FADE IN: A storyboard for a film shot almost nowhere it is set
Ben Affleck’s 2012 film is set in Tehran in 1979. Its Tehran was made elsewhere. Nine frames follow; shoot each one to see where.
Shoot the frames
Each frame is headed with the scene the film sets there. Shoot it and the pencil develops into the place it was really made.
0 of 9 frames shot · 0 of 4 Tehran frames shot
Nine frames on the sheet. Choose one to shoot.
Nothing on the table yet.
Shoot a frame to see its place, what it stood in for and how to see it.
No Tehran
The District of Columbia film office’s 2011 report says Istanbul stood in for Tehran.
| Scene | Made at | In |
|---|---|---|
| EXT. US EMBASSY, TEHRAN, 1979 | Sepulveda VA | North Hills, Los Angeles |
| INT. CANADIAN AMBASSADOR’S RESIDENCE | Hancock Park | Hancock Park, Los Angeles |
| EXT. MEHRABAD AIRPORT, TEHRAN | Ontario Airport | Ontario, California |
| EXT. THE BAZAAR, TEHRAN | Grand Bazaar | Istanbul |
Discover Los Angeles says an unused terminal at Ontario International Airport stood in for Mehrabad Airport in Tehran. Wikipedia says the airport opened in 1923 as Latimer Field and is about 38 miles east of downtown Los Angeles.
It says ten streets and 150 shops in the Grand Bazaar were rented, with signs changed to resemble Tehran’s covered bazaar. It says the Istanbul shoot lasted two weeks and used five thousand extras.
That is a wrap
The Valley street, downtown, Hollywood, Burbank and Ontario can be seen from public ground, as can the Grand Bazaar and the State Department’s street. The two Los Angeles homes are private; they are named by neighbourhood or road and not pinned.
6 places you can visit in Los Angeles, Istanbul and Washington, plus two private homes named by street or neighbourhood only.
Pins mark public places; private homes are named but not pinned.
Site reference · Restricted access · Not an exact scene or camera position; not a visitor route. A working Veterans Affairs medical site. Stay on the public pavement of Plummer Street and Sepulveda Boulevard; the photograph shows the nearby street corner, not the building.
Building reference · Public access · Not an exact scene or camera position; not a visitor route. A downtown block seen from the pavement at 1st and Spring Streets. The CIA scenes were shot in a basement, which is not open to visitors.
Building reference · Public access · Not an exact scene or camera position; not a visitor route. Working offices, mostly for the entertainment trade. Look from Sunset Boulevard; check before walking in.
Site reference · Restricted access · Not an exact scene or camera position; not a visitor route. A working studio lot. The public Warner Bros. Studio Tour Hollywood is the way in; book ahead.
Site reference · Public access · Not an exact scene or camera position; not a visitor route. A working airport, about 38 miles east of downtown Los Angeles. Arrivals and departures are public; the old terminal is not.
Los Angeles area · 16111 Plummer Street, North Hills, Los Angeles
Discover Los Angeles says the Sepulveda VA in North Hills stood in for the 1979 takeover of the US Embassy in Tehran, the scene that opens the film.
A working Veterans Affairs medical site. Stay on the public pavement of Plummer Street and Sepulveda Boulevard; the photograph shows the nearby street corner, not the building.
Los Angeles area · 1st and Spring Streets, Downtown Los Angeles
Discover Los Angeles says the Los Angeles Times Building at 1st and Spring Streets was used for the CIA’s offices and conference rooms.
A downtown block seen from the pavement at 1st and Spring Streets. The CIA scenes were shot in a basement, which is not open to visitors.
Los Angeles area · 6671 Sunset Boulevard, Hollywood
Discover Los Angeles says Siegel and Mendez visit Crossroads of the World, at Sunset Boulevard and Las Palmas Avenue, to option the script.
Working offices, mostly for the entertainment trade. Look from Sunset Boulevard; check before walking in.
Los Angeles area · 4000 Warner Boulevard, Burbank
Discover Los Angeles says the Warner Bros. lot in Burbank housed the fake Studio Six Productions office, and its backlot is where Mendez and Siegel share a takeout lunch.
A working studio lot. The public Warner Bros. Studio Tour Hollywood is the way in; book ahead.
Los Angeles area · East Airport Drive, Ontario, California
Discover Los Angeles says an unused terminal at Ontario International Airport stood in for Mehrabad Airport in Tehran.
A working airport, about 38 miles east of downtown Los Angeles. Arrivals and departures are public; the old terminal is not.
Stay
A 1927 hotel on Hollywood Boulevard.
Hollywood Boulevard, Los Angeles
A 1927 Spanish Colonial Revival hotel on Hollywood Boulevard, in the Hollywood neighbourhood of the film’s option scene. Pictured: Crossroads of the World, 2008.
Check roomsGo there
The studio tour in Burbank, and marketplace results for the Grand Bazaar and Los Angeles film locations.
Burbank, Los Angeles
A guided and self-guided tour of the lot in Burbank where the fake Studio Six office was built. The page warns that the backlot varies daily with production. Pictured: the water tower, 2020.
Plan a tourBeyazıt, Istanbul
Live marketplace results for guided visits to the Grand Bazaar, the market re-signed to play Tehran. Check each itinerary.
Live marketplace results · itineraries change
Compare toursLos Angeles
Live marketplace results for movie and TV location tours of Los Angeles. Check which pass downtown and Hollywood.
Live marketplace results · itineraries change
Compare toursWhat’s on
Nothing dated for the film is listed at these places now.
No current dated events are listed. Check providers for the latest programme.
Dates, prices, rooms and stock change: confirm with the provider before you travel or buy. A stay or tour is described as a filming location only where the card says so.
Every place and moment behind this page, with sources.
9 of 9 places · 9 of 9 stories
16111 Plummer Street, North Hills, Los Angeles
The 1979 embassy takeover that opens the film is shot at a Los Angeles Veterans Affairs site.
Hancock Park, Los Angeles (private homes; street not named)
A Hancock Park home plays the Canadian ambassador’s residence, where six Americans shelter.
1st and Spring Streets, Downtown Los Angeles
The CIA’s offices and conference rooms are built in the basement of a downtown newspaper building.
Bel Air Road, Bel-Air, Los Angeles (a private home; number not given)
A Bel-Air house plays the producer’s home where Mendez finds the “Argo” script.
6671 Sunset Boulevard, Hollywood
Siegel and Mendez meet to option the script at a Hollywood landmark.
4000 Warner Boulevard, Burbank
The fake Studio Six office and the lunch on the backlot are shot on the Warner Bros. lot.
East Airport Drive, Ontario, California
An unused terminal at Ontario airport plays Tehran’s Mehrabad Airport.
Beyazıt, Fatih, Istanbul
Istanbul stands in for Tehran; the Grand Bazaar is re-signed for the film.
Foggy Bottom, Washington, DC
The crew films downtown and near the State Department in the week of 21 November 2011.
Places to stay
A notable hotel in Los Angeles.
Los Angeles · Source · Check dates on Expedia (Ad / affiliate)
Hosted the first Academy Awards ceremony in 1929, across from the Chinese Theatre.
7000 Hollywood Boulevard, Hollywood, Los Angeles, 90028 · Source · Check dates on Expedia (Ad / affiliate)
A downtown landmark that has stood in for hotels in dozens of films, Ghostbusters among them.
506 South Grand Avenue, Downtown, Los Angeles, 90071 · Source · Check dates on Expedia (Ad / affiliate)
What’s on
Warner Bros. Studio Tour Hollywood · 50 m from Warner Bros. Studios, Studio Six
Catalina Jazz Club · 150 m from Crossroads of the World
The Regent Theater · 650 m from Los Angeles Times Building, the CIA
We may earn a commission on qualifying hotel bookings. Affiliate disclosure.
Links go to each venue’s or organiser’s own site. Check dates, access and availability there before you go.
Every place in Argo leads somewhere else.
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