With its breathtaking natural vistas, opulent homes, and throwback architectural charm you would think that Celebration Florida would be an ideal backdrop for a lot of Hollywood productions. Oddly enough, that's not the case. There are only a handful of films, documentaries, and short films set in the 34747. Let's explore.
We can start with full-length features. There is one movie set entirely in Celebration -- Sean Hackett's coming-of-age Homecoming. Filmed in 2011, it stars Brea Grant from Dexter and Eastsiders fame as an Army medic on leave visiting her mom -- Colleen Camp, B-movie star probably best known as the maid Yvette in Clue -- in their hometown of Celebration. The film doesn't appear to be available digitally, streaming, or on DVD in 2020, though it did generate some festival buzz when it was released in 2011.
Homecoming Trailer from Homecoming by Sean Hackett on Vimeo.
The trailer features a few neighborhoods and downtown shots including Celebration K-8, and what is now the Bohemian Hotel. An actual clip from the movie available online is filmed in Downtown Celebration.
Homecoming by Sean Hackett - Clip 1 from Homecoming by Sean Hackett on Vimeo.
Another film that was shot partly in Celebration -- and mostly in adjacent Old Town -- in 2015 is MarVista's Characterz, starring Mitch Musso of Hannah Montana fame. It details like as a costumed character actor at a fictional theme park, but school and residential scenes are shot in Celebration. The trailer doesn't feature any shots of Celebration, but at least the film is easily accessible online. It's currently available through Amazon Prime Video at no additional cost to Prime subscribers.
Moving on to documentaries, the most popular movie filmed partly in Celebration is the capitalism-skewering The Corporation. Spoiler alert: Celebration isn't portrayed in a positive light, but if you can look past that, shortly after the 1 hour, 19 minute mark you do see some archival footage of Goodings before it became Thai Thani as well as an early version of the Now Snowing holiday event.
There is also an entire documentary about Celebration called The Bubble. It's also not entirely flattering, but it obviously has a lot of great shots of the town that Disney built.
Moving on to short films, there are plenty of short-run videos shot in Celebration. Two that happened to be shot in the Lake Evalyn neighborhood is Mr. Bubbs by Todd Thompson in 2007 (there is some gore at the end of that clip, so just a heads up) and Just The Funny's Board to Death in 2020. Contrasting the two videos (Mr. Bubbs is filmed entirely on Lake Evalyn Drive and Board to Death's opening and closing shot also overlooks the lake) shows how foliage has fleshed out the place in the 13-year span.
There have also been several commercials films in Celebration, but for now we'll leave this here. We'll update this piece as we find more films shot in Celebration, Florida.
Celebration Florida
Tuesday, May 12, 2020
Sunday, April 12, 2020
Will AMC Finally Give Up Celebration Lease?
It's a tale as old as time. When will something happen to the AMC-leased two-screen movie theater in Celebration, Florida that has been out of business since 2010? Speculation has been the only constant at the iconic structure in Downtown Celebration, but a new development in the COVID-19 cash crunch may finally open the door -- the box office if you will -- for a new tenant to finally take over.
It's been a decade since the projectors burned bright at AMC Celebration 2 in Celebration, Florida. AMC Entertainment has inexplicably continued to pay the lease, reportedly to keep the small shuttered theater from falling into the hands of a rival exhibitor. With the much larger AMC 24 at Disney Springs just a few miles away, it's easy to see why the country's largest movie theater chain would want to protect its turf. Regal would go on to open a multiplex a 15-minute drive east of AMC Celebration 2 -- and Studio Movie Grill opened a location a 13-minute west -- but AMC has the Disney World market essentially on lock.
Things could be about to change. The parent company of AMC Theatres has always been in a financial funk, but the coronavirus-fueled shutdown has ushered in a new era of desperation. According to Hollywood business tracker Deadline, AMC executive David Ellis sent out a letter to all of its landlords on March 27, informing them that it will no longer be paying rent starting in April. In short, AMC has set in motion the mechanism for an eventual eviction.
This is a game changer for folks that have been counting the days for the César Pelli-designed structure at 651 Front Street to be repurposed into an operating business. AMC and landlord Lexin haven't closed the door on a potential replacement to the original two-screen movie house. The site has been an active commercial real estate listing since at least 2015. The rub has always been the prohibitive cost for the sub-lease -- reportedly in the neighborhood of $25,000 a month -- and AMC's stingy approval standards of the proposed successor. Both of those conditions are now toast. AMC has apparently stopped paying the lease, and more importantly that means that Lexin has stopped receiving the rent payments.
Lexin will finally be financially motivated to find a replacement with AMC seemingly in default, and once the pandemic dust settles and evictions are allowed to take place you're going to see a flagship spot in Downtown Celebration finally hungry for a new tenant.
Whether it becomes a new theater and performance space or a new retailer or restaurant operator entirely moves in remains to be seen. A lot has changed since the original theater opened in 1996. There is a much larger and growing base of residents in Celebration, but there are also far fewer parking spaces available to support the new business than there was when AMC Celebration 2 was in business. One way or another, change seems as if it's finally coming to an iconic building that's been dark for 10 years.
It's been a decade since the projectors burned bright at AMC Celebration 2 in Celebration, Florida. AMC Entertainment has inexplicably continued to pay the lease, reportedly to keep the small shuttered theater from falling into the hands of a rival exhibitor. With the much larger AMC 24 at Disney Springs just a few miles away, it's easy to see why the country's largest movie theater chain would want to protect its turf. Regal would go on to open a multiplex a 15-minute drive east of AMC Celebration 2 -- and Studio Movie Grill opened a location a 13-minute west -- but AMC has the Disney World market essentially on lock.
Things could be about to change. The parent company of AMC Theatres has always been in a financial funk, but the coronavirus-fueled shutdown has ushered in a new era of desperation. According to Hollywood business tracker Deadline, AMC executive David Ellis sent out a letter to all of its landlords on March 27, informing them that it will no longer be paying rent starting in April. In short, AMC has set in motion the mechanism for an eventual eviction.
This is a game changer for folks that have been counting the days for the César Pelli-designed structure at 651 Front Street to be repurposed into an operating business. AMC and landlord Lexin haven't closed the door on a potential replacement to the original two-screen movie house. The site has been an active commercial real estate listing since at least 2015. The rub has always been the prohibitive cost for the sub-lease -- reportedly in the neighborhood of $25,000 a month -- and AMC's stingy approval standards of the proposed successor. Both of those conditions are now toast. AMC has apparently stopped paying the lease, and more importantly that means that Lexin has stopped receiving the rent payments.
Lexin will finally be financially motivated to find a replacement with AMC seemingly in default, and once the pandemic dust settles and evictions are allowed to take place you're going to see a flagship spot in Downtown Celebration finally hungry for a new tenant.
Whether it becomes a new theater and performance space or a new retailer or restaurant operator entirely moves in remains to be seen. A lot has changed since the original theater opened in 1996. There is a much larger and growing base of residents in Celebration, but there are also far fewer parking spaces available to support the new business than there was when AMC Celebration 2 was in business. One way or another, change seems as if it's finally coming to an iconic building that's been dark for 10 years.
Friday, June 10, 2016
Campus Street Takes a Summer Break
The street was closed on June 10, 2016, and the detours are a bit of a doozy, partly because of the winding alternate paths but also because of the one-way restrictions. If you are traveling south on Campus -- towards Downtown -- you either take a right on Greenbrier and a left on Starling Drive until you hit Celebration Avenue if you want to travel west of Campus or go left on Greenbrier, take a right on Longmeadow, and a right on Mulberry to head east or continue on Campus into Downtown. If you are going north on Campus then you can either take a right on Mulberry, left on Water Street, left on Golfpark, and left on Greenbrier to find your way back on Campus. You can also take a right on Mulberry, right on Celebration Avenue, right on Starling, and right on Greenbrier.
Good luck -- or you could just avoid Campus Street and all of the detours altogether, joining all of the tourists on Celebration Avenue and Celebration Boulevard. Enjoy your summer!
Monday, April 25, 2016
Disney Inches Closer to Celebration with World Drive Shopping Center Plans
Celebration residents -- or folks driving through the often congested I-4 -- may get some more retail options at the quieter end of the developed community.
Disney has filed plans for a 21-acre shopping center that will stretch down World Drive from Celebration Boulevard to I-4. Plans show 11 retail buildings with plenty of parking. The only details made public is that one of the largest parcels is earmarked for a neighborhood grocer. Publix is at Water Tower Shops at the other of Celebration, but residents living in the newer developments don't have a lot of options within walking distance. This should change things. It should provide an interesting dynamic with Celebration High School just across the street.
Disney's development arm hopes to start building the retail strip in January, 2017. Residents can now start assembling their personal wish lists of desired tenants.
Disney has filed plans for a 21-acre shopping center that will stretch down World Drive from Celebration Boulevard to I-4. Plans show 11 retail buildings with plenty of parking. The only details made public is that one of the largest parcels is earmarked for a neighborhood grocer. Publix is at Water Tower Shops at the other of Celebration, but residents living in the newer developments don't have a lot of options within walking distance. This should change things. It should provide an interesting dynamic with Celebration High School just across the street.
Disney's development arm hopes to start building the retail strip in January, 2017. Residents can now start assembling their personal wish lists of desired tenants.
Tuesday, June 23, 2015
Shoppes at Celebration Place
Construction activity at The Shoppes at Celebration Place is starting to pick up. The new retail and restaurant strip mall is going up at the intersection of 192 and Celebration Place, essentially wrapping around the existing Panera Bread location.
We're seen the tenant list already shake up since this initial filing several months ago. Five Guys took over the slot that initially went to BurgerFi. The other tenants -- Walgreens, Chipotle, Pei Wei, Subway, TooJay's -- have held firm, but there are some recent rumblings about TooJay's pulling out.
The plans filed for Shoppes at Celebration Place also include additional retail space, but there have been no news on potential restaurant, store, or service tenants.
Five Guys had initially announced that the new location will be the first in Florida to serve milkshakes. It was also aiming for a September opening, but that seems unlikely at this point judging by the state of construction. However, a partial opening before the end of the year of the new strip mall is still quite possible. We'll update this report as news develops.
We're seen the tenant list already shake up since this initial filing several months ago. Five Guys took over the slot that initially went to BurgerFi. The other tenants -- Walgreens, Chipotle, Pei Wei, Subway, TooJay's -- have held firm, but there are some recent rumblings about TooJay's pulling out.
The plans filed for Shoppes at Celebration Place also include additional retail space, but there have been no news on potential restaurant, store, or service tenants.
Five Guys had initially announced that the new location will be the first in Florida to serve milkshakes. It was also aiming for a September opening, but that seems unlikely at this point judging by the state of construction. However, a partial opening before the end of the year of the new strip mall is still quite possible. We'll update this report as news develops.
Tuesday, May 19, 2015
Celebration Resident Discounts
One of the many benefits to living in Celebration, Florida is that residents can get discounts at many area establishments. Whether you own or rent a place in Celebration, a trip to Town Hall to have your resident ID won't just open the doors to the many pools and parks in Celebration -- it's also yours to flash for marked down dining and shopping.
Here are some of the active discounts:
Here are some of the active discounts:
- Confetti -- 10% off regular priced items
- Market Street Gallery -- 10% off regular priced items
- Soft as A Grape -- 10% off
- Unique Boutique -- 10% off regular priced items - excludes Brighton
- Woof Gang Bakery -- 10% off regular priced items - excludes food
- Imperium Food & Wine -- 10% off food - doesn’t include beverages
- Avocado -- 10% off food - doesn't include beverages
- Market Street Cafe -- 10% off
- Seito Sushi -- 10% off on Mondays only
- Sweet Escape Bakery & Deli -- 10% off
- Thai Thani -- 10% off appetizer and entr3e - doesn’t include beverages
- Upper Crust Pizza -- 10% off over $14 / rewards card / $50 for a $60 Gift Card
- The Eyebrow Whisperer -- 20% off of any service
- Westwood Dry Cleaners -- 10% off of dry cleaning over $50
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