Maryland has played a star role in the filming of many big-name movies. Along with being a premier filming location, the Old Line State has also been home to many of Hollywood's most well-known actors and actresses. Vacationers can explore Maryland's film offerings by visiting the shooting locations of films made in the state, or by taking a trip to its historical Silver Theater. To top it off, Maryland film festivals present a variety of new movies throughout the year.
Movies Filmed in Maryland
While visiting Maryland, you may come across sites that have been used as filming locations for various movies and even television shows. Die Hard: With a Vengeance (1995), the third installment of the four-part movie series, shot several scenes at the Tuckers Inn in Jessup. The action-packed film starred Bruce Willis and Samuel L. Jackson. The 1998 film Beloved, starring Oprah Winfrey and Danny Glover, was shot at Maryland's Fair Hill Natural Resources Area, a nature preserve in northeastern Maryland.
A number of movies shot in the state were filmed in the city of Baltimore, including Enemy of the State (1998), Along Came a Spider (2001), and Red Dragon (2002), which had some scenes shot at the Baltimore Sun newspaper and in Sykesville. Another movie starring Bruce Willis shot in Maryland is Twelve Monkeys (1995), which was filmed in Baltimore at the Washington International Airport, Mount Vernon, Senator Theatre, and the Westport Power Plant. Filmmaker John Waters, a Baltimore native, uses both the city and state as major shooting locations for his films, including Pink Flamingos (1972), Hairspray (1988), Cry-Baby (1990), and Cecil B. DeMented (2000).
Big-Screen Talent
As well as being a filming location for many big-screen hits, Maryland has also been home to a number of well-known cinematic talents, including famous actors and actresses.
Maryland's film industry A-list includes filmmaker and puppeteer Jim Henson, best known for his creation of The Muppets and the long-running children's program Sesame Street. Although Henson wasn't born in Maryland, he and his family moved to Hyattsville in the late 1940s, where he was raised as a Christian Scientist. During his adolescence, the family got their first television set. He was highly influenced by the early T.V. puppets of Burr Tillstrom and Bil and Cora Baird. While attending the University of Maryland at College Park, Henson majored in studio arts, but a puppetry class in the applied arts department encouraged him to change his studies to Home Economics, in which he earned his Bachelors of Science. As a freshman, he created the five-minute puppet show Sam and Friends, in which the future Muppet characters were already apparent.
Baltimore native John Astin rose to fame in his role as Gomez Addams on the television series The Addams Family. His film credentials include Freaky Friday (1976), Teen Wolf Too (1987), and the Return of the Killer Tomatoes (1988). Actress Linda Hamilton was born in Salisbury. Best known for playing Sarah Connor in Terminator, Terminator 2: Judgment Day and Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines, she also starred in the award-winning T.V. show Beauty and the Beast. Hamilton's other movie credits include Children of the Corn and King Kong Lives. Other names on Maryland's silver-screen roster include David Hasselhoff (Footloose), Goldie Hawn (The First Wives Club), comedian Martin Lawrence, Edward Norton, Jada Pinkett Smith, and Anna Faris (the Scary Movie films).
Historic Movie Houses
Maryland has several theaters where visitors can catch a film in a historic setting. The Silver Theatre was built in 1938 in Silver Spring. Designed by renowned theater architect John Eberson, the building is one of the best remaining examples of Art Deco cinema architecture in the state. The theater played a big role in the growth of the city during the 1940s and 1950s, but saw a decline in popularity during the 1970s. Several groups, including the Art Deco Society of Washington, started making efforts to preserve the movie theater in 1984. Their work paid off, and the Silver Theatre was put on the National Register of Historic Places, becoming a part of Montgomery County's plan for historic preservation. In the late 1990s, the theater underwent large-scale reconstruction and restoration, and was used as the headquarters for the American Film Institute.
With the renovations complete, the Silver Theatre has been rededicated as the AFI Silver Theatre and Cultural Center. Its doors are now open and its screens re-lit with state-of-the-art technology. The AFI Silver Theatre features two stadium theaters, an office and meeting space, a café offering traditional movie munchies and gourmet treats, as well as reception and exhibit areas.
The building that now houses the Charles Theatre in Baltimore is a unique establishment that has been around for more than a century. Renowned architect Jackson C. Gott designed the building in 1892 to be a cable car barn on the north side and a powerhouse on the south side. Since then, the building has been used as a streetcar barn, bus barn, library for the blind, and the Famous Ballroom until 1939. That year, the Times Theater opened on the site as the first Baltimore movie house devoted entirely to newsreels. Around 1959, the theater was re-named The Charles, and a 1999 building expansion provided four additional screening rooms. Presently, the 1150-seat theater offers first-run specialty films along with Hollywood blockbusters.
Film Festivals
Another way of scoping out Maryland's cinema scene is at film festivals. There are a number of festivals held throughout the state that feature screenings of movies that may not have been widely released. The Maryland Film Festival in Baltimore is a weekend-long event where new and up-and-coming filmmakers show off their work. The festival offers food and lots of film fun for visitors to the Baltimore area. The Strathmore Comcast Outdoor Film Festival takes place on the lawn of Strathmore Hall in Bethesda, offering free outdoor movie showings. This film festival, which in the past has shown such films as The Devil Wears Prada and The DaVinci Code, is the perfect place to enjoy a movie date under the stars. Other outdoor film festivals in Maryland include the WB50 Outdoor Movies in Silver Spring and Columbia's Lakefront Summer Festival Movies.
Catching a movie is easy in Maryland. Along with the historic AFI Silver Theatre, you'll find many cinema houses throughout the state playing the latest blockbuster hits and independent flicks. Whether you want to see a showing of the newest movie release, visit the city where your favorite film was shot, or check out the newest talents in the film industry at a film festival, Maryland provides plenty of cinematic offerings to please movie buffs.
