Tippett Studio
2741 10th Street
Berkeley, CA
(510) 649-9711
www.tippett.com

“Robocop”, “Jurrasic Park”, “Star Wars”? We’ve seen ‘em all! Did you know that many of those monsters, dinosaurs and aliens were created in this anonymous looking office in Berkeley. Owned and run by Phil Tippett, a Berkeley native, Tippett studios is home to some of the great creative minds in the business, not to mention two Oscars.

Zaetnz Media Center
www.zaentzmediacenter.com

“One Flew Over The Cuckoos Nest” opened in just 4 theaters, and went on to sweep the Oscars. It was the first film produced by Berkeley’s Fantasy Studios, run by the legendary Saul Zaetnz. While you’re in Berkeley, swing by Cal and check out campus, where scenes from “The Graduate” were shot…without permission from the school.

Photo Credit: pixar.com

602 million dollars average gross per film and 29 Oscars? Yep, Pixar Animation Studios is truly extraordinary. Located in Emeryville, the studio’s distance from Hollywood is what some employees say make their movies to accessible to every-day folks. While coming by a tour inside the studio is tough, unless you’ve got an in with a non-animated Pixar pal, just a swing by the famous front gates is an exciting stop for any film fan.

The East Bay’s first big time film moment came in 1912, when Bronco Billy Anderson started filming movies in the small East Bay town of Niles. Bronco Billy soon cast a little known Brit named Charlie Chaplin, who ended up filming 5 films in the area. While Niles is packed with Charlie Chaplin memorabilia, “The Tramp” was only in town for 3 months. This charming museum keeps their entertaining spirits alive.