Lords of Dogtown is a 2005 biopic about the Zephyr skateboard team. The film is based on the 2001 documentary called Dogtown and Z-Boys. This dramatization was written by original Z-Boy Stacy Peralta.
The production used a variety of locations in the Los Angeles area. Many of the Dogtown scenes were filmed in San Pedro, as gentrification in the original Dogtown area removed a lot of the gritty look needed for the time period.
Lords of Dogtown is one of my favourite films, and I’ve done a lot of research into the filming locations. I got some info from some of the cast and crew of the film, but a lot of the research was my own work. I was even able to discover some of the locations that no one from the film remembered. In May 2022 I flew to LA, put on my Zephyr Competition Team shirt, and went to check out all the locations!
UPDATE:
After tracking down and visiting a good number of locations from Lords of Dogtown, I discovered that friend and fellow location hunter Ryan from GoingToTheMovies was also a big fan of the movie. The movie had a profound influence on both of us.
Ryan and I worked together to find the other missing locations from the movie, and we were able to identify a good number of them. Shawn from FilmOblivion was also looking into the locations from the movie. Being a resident of the Los Angeles area, he was able to track down one of the swimming pool houses. From there, I was able to figure out the other pool houses, as they were all in the same area. Erin from ErinsNerdStuff was able to track down the location of the Del Mar competition. Between all of us, we’ve been able to track down almost every location from the movie.
Ryan has a number of great videos on YouTube page. His drone footage of filming locations in particular is pretty spectacular. We both traveled to LA for LocationCon 2023, and made plans to visit all the Lords of Dogtown locations. I picked Ryan up at LAX and we headed out. We spent two days visiting all the locations. I took a lot of new photos, while Ryan focused on taking video and getting drone footage.
A lot of info on this page has now been updated with the new photos that I took, including some pics of Ryan and me. These updates will feature some new locations that weren’t previously included. Also check out Ryan’s amazing video at the bottom of this page.
The Zephyr Shop
The production chose not to film at the original Zephyr Shop in Santa Monica. Instead, the shop was recreated in San Pedro. This was a tough location to track down, and it took a fair amount of work to locate it.
The building has been slightly altered since filming, and is now operated as a church. You can still imagine Heath Ledger on the roof tossing surfboards down to the street in a rage.
The street in front of the shop is seen as the team skates to and from the building. They also use the side alley during the film.
Before Ryan and I visited, I reached out to the church, and they were kind enough to give us exclusive access to visit inside. During filming, the space held the Zephyr Surf Shop in the front part of the building. The back portion of the space was the workshop where Skip and his crew would shape surfboards. As you can see in the below pictures, the wall was taken down to create one large space for the church. There are a couple small offices along the side wall, where the Zephyr cash register and counter once stood. The back has a door that leads to the rear yard area.
We see the back of the shop during several scenes in the movie, including the party where Jay gets in a fight. This space is now divided by fences for the different businesses.
Imperial Beach Pier
Pacific Ocean Pier appears several times throughout the film. The actual pier, which stood between Santa Monica and Venice Beach, was demolished in 1975 and almost nothing remains. In order to recreate the pier and it’s theme park, production had to find a classic looking pier that hasn’t been overly modernized. They settled on Imperial Beach Pier, located south of San Diego, near the California-Mexico border. The production built a temporary addition to the pier, including an old ferris wheel that they found on eBay. They also used CGI to enhance the look of the pier and add more of the old theme park. The long shot at the start of the film actually shows Santa Monica Beach, but with the pier added digitally.
Jay Adams’ House
Jay Adams’ house was seen several times throughout the film. This is where we see Jay jumping off the garage and landing in the back alley, where he skates away.
Tony Alva’s 1st House
Tony actually lives in two different houses during the film. The first house is from before he gets successful. This house is where we see a party going on, and there’s a scene with Jay hitting on Kathy after her breakup with Stacy. These scenes take place on the sidewalk in front of the house.
Tony Alva’s 2nd House
Later in the movie, we see Tony living at a different house. It isn’t mentioned, but the likely reason is that Tony has become successful in skateboarding and had the money to move his family to a better house. We see the front of the house where Topper Burks arrives in a limo to speak with Tony.
Stacy Peralta’s House
Stacy’s house is also located in San Pedro. There isn’t really get a good view of the house in the film. We mostly see Stacy in his driveway, with the houses across the street in the background. The deleted scenes do show his house in more detail.. There have been drastic changes to the house design and landscaping since filming.
Skating Alley behind Tony’s House
There is a brief scene where the Z-Boys are skating in the alley behind Tony’s (1st) house. The skaters leave the alley and skate across a busy street. This is where we see Sid stumble off his board and fall to the ground. This is the first indication of his coming condition.
School Skating Scene
When the skaters first discover the polyurethane wheels, they head to a local school to skate the yard. We see the Z-Boys scale a chainlink fence, which was used in many of the promo shots. They then use the banked pavement to explore the new tricks they could do with the wheels.
The school’s yard has been changed over the years. The fence has been replaced, and some trees and gardens have been placed in the yard, which would make skating now virtually impossible.
We were given special access to the school yard. Please remember this is a functioning school and you should never trespass or take photos while children are around.
The Aqueducts
Soon after they discover the power of their new wheels, we see the Z-Boys skating in an old aqueduct that has dried up. The production used a spot in the San Diego area to film this scene. This was originally supposed to be shot at the pier, but due to water contamination warnings, they shifted filming to these aqueducts to avoid losing a day of production.
Del Mar Competition
After learning to skate with the new wheels, the Zephyr team enters the Del Mar Competition. This is where the Z-Boys make their first comp appearance, shocking the judges with their style. To recreate the competition, the production used the parking lot of a church in Pasadena. They built a large ramp, along with a wooden freestyle platform for the skaters to compete on.
When the Z-Boys first enter, they enter through an archway into the parking lot. They then approach the registration table where Skip declares “Here’s our entry fees. Now where’s our trophies?”
While the Z-boys sit on bails of hay along the side, the boys take their turns competing in the freestyle part of the competition. While other skaters perform more gymnastic styles, the Z-boys break out their surf-inspired style.
At one end of the parking lot is a structure with a roof. This was used to hold all the competition trophies.
Once the competition ends, the characters head to their cars. For this, the production used another church parking lot, just across the street. This is where Skip calls Stacy “Bro”, making him very happy!
Skate Demonstration
The skate demo that the Z-Boys attend was filmed at Marina Del Rey. The area with the lighthouse is the Fisherman’s Village shopping area, which overlooks the Marina. If you happen to visit, just walk about 100 feet to the right, and you’ll be at the Boatshed from NCIS: Los Angeles.
We see a clip of Stacy signing autographs for young fans. This was also filmed here at Fisherman’s Village, but down a bit from where the other scenes were filmed.
Bombing Bicknell Hill
The Bicknell Avenue stretch from Ocean Avenue to the beach is where a famous photo of the original Jay Adams was taken as he bombs the hill. Lords of Dogtown recreated this scene with Emile Hirsch in the exact same location.
After bombing the hill, Jay catches up with Stacy and Kathy in a nearby parking lot by the beach. This was filmed in the parking lot and the bottom of the hill, in Santa Monica Lot 4 South.
Seal Beach Gas Station
The location of the gas station is not actually in Seal Beach, but in San Pedro. It is now a barbeque restaurant called Whiskey Flats.
Bus Stunt
One of the biggest action sequences we see in Lords of Dogtown is when Tony, Stacy, and Jay grab hold of the back of a bus and get pulled on their skateboards. The bus driver swerves to try and shake them off. As the driver turns a corner, the heroes continue forward, skating at a high speed between cars in front of a school. This sequence was filmed in San Pedro, in front of Bandini Street Elementary School.
Jay Skating In The Alley
There is a brief scene of Jay skating in an alley at night. This was filmed along the Speedway in Venice Beach, right near Dudley Avenue.
Venice Patty Slap
The movie features a scene where the Z-Boys are having burgers by the beach. A pissed-off Skip Engblom shows up and uses a burger to slap Jay. This was filmed right at Venice Beach where Market Street ends.
International Skateboarding Championships
The International Skateboarding Championships near the end of the movie was filmed at the Arena at the Long Beach Convention Center. The arena opened in 1962 and maintained the classic look that fit with the 70s time period of the movie.
The arena has a long history, hosting the Los Angeles Kings first season, Elvis concerts, and part of the 1984 Olympics. The outside walls have a large mural by artist Wyland, and is one of the many “Whaling Walls” he’s painted.
Rae’s Diner
In Lords of Dogtown, the whole skateboard team has lunch after a competition. This is where Stacy Peralta is offered a spot on the team and given his Zephyr shirt. This was filmed at Rae’s Restaurant at 2901 Pico Blvd, which is in Santa Monica but away from the beach area. The restaurant has been used often as a filming location, and they’ve recently set up an outdoor patio as well.
Venice Noodle Company
We see Sid, Jay, and Jay’s mom having a meal at a restaurant that Stacy works at. After, we see Stacy out back of the restaurant on his skateboard. It is named the Venice Noodle Company, which used to be an actual restaurant that the real Stacy Peralta worked at. These scenes were filmed at Chez Jay, a restaurant in Santa Monica. The rear of the building has changed quite a bit, and now has a patio with extra seating for diners.
Stacy Meets Jay in Parking Lot
Near the end of the film, Stacy and his new girlfriend are in a parking lot and get out of the car to look at the ocean. They soon get hassled by some punks, only to discover that Jay is part of that group. Jay calls off his gang and has a chat with Stacy. The parking lot used is located adjacent to The Venice Beach Bar and Kitchen, located at 323 Ocean Front Walk.
Pool Houses
Throughout Lords of Dogtown, the Z Boys skate a number of swimming pools, which are all empty due to the Los Angeles drought that occurred in the 1970s.
1st Pool House
The first house the boys hit belongs to a girl they met at the party. She let’s them know the family is going out of town. The boys park across the street and wait for family to leave. Then they sneak around to the backyard to skate the pool. As they aren’t used to skating a pool, they take several spills, including a particularly nasty bail by Sid.
2nd Pool House
After scouting other houses, the guys next find a house with a bean shaped pool. The pool has a bit of water in the bottom, leading to a wet bail for one of the skaters.
3rd Pool House
The third house we see has a canopy over the patio in the backyard. Kristian Peterson (as Wentzle Ruml) stands on the roof next door as a look-out. Jay and Sid are inside hitting on the woman of the house, at least until her husband gets home. He chases them outside and the boys escape down the hill.
4th Pool House
The last pool house we see is where the cops show up. The boys try and hop the fence into another yard, but a couple mean dogs stop them. So they run out to the front of the house, where a cop is waiting. The boys disperse and run in various directions. Some hop in their cars, leaving poor Sid to try and get away on his own.
The house hasn’t changed a lot, but I did notice that the smaller garage door has been removed, likely to make more room in the house. The larger garage door remains.
Jay and the Old Ladies
As the characters are driving, Jay shouts out the car window at two older women walking along the sidewalk. This scene was filmed at the old Camera Obscura building on Ocean Blvd. It’s only a couple blocks from Santa Monica Pier.
Tony and Topper talk to Jay
Tony and Topper spot Jay while driving by. They stop and talk to Jay for a couple minutes. These scenes were filmed just a block away from the Zephyr Shop. The building behind Jay hasn’t changed much since filming occurred.
Charlie’s Angels Scene
During the montage showing the Z Boys’ rise to fame, Stacy Peralta makes an appearance on the show Charlie’s Angels. These recreated scenes were filmed at the courthouse facade on the Warner Bros. Backlot in Burbank.
Here is a look at the scene from the original Charlie’s Angels. It was clearly filmed at a real building in LA, as opposed to a backlot.
London Scene
We see Stacy Peralta in London during this montage. These scenes were also filmed at Warner Bros Studios, just a few feet away from the Courthouse. A small alleyway was dressed with stereotypical props like Union Jack flags and a British phone booth.
We also see Tony coming out of a London hotel. This was also filmed at Warner Bros. They used a building with a marquee to create the hotel entrance.
Astronaut Scene
Another part of the montage shows Stacy meeting an astronaut, played by Tony Hawk. The scenes were filmed in front of the Columbia Pictures offices on the Sony Pictures Studios lot.
Green Screens
During the above montage where we see the Z-Boys gaining fame, we see Stacy and Tony traveling the world. To save money, instead of flying the cast to international locations, the movie used some green screens for these brief shots. We see shots of the Seattle skyline, the Eiffel Tower, and the Golden Gate Bridge.
The Dog Bowl
While the original Dog Bowl was located in Santa Monica, the producers used a home in Pasadena for the Lords of Dogtown version. Instead of using an existing pool, they built the swimming pool from scratch, and then filled it in once filming was done.
The elusive location of the LOD Dog Bowl has long been a secret. Ryan even touches on the topic in his video. I can confirm, however, that with a lot of research and some clues from some of the cast and crew, I now know the location. I have not yet decided quite how to present this info, so please stay tuned to this page for developments.
Original Zephyr Shop
The original Zephyr Shop is located at 2003 Main St. in Santa Monica. This location didn’t appear in Lords of Dogtown, but is a can’t-miss stop for anyone interested in skateboarding history. Officially called Jeff Ho Surfboards and Zephyr Productions, the shop closed down in the late 70s but reopened at Horizons West Surf Shop. This shop operated for many years before closing in 2010. It is now a cafe called Dogtown Coffee.
The interior displays murals, skateboards, and props associated with the history of the building. The building is also designated as a historical site.
At the back is a large mural dedicated to original Z-Boy Jay Adams, who passed away in 2014. The mural can be hard to see at times, due to being in the parking lot.
The 1956 Chevy
Lords of Dogtown features a 1964 Chevy Impala Wagon. The owner of the screen-used car recently reached out to me, providing some info about the car and how he purchased it. I will have an interview coming shortly, but here are some photos he provided. As you can see, the car is currently not street-worthy, but he has plans to restore it.
GoingToTheMovie’s Video
As I mentioned above, Ryan has put together a phenomenal video of all the Lords of Dogtown locations that we’ve visited. He has some great drone footage and comparison shots in here as well. I hope you’ll take the time to watch, as it’s really well done.
LA Explorer’s Video
When I visited the Lords of Dogtown locations in 2022, my friend Jarod joined me and made a short video for his LA Explorers series. Ignore the horrific look on my face and check out the video:
When the movie came out, a companion book featuring photographs from the filming process was also released. Take a look at my page about filming location books for more details.
If you have any questions or thoughts about Lords of Dogtown or the filming locations, please share with me in the comment section below.
