On all of the sides of Austin, one is bound to stumble across an iconic set of a local movie. Restaurants like Top Notch, streets like Congress, and many more places have been featured in some of the largest films to come out of Austin.
In 1969, the first movie to be filmed in Austin was “Eggshells”. This would set the scene for “Texas Chainsaw Massacre” in 1974, which would gain popularity in later years and allow for later movies like “Dazed and Confused” in 1993 — along with many more of Richard Linkater’s movies. Brian Gannon, the senior director of the Austin Film Commission, talks a little about this history of film in Austin.
“‘Texas Chainsaw Massacre’ was probably the first big movie, but at the point it was released, it was not a big movie. It was a tiny, you know, movie that was made in Austin that caught on,” Gannon said. “That was the first taste the world got of central Texas filmmaking and, in the years since, the industry built up throughout the ‘80s with made for TV movies.”
Gannon mentioned that the location of Austin is very important for drawing the film industry to the city. The location allows for almost any type of scene to be filmed relatively close to the city center.
“A lot of what’s made Austin a really special place and grown us as a hub over the years is that we have a lot of diverse locations within 30 minutes of downtown,” Gannon said. “You can get kind of your flat farmland and piny woods to the east, and then the hill country to the west.”
Miguel Alvarez, an award winning filmmaker and professor at University of Texas at Austin (UT Austin), shared a similar sentiment. He added that the availability of these places in such a short distance allows for filmmakers’ creativity to run endlessly.
“There’s just so many different places that you can film,” Alvarez said. “So it makes the possibilities endless when it comes to stories and films that you want to make because you have everything right here.”
Top Notch Hamburgers is one of the most famous film locations in Austin as it is featured in one of the scenes for “Dazed and Confused” along with many other small films, TV shows, and advertisements. Kelly Chappell, the manager at Top Notch, talked about the story of the restaurant as a set and the impact the movie has had on their popularity.
“In the late 90s, it [Dazed and Confused] didn’t really have much of an impact, they said they had a few people come in once in a while, but the movie was not nearly as popular back then,” Chappell said. “But, come the early 2000s, the movie was seeing a real height in popularity. The set was promoted, and it definitely had a huge impact.”
Many people from around the country and the world come to Austin to visit Top Notch. Gannon mentioned that this is one of the most famous film locations, along with a few others like Mount Bonell and Starhill Ranch.
“The most famous one, Top Notch on Burnet Road. It’s Matthew McConaughey’s introduction to the film industry where he pulls into the drive-through there,” Gannon said. “We get people calling us all the time asking, ‘where is that? How do I go there?’”
Chappell said he still sees this effect today, with old and new fans of “Dazed and Confused” still going to Top Notch. There are also newer films released featuring Top Notch that bring customers to the restaurant, such as “Walker”, a contemporary western show on The CW.
“When they do Comic-Con and all the events in town, we get a huge influx of people that are there because of ‘Walker’,” Chappell said. “Apparently the show has a big following as well.
According to Alvarez, he finds it much easier to film in Austin than many other places. He said it is why the city is a popular location for filmmakers to create their art.
“What’s great about Austin and I think Texas in general is that it’s pretty easy to film in public spaces,” Alvarez said. “As long as you just let somebody know that you’re going to be filming then you can film pretty much for free.”
When filming at private institutions, however, filmmakers must contact the business owners. Chappell spoke about the process that he goes through when people request to film at the restaurant.
“I have my talking points when someone says they want to rent it out. It really is a case by case basis,” Chappell said. “I let high school and UT film clubs film things here, if it doesn’t bother our business too much. And then I just ask that you do your screening at Top Notch.”
Another aspect that makes Austin a desirable place to film is the incentives that both the city and state offer to directors that film here. Gannon described the incentives that directors get, like grants, depending on how much money they spend on local businesses and staffing.
“They’re incentivizing production all based on hiring locals. So it’s a really great program in that has a very positive impact,” Gannon said. “It’s helping production, but also making sure they’re hiring locally.”
Keeping up an iconic film location can be expensive. Chappell explained that ensuring that the building looks vintage is a lot of work, so, usually, the money they get from filming goes toward building upkeep.
“We use it as a kind of a maintenance slush fund. The building is from the late 50s and it takes some work to keep it going and it’s expensive to make things look good and also look vintage and old,” Chappell said. “Anytime we get some money in, we usually put it right back into the building.”
Many other places throughout the city have been locations where many movies have been recorded at. According to Chappell, there are similar outcomes for those businesses to Top Notch.
“I can’t speak to how well it translates to business for them, but the Continental Club is a bar and music venue, it has been in lots of TV and films as well,” Chappell said. “I think they’re known for that. I think when people come to town, them being a film set helps with that as well.”
