heaven (Prescott and Sedona)
1945
The Bells of St. Mary’s (Tucson)
1946
Duel in the Sun (Tucson and Yuma)
1946
Song of the South (Phoenix)
1947
Angel and the Badman (Sedona)
1948
Red River (Tucson)
1950’s Motion Pictures and Films
1950
Copper Canyon (Cathedral Rock, Red Rock Crossing, Sedona)
1950
Rio Grande (Old Tucson)
1950
Broken Arrow (Sonora Desert, Old Tucson, Flagstaff and Sedona)
1950
Winchester ’73 (Sonoita, Sonora Desert, Mescal and Old Tucson)
1951
Desert Fox: The Story of Rommel (Yuma)
1953
The War of the Worlds (Florence, Phoenix)
1954
Apache (Red Rock Crossing, Sedona)
1954
Johnny Guitar (Red Rock Crossing near Sedona)
1955
Oklahoma (Elgin, San Raphael Ranch State Park, Nogales)
1955
Tarantula (Arizona desert)
1955
Violent Saturday (Bisbee, Warren and Lowell)
1956
Bus Stop (The Arizona State Fairgrounds in Phoenix)
1956
Pardners (Apache Junction and Phoenix)
1956
A Kiss Before Dying (University of Arizona and Tucson)
1957
3:10 to Yuma (Tucson, Sedona, Yuma, Texas Canyon, Dragoon, Wilcox and other desert spots)
1957
Gunfight at the O.K. Corral (Elgin, Old Tucson, Phoenix)
1957
Battle Hymn aka By Faith I Fly (Nogales)
1958
The Lone Ranger and the Lost City of Gold (Tucson, San Xavier del Bac Mission, Old Tucson)
1958
The Big Country (Canyon de Chelly)
1959
Rio Bravo (Old Tucson)
1960’s Motion Pictures and Films
1960
Psycho (Phoenix skyline, Central Avenue, Jefferson Hotel)
1960
Guns of the Timberland (Williams)
1961
The Comancheros (Red Rock Crossing near Sedona and Colorado City)
1962
How the West Was Won (Monument Valley, Oatman, Perkinsville, Superior, Tonto National Forest, Tucson)
1963
The Nutty Professor (Arizona State University)
1963
Lilies of the Field (Tucson)
1963
McLintock (Nogales, Old Tucson, San Rafael Ranch State Park)
1963
Captain Newman, M.D. (Fort Huachuca)
1964
Cheyenne Autumn (Monument Valley)
1965
Flight of the Phoenix (Yuma, Buttercup Valley)
1965
Greatest Story Ever Told (Lake Powell, Page)
1965
The Rounders (Sedona)
1966
El Dorado (Old Tucson)
1966
Beau Geste (Yuma)
1967
Planet of the Apes (Lake Powell, Page)
1967
The Great White Hope (Globe)
1967
Hombre (Tucson)
1968
Planet of the Apes (Lake Powell, Page, Kayenta and Glen Canyon)
1969
Young Billy Young (Old Tucson)
1969
Charro! (Apache Junction)
1969
Easy Rider (Flagstaff and Tucson)
1970’s Motion Pictures and Films
1970
Rio Lobo (Old Tucson)
1971
Billy Jack (Prescott)
1971
Two-Lane Blacktop (Flagstaff)
1971
Bless the Beasts and Children (Prescott)
1972
Night of the Lepus (Sonorita and Tucson)
1972
Life and Times of Judge Roy Bean (Old Tucson, Mescal)
1972
Ulzana’s Raid (Nogales)
1972
Junior Bonner (Prescott)
1972
Night of the Lepus, also known as Rabbits (Tucson)
1973
The Six Million Dollar Man (original TV movie) (Yuma desert)
1973
Electra Glide in Blue (Carefree, Scottsdale and Phoenix)
1974
Mixed Company (Phoenix)
1974
The Eiger Sanction (Monument Valley)
1974
Mark of Zorro (Old Tucson, San Xavier del Bac Mission)
1974
Alice Doesn’t Live Here Anymore (Tucson, and the Big Horn Restaurant in Amado, Arizona).
1974
The Trial of Billy Jack (Canyon de Chelly, Phoenix and the Grand Canyon)
1974
Death Wish (University of Arizona and Tucson )
1975
Abduction (Globe)
1975
White Line Fever (Tucson)
1976
A Star is Born (ASU in Tempe and Tucson))
1976
Damnation Alley (Meteor Crater)
1976
Mission to Glory: The Father Kino Story (Cave Creek, Tucson)
1976
The Outlaw Josey Wales (Lake Powell, Patagonia, Mescal, Old Tucson)
1976
The Gumball Rally (Flagstaff)
1977
Star Wars (The rolling desert dunes outside of Yuma)
1977
Kingdom of the Spiders (Camp Verde, Sedona)
1977
The Gauntlet (Phoenix, Tempe, Superior)
1977
Fire in the Sky (Phoenix)
1977
Damnation Alley (Meteor Crater)
1977
Exorcist II: The Heretic
1978
Comes a Horseman (Flagstaff)
1979
Kenny Rogers’ The Gambler (Old Tucson, Carefree Studio)
1979
Wanda Nevada (Page)
1980’s Motion Pictures and Films
1980
Nightkill (Phoenix)
1980
Used Cars (Phoenix City Hall, ASU, Mesa used car lot)
1980
Stir Crazy (Florence and Tucson)
1980
Tom Horn (Tucson)
1981
Private Lessons (Phoenix)
1981
The Cannonball Run (Tucson)
1982
Star Wars: Return of the Jedi (Yuma)
1982
Superman III (Glen Canyon Dam, Page)
1982
Koyaanisqatsi: Life Out of Balance (Grand Canyon)
1983
Vacation (Grand Canyon, Sedona, Monument Valley, Flagstaff, and the US-160 in Kayenta)
1983
Koyaanisqatsi (Grand Canyon, Navajo Reservation, Glen Canyon Dam)
1984
Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom (Page)
1984
Revenge of the Nerds (University of Arizona in Tucson)
1984
Starman (Sedona, Barringer, and Winslow)
1984
The Karate Kid (Canyon Portal Hotel, Sedona)
1984
Cannonball Run II (Tucson)
1984
Roadhouse 66 (Kingman and Oatman)
1985
Just One of the Guys (Phoenix, Scottsdale, Tempe, and Arcadia)
1985
Murphy’s Romance (Florence)
1985
Lost in America (Safford)
1986
Three Amigos (Old Tucson, Coronado National Forest)
1986
American Anthem (Phoenix, Flagstaff, Sedona)
1986
Desert Bloom (Tucson)
1986
The Wraith (Tucson)
1987
Over the Top (Monument Valley and Page)
1987
Spaceballs (Yuma desert)
1987
Raising Arizona (Camelback Mountain, Carefree, Florence, Lost Dutchman State Park, Phoenix, Scottsdale, Sun Devil Stadium, Tempe Police Station)
1987
Can’t Buy Me Love (Hill Farm in Tucson, Pima Air Museum, Scoops on Speedway Blvd., Tucson High School, Tucson Mall)
1987
Can’t Buy Me Love (Tucson)
1987
Raising Arizona (Superior, Camelback Mountain, Tempe, Dudleyville, Florence and Apache Junction)
1987
Near Dark (Coolidge)
1987
White of the Eye (Globe)
1987
Million Dollar Mystery also known as Money Mania (Page)
1987
O.C. and Stiggs (Phoenix and Scottsdale)
1987
Creepshow 2 (Prescott)
1988
Midnight Run (Cameron, Casa Grande, Cottonwood, Flagstaff, Globe, Salt River Canyon, Sedona, Williams)
1988
World Gone Wild (Bisbee)
1988
Rambo III (Yuma)
1989
Bill & Ted’s Excellent Adventure (AMF Tempe Village Lanes, Chuck E. Cheese, Circle K, Coronado High School, Golfland-Sunsplash, Metrocenter, police station, and a house in Phoenix)
1989
Major League (Tucson)
1990’s Motion Pictures and Films
1990
The Grifters (Phoenix, Glen Canyon, and other parts of Arizona)
1990
Back to the Future III (Monument Valley)
1990
Young Guns II (Old Tucson, Bisbee, Tumacacori)
1990
Days of Thunder (Phoenix and Tucson)
1991
Dark Wind (Tuba City, Navajo and Hopi Reservation)
1991
Grand Canyon (Grand Canyon)
1991
Thelma & Louise (Grand Canyon)
1991
Beastmaster 2: Through the Portal of Time (Page)
1991
Harley Davidson and the Marlboro Man (Tucson)
1992
Wayne’s World (Mesa and Scottsdale)
1992
Universal Soldier (Ashfork, Chloride, Clarkdale, Verde Valley, Kingman, Hoover Dam, Sedona, Veterans Medical Center in Prescott)
1992
Beyond the Law (New River, Phoenix, Scottsdale)
1992
Stay Tuned (Tucson)
1993
Tombstone (Old Tucson, Mescal, Sonoita)
1993
Arizona Dream (Douglas, Patagonia)
1993
Bodies, Rest & Motion (Scottsdale)
1993
Geronimo: An American Legend (Tucson)
1994
Forrest Gump (Monument Valley, Twin Arrows Trading Post on Route 66 east of Flagstaff)
1994
Natural Born Killers (Holbrook, Winslow and other areas in Arizona)
1994
Terminal Velocity (Phoenix, Tucson, Douglas, Little Colorado River Canyon)
1994
Wyatt Earp: Return to Tombstone (Old Tombstone)
1994
Pontiac Moon (Cochise County, Monument Valley)
1994
Maverick (Lake Powell, Lees Ferry, Marble Canyon)
1994
Tank Girl (all over Arizona, with Tucson and the Phoenix)
1994
Clear and Present Danger (Fort Huachuca)
1994
Blind Justice (Apache Junction)
1994
Star Trek Generations (Green Valley)
1994
Lightning Jack (Page)
1994
The Getaway (Phoenix, Yuma and Prescott)
1994
A Low Down Dirty Shame (Scottsdale)
1994
Speechless (Williams)
1994
In the Army Now (Yuma)
1994
The Shawshank Redemption (Yuma)
1994
Stargate (Yuma)
1995
Waiting to Exhale (Paradise Valley, Chandler, Phoenix, Fountain Hills)
1995
Dead Man (Cave Creek, Camp Verde, and Flagstaff)
1995
The Prophecy (Superior)
1995
Boys on the Side (Tucson)
1996
Jerry Maguire (Apache Junction, Phoenix, and Tempe)
1996
Star Trek: First Contact (Green Valley)
1996
Flirting with Disaster (Carefree and Scottsdale)
1996
Mars Attacks! (Kingman)
1996
Tin Cup (Tucson)
1996
Broken Arrow (Page)
1997
U Turn (Superior)
1997
The Postman (Amado)
1997
Los Locos: Posse Rides Again (Benson and Tucson)
1997
Contact (Canyon de Chelly)
1997
Fools Rush In (Grand Canyon)
1997
Anastasia (Phoenix)
1997
Breakdown (Sedona)
1997
Romy and Michele’s High School Reunion (Tucson)
1998
No Code of Conduct (Globe)
1998
Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas (Kingman)
1998
Psycho (Phoenix)
1998
Mafia!, also known as Jane Austen’s Mafia! (Yuma)
1999
Three Kings (Casa Grande, Phoenix, Yuma, Tucson)
1999
Wild Wild West (Nogales and Old Tucson)
1999
Seven Girlfriends (Flagstaff)
1999
Held Up (Grand Canyon)
1999
Jesus’ Son (Tucson)
2000’s Motion Pictures and Films
2000
Dinosaur (Canyon de Chelly)
2000
South of Heaven, West of Hell (Benson)
2000
The Lost Child (Superior, Navajo Nation)
2000
Nurse Betty (Grand Canyon and Kingman)
2000
Price of Glory (Nogales)
2000
Traffic (Nogales)
2000
The Flintstones in Viva Rock Vegas (Page)
2000
Titan A.E. (Phoenix)
2000
What Planet Are You From? (Phoenix)
2000
Almost Famous (Tucson)
2001
Planet of the Apes (Lake Powell)
2001
The Forsaken (Yuma)
2002
Eight Legged Freaks (Glendale, Page, Superior, Tonopah)
2002
Eight Legged Freaks (Superior, Glendale, Tonopah, Page)
2002
Windtalkers (Monument Valley)
2002
Dinotopia (Navajo Nation)
2002
The Scorpion King (Yuma)
2002
The Banger Sisters (Phoenix)
2002
Interstate 60: Episodes of The Road (Globe and Phoenix)
2002
Waking Up in Reno (Grand Canyon)
2002
Confessions of a Dangerous Mind (Nogales and Tucson)
2003
Hulk (Lake Powell)
2003
Vertical Limit (Monument Valley)
2003
DreamKeeper (Saguaro National Monument)
2003
Blue Collar Comedy Tour: The Movie (Phoenix)
2003
Charlie’s Angels: Full Throttle (Page)
2003
Mona Lisa Smile (Parker)
2004
Taxi (Phoenix)
2004
Raise Your Voice (Flagstaff)
2004
Bride and Prejudice (Grand Canyon)
2005
Transamerica (Phoenix, Scottsdale, Black Canyon City, Prescott, Wickenburg)
2005
Jarhead (Yuma)
2006
Sasquatch Mountain (Flagstaff and Williams)
2006
Zoom: Academy for Superheroes (Kingman)
2006
Little Miss Sunshine (Phoenix)
2006
Glory Road (University of Arizona and the rest of Tucson)
2007
The Kingdom (Phoenix, Mesa)
2007
Into the Wild (Grand Canyon, Parker, Yuma and Page)
2007
Next (Grand Canyon)
2007
Transformers (Grand Canyon)
2007
Futureshock Comet (Mammoth)
2008
Brothel (Jerome and Clarkdale)
2009
Away We Go (Phoenix and Tucson)
2009
Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen (Tucson)
2009
The Canyon (Williams)
2010’s Motion Pictures and Films
2010
Everything Must Go (Phoenix, Scottsdale)
2011
Fast Five (Parker)
2011
Take Me Home Tonight (Metrocenter Mall and the other areas in Phoenix)
2013
Gravity (Lake Powell)
Written by Ro Leon
Producer at Blare Films | Phoenix Films and Video Production
Motion Pictures and Films
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