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Texas Travel Guide to lsquoBoyhoodrsquo the Movie

Follow in the footsteps of Mason and his family through the years in Richard Linklaterrsquos Texas-shot Oscar-nominated film

Compiled by Ardelia Lee amp Lauren Moriarty

Filmed over 12 years ldquoBoyhoodrdquo is the groundbreaking story that charmed viewers during Oscar season and shouldhave won Best Picture Seen through the eyes of a boy named Mason who grows up on screen before our eyes thefilm charts the rocky terrain of childhood in the state of Texas Road trips family dinners moves to new houses aballgame with Dad mdash Linklater shows us the triumph and heartbreak of a divorced family as he moves the cameraaround the state from Houston to Austin and points in between Experience the nostalgia of ldquoBoyhoodrdquo and makeyour own memories on a road trip through Texas this summer

Houston

The most populated city in Texas Houston is where much of the beginning of the movie takes place Home to morethan 22 million people and often deemed the Energy Capital of the World Houston offers visitors and residentsplenty of opportunity And thatrsquos exactly what newly divorced mom Olivia (Patricia Arquette who won Best SupportingActress for this role) is looking for when she decides to move her young kids Samantha (Lorelei Linklater) and Mason(Ellar Coltrane) there in 2002 She hopes that a bigger city will offer her the chance to finish her college degree andmake a fresh start

Houston Museum of Natural Science

One of the most visited museums in the US this one has grown to a major science learning center and boastsimpressive attractions like the Burke Baker Planetarium and the Cockrell Butterfly Center In the movie the Museum

of Natural Science is the first stop for Mason Sr (Ethan Hawke) Samantha and Mason on their day trip around thecity Mason is about 10 years old at the time and they visit the museumrsquos popular Cockrell Butterfly Center beforeheading to a baseball game at Minute Maid Park

Minute Maid Park

Originally named Enron Field Minute Maid Park opened in Houston in 1999 and was renamed in 2002 for obviousreasons The ballpark seats 40963 people and has a roof that can fully retract making it the largest open area of anyretractable roofed baseball stadium

After visiting the Cockrell Butterfly Center Mason Sr and his kids relax near the Miller Outdoor Theater and play alittle football They then head over to Minute Maid Park to catch an Astros game The game a real match betweenthe Houston Astros and Milwaukee Brewers was filmed in April 2006 The cast and crew got lucky that day Then-Astros player Jason Lane hit a home run almost directly at the camera

Pedernales Falls State Park

Camp just like Mason and his Dad did surrounded by acres of pristine acreage with the winding Pedernales Riverrunning through the park Located in Johnson City the park is a favorite for family hikes and known for its mainattraction a massive rock structure dotted with clear pools and spotted with rushing waterfalls Primitive hike-in campareas and those with water and electric are both available

San Marcos

After a nasty divorce Olivia moves the family to San Marcos to start her new teaching job in 2010 The small college

town is a big change from bustling Houston Locally San Marcos is loved for its proximity to the great outdoors andthriving music scene The local universities keep it from being a sleepy small town but it retains some of that samecharm In the film Jill tellls Mason that Sheena has a crush on him outside the Texas Music Theater a popularconcert venue

Lost Pines Bastrop

The Lost Pines Forest derives its name from its location mdash an isolated 13-mile belt of loblolly pines Bastrop is oftencited as Texasrsquo most historic small town With a population just over 73000 it is a comfortable size with lots of natureadventures to offer When Olivia moves the kids to San Marcos Mason Sr has also remarried and has a baby on theway He takes Mason and Samantha to visit his wifersquos parents at their ranch in Lost Pines Bastrop where Masonshoots a gun for the first time

Big Bend Ranch State Park

Masonrsquos coming of age in ldquoBoyhoodrdquo culminates in a hike in Big Bend a national park in west Texas where curvingcanyons kiss starry skies He joins his new college friends on a trek through the park that ends with a sweetconversation about seizing the moment perhaps a nod to what is next in store for him The limestone walls hereboast nooks and crannies containing numerous fossil finds including crocodiles and dinosaurs While the park is adestination for hikers like Mason today it served as home for native people as many as 10000 years ago andfarmland in the 20th century A mine historic airfield and still active trading post give a glimpse into the lives of thehearty people who settled this unforgiving land

Austin

Most of the filming for ldquoBoyhoodrdquo took place in the capitol of Texas a thriving metropolis thatrsquos one of the fastestgrowing cities in the nation Samantha ends up in college here and Mason and Sheena come to visit and see a showat The Continental Club then like true Texans share a bowl of early-morning queso at Magnolia Cafe South

Earlier in the film the elementary school in Houston Mason reluctantly gets dropped off at after Olivia leaves herabusive husband is actually Perez Elementary School located in Austin Mason debuts his freshly shaved head inHouston but Director Richard Linklater opted to film the scene in Austinrsquos Joe Dan Mills Elementary School

Dart Bowl

Linklater shoots the bowling scenes over the years with Mason Sr and the kids in Austinrsquos Dart Bowl A pendant onthe wall for the Houston Astros makes you think the scenes were filmed there but the Dart Bowl is located in AustinBumper lanes are available for kids but as Mason Sr tells his son during a game ldquoLife doesnrsquot give you bumpersrdquo

Photo credits from top Downtown Houston from Flickr Creative Commons by Alex Houston Museum of NaturalScience from Wiki Commons Minute Maid Park from Flickr Creative Commons by Adam Baker Lost Pines from WikiCommons Pedernales Falls movie still of Ellar Coltrane San Marcos County Courthouse from Flickr CreativeCommons by Stuart Seeger Big Bend Ranch State Park from Texas State Parks Greetings from Austin courtesyof Austin Convention amp Visitors Bureau and Dart Bowl movie still

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• Texas Travel Guide to lsquoBoyhoodrsquo the Movie