Woody Allen to Shoot Next Film Here, Calls S.F. "Charming"

By Anna Pulley Mon., Jun. 25 2012 at 1:41 PM

Categories: Film

Woody Allen is known as somewhat of a California hater. In Annie Hall, he said of L.A., "I don't want to move to a city where the only cultural advantage is being able to make a right turn on a red light." Allen clearly must've missed the cultural zeitgeist that was Katy Perry's "California Girls." But no matter. Frankly, we're not wild about L.A. either. We'll take fog over smog any day. And it appears Allen is of a similar bent. At a press event promoting his latest film, To Rome with Love, Allen noted that his next film will be shot in here in San Francisco. That's right, he's going going back back to Cali Cali, and he's bringing an all-star cast with him.

From LA Weekly:

His next film, set to star Cate Blanchett, Sally Hawkins and Louis C.K., will shoot mostly in San Francisco. "There are very few places in America that have charm," Allen explains. "San Francisco, it's pretty. It's got a European charm to it." Maybe, but it doesn't have European money. Allen says he's financing this next film privately, through "people that got into a conversation with me and never got out without donating some money." In a word, as Allen says, breaking into an unforced grin for the first and last time in my presence, "Suckers."

According to SFist, the last time Allen appeared in an S.F. movie was in 1972, for Play It Again, Sam, directed by Herbert Ross, but written by Allen. It's also worth noting that Allen's second movie, the fake crime documentary, Take the Money and Run, was shot here too. San Francisco basically sandwiches the career of the quintessential NYC director. Possibly with sourdough.

Will Allen's new film include trolley rides full of naked men enjoying the Golden Gate Bridge? Only time will tell. In the meantime, please enjoy this clip from Take the Money and Run that includes the famous marching band scene on S.F. streets: