In 1998, Talaat Captan was a writer and movie producer shooting scenes in an airport for the movie Ground Control, starring Kiefer Sutherland. After experiencing great difficulty coordinating the logistics involved with filming in an active airport, Mr. Captan knew that there had to be a better way. A self described aviation enthusiast himself, he founded Air Hollywood shortly after filming wrapped. The goal of Air Hollywood is to have a studio where all types of aviation scenes can be produced in a film-friendly environment. We recently visited the Air Hollywood studios and got to see all that they had to offer.
Right this way, please!
We started with a tour of their collection of full aircraft sets. Air Hollywood has several complete aircraft interiors that can be quickly and easily reconfigured to not only provide a wide variety of interior looks, but also permit filming from any angle necessary. Instead of replicating particular types of aircraft exactly, they have three more generic interiors. As we entered the building, we stepped into a scenery piece that was built to look like a jet bridge. Just like you would board an airliner, we walked down the ramp and turned a corner to see what looked to be the entrance door of a aircraft. However this was not an aircraft at all, but rather the studio’s widebody set. With a shell made of wood and an interior made of aircraft cabin panels, this piece of scenery was somewhere between a Boeing 767 and an Airbus A330 in width. In the condition that we toured it, it was equipped with a small business class cabin and a slightly larger economy class cabin. All components of the cabin can be removed and replaced in a matter of minutes versus the several hours that a real aircraft would require. The entire aircraft interior, including the seats, were all purchased used. Mr. Captan explained to us that new components are cost prohibitive. For example, one first class seat alone can cost upwards of $30,000 when purchased as new, while the used cost is a fraction of that.
Surely you can’t be serious!? We are serious, this is the actual flight deck used in the movie “Airplane!”
Next we stepped inside their Learjet cabin, which was an actual cabin fuselage section from a decommissioned business jet. This was followed by the first of two narrowbody cabins. Entering the cabin, we found that it was surprisingly spacious inside. The cabin was noticeably wider than a 737 or even an A320 interior. Mr. Captan explained that it had been built wider than normal in order to provide a more suitable space for filming. Both of these interiors have wall and ceiling panels that can be removed as needed in order to allow the camera angles required for a specific production. Attached to the front of this set was the flight deck of a vintage aircraft. However this wasn’t just any flight deck, this was one of the most famous in all of aviation having been used in the production of the movie Airplane!. Mr. Captan mentioned that it had been inherited by Air Hollywood from a previous owner and that it still saw use as an set today.
Next door was the second narrowbody set in the Air Hollywood inventory. This one has been built on a platform over a system of airbags. These airbags can be dynamically inflated and deflated to allow the filming of scenes that require the aircraft interior to move. Takeoff, landing, and even turbulence scenes are all possible! [Not a valid template]
In this checkpoint, body scanners are optional!
Leaving the aircraft sets, we next headed into the studio’s airport terminal set. This set can be easily reconfigurable to act as any part of the airport experience from check-in to security, and the boarding gate to baggage claim. When we were touring for example, it was set up as a security checkpoint that entered directly into a small waiting area, leading to a gate area in an adjacent section. From seats to signs to the ubiquitous grey TSA bins, Air Hollywood stocks pretty much anything necessary to turn the space into the desired part of the terminal. Had we not just walked onto the set from outside, we would have easily been fooled into thinking that we were in an actual airport.
Need an airplane? Not in LA? These seating pallets can come to you!
Passing through the parking lot, we passed one of six palletized seating units that are part of the Air Hollywood inventory. These units are useful when only a segment of an aircraft cabin is needed. They are also easily transportable by truck to locations around the country, providing an onsite set for filming on demand.
Finally, we entered into the costume and properties departments. Entering the building, we first passed the racks that hold the selection of airline and airport employee uniforms stocked for rental. The wide variety of flight attendant uniforms, spanning several decades, was especially impressive. Moving towards the rear of the building, we saw racks and shelves containing every possible item that might be needed to recreate the flying experience, no matter the generation. Mr. Talaat was particularly proud of the original Pan Am seats, complete with seatbelts bearing the classic logo. Another interesting item, stashed against a wall, were a set of first class suites from Emirates. These had been used during the filming of Sex and the City 2. No detail is too small for Air Hollywood to stock in its inventory. One shelf housed several dozen beer bottles of various colors and shapes, each of which had a replica label on it so as not to inadvertently advertise a particular brand.
Once upon a time, this was the business end of a 727. Today it is being rebuilt into a fully functional movie set complete with switches that click and lights that glow.
Also housed within the properties building was the studio’s small restoration facility. A current project was a 727 flight deck that had been carefully sliced into 2 pieces. This particular piece was in the midst of being rehabilitated so that each switch and lever could be manipulated and each light could be individually illuminated. Air Hollywood has a licensed aircraft mechanic on staff to work on these projects. Though the various parts and pieces will never see service on a working airliner again, its the experience of the mechanic with aircraft systems that makes employing a licensed mechanic valuable.
Of course, when you have all of the pieces needed to recreate any desired aviation scene for a movie, there is so much more that you can do. In recent years, the staff at Air Hollywood have developed a pair of training classes to help those unfamiliar or uncomfortable with the flying experience. Their first class, the K9 Flight School, takes dogs and their owners through the full experience of commercial flight. Checking in, clearing security, boarding, and de-boarding are all included in the experience. There is even a simulated flight with turbulence included. The K9 Flight School was launched after Mr. Captan witnessed a dog and handler who were having great difficulty with the airport experience. For those who are aerophobic, the studio has more recently added a Fear of Flying class. This class combines a similar simulated travel experience with classes about aviation safety. Finally, they wrap up the day with a therapist experienced in treating those who are afraid to fly.
Visiting Air Hollywood was an excellent look into the “movie magic” that goes into shooting aviation scenes. Though the facility is relatively compact, they manage to cram just about every possible aspect of the airline industry inside their walls. Mr Captan and his staff show an obvious passion for not only the film industry but for the aviation industry as well. The attention to detail that they have put into every item in their inventory from the widebody set to the beer bottles helps to create an image that is virtually indistinguishable from that which would be seen by shooting in an actual aircraft or airport. More importantly, they are able to film these scenes without the dog’s breakfast of hassles that come with working inside a secure, active airport.
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