For Boulder cinephiles, going to the movies this winter comes with the opportunity to see some familiar sights on the big screen.
In the new thriller "Elevation," which came out last month, an apocalyptic event has forced humanity to live exclusively above 8,000 feet. The movie stars Anthony Mackie, of Marvel fame, who fights to protect his family from terrifying creatures.
Several of the movie's tense action scenes and landscape shots of the Rocky Mountains were shot in Boulder County in 2022.
"We love to show off our town," said Boulder County Film Commissioner Bruce Borowsky. "We're very proud of it, and we love having filmmakers see just how beautiful it is here."
The Boulder County Film Commission's role in "Elevation" was to help the movie's location manager identify places where the crew could shoot specific scenes.
One of those scenes featured the former Boulder Community Hospital on Broadway. The campus, which was deconstructed in 2023, served as the site of the film's fictional "Boulder Hospital."
"They made a vinyl banner that said 'Boulder Hospital,' Borowsky said. "There's never been any place called Boulder Hospital. So it's kind of funny, like an inside joke."
Other local landmarks in the film include the Flatirons as seen from Chautauqua Park, and the mountain community of Gold Hill.
One of the Boulder County Film Commission's duties is to bring more large-scale video productions to the county. A movie like "Elevation" can help that happen, Borowsky explained.
"When other filmmakers see this film, they'll go, 'Oh wow, where was that shot?'" Borowsky said. "When we're talking to people who are thinking about coming here, we're very proud to be able to say we have the infrastructure to support whatever your production's needs are."
"Elevation" also brought an economic boost to Boulder by using local resources to house, feed and transport the cast and crew. The film might also inspire its fans to visit Boulder County, increasing tourism in the area.
"You can imagine the economic impact when a film comes to a town," Borowsky said. "These kinds of things bring so much money into a community."
Tom Parkin, deputy Boulder County film commissioner, attended a cast and crew screening of "Elevation" in Boulder a week before the film's official release. As someone who grew up in Boulder, Parkin said it was fun to see the city represented in a Hollywood feature.
"It did show the beautiful mountains and some great aerial shots of Boulder," Parkin said of the film. "When they're racing to the hospital, I can see my old house there, at Fifth and Alpine."
"Elevation" isn't the only film to take advantage of Boulder County's magic. Actors from Robert Redford to Jennifer Garner have starred in movies that showcase the Pearl Street Mall and the NCAR Mesa Lab, among others. Films shot in Boulder include "The Glenn Miller Story" from 1954; "Downhill Racer" from 1969; "Sleeper" from 1973; and "Catch and Release" from 2006.
Longmont, Lyons, Niwot, Nederland and Hygiene have also gotten in on the action by serving as locations for the 2016 film "Dear Eleanor."
"We have everything you need as a filmmaker here except the ocean - mountains, plains, a college town, a metropolitan city just down the road," Parkin said. "We want these projects to come here. It helps our community, it helps our film industry. It's a win-win for everyone when films are shot here."
Francisca Bastias, an assistant with the Boulder County Film Commission, is studying film at the University of Colorado Boulder. She remembered how excited her fellow film students were when Anthony Mackie was in town a couple of years ago.
"I was a freshman at CU, and it was what everybody was talking about," Bastias said.
Bastias said that Boulder's charm and beauty makes the city a great setting for films.