– The outdoor scenes shot in New York City feature real people so many of the reactions you see are genuine! – In fact, several minor traffic accidents occurred when Will Ferrell walked through the Lincoln Tunnel in his costume, because people were so surprised and distracted to see a grown man wearing an elf outfit.

What scenes from Elf are real?

All of the scenes were “real,” everything from Ferrell walking through traffic to interacting with people on the street. There were no extras, hired actors, or street closures during the limited filming that happened in New York, so they simply had Ferrell wander through the city streets and interact with real people.

Was Elf filmed in NYC?

There's plenty of real New York on display of course, but most of the interiors were filmed in an abandoned mental hospital in Vancouver, British Columbia.

Was Elf filmed inside Macy's?

As Favreau revealed to ABC News, the Elf team asked Macy's if they could use the store for the movie, but Macy's declined. He told the publication: "Because we're using a Santa, of course, everybody thinks Macy's. "But Macy's didn't like the idea that there was a fake Santa working there.

Is the department store in Elf real?

Warner Bros. When the security guards at Walter's office throw Buddy out, they suggest he go back to Santaland at Gimbels. The highly festive store is heavily featured throughout the rest of "Elf," but viewers may not have realized that Gimbels was a real department store in New York City that closed in 1986.

Elf (2003)- Buddy in New York

Does Gimbels still exist in New York City?

Gimbels, where Buddy (the elf the movie is about) works, used to be a real department store in NYC, but it closed in the '80s; the Textile Building was used as the exterior of Gimbels in the movie instead.

Is the coffee shop in Elf real?

However, it's worth noting that 2003, when the film was made, there wasn't a coffee shop at 20 East Hastings Street. Instead, the location was home to a long-standing seafood restaurant, The Only Sea Food.

Was the New York scene in Elf staged?

– The outdoor scenes shot in New York City feature real people so many of the reactions you see are genuine! – In fact, several minor traffic accidents occurred when Will Ferrell walked through the Lincoln Tunnel in his costume, because people were so surprised and distracted to see a grown man wearing an elf outfit.

Why did Macy's refuse to be in Elf?

Macy's, however, didn't like the idea of being associated with an “imposter” Santa Claus, according to Favreau. So if “Elf” wanted to film at the Santaland in Macy's, or even mention Macy's in the movie, the scene had to go. “We had to think long and hard about it,” Favreau told Rolling Stone in 2013.

Was Elf filmed in a mental hospital?

Elf might be a story that's rooted as deeply in New York City as it is in the North Pole, but limitations restricted the amount of time Favreau and his team could spend on location in the Big Apple. As a result, an abandoned asylum ended up serving as the backdrop to huge swathes of the production.

Where is Gimbels NYC in elf?

Fun fact: Producers wanted to feature the famous Macy's 34th street location, the largest store in the world, but Macy's refused to have their name used. So they settled on Gimbels, a now defunct NY department store–the exterior was shot at 5th Avenue and E 30th St and decorated with CGI.

Did people know they were filming elf?

I put him in those situations and he had to improvise and stay in character while dealing with people who, for the most part, didn't even know they were in a movie."

How old was Will Ferrell when he filmed elf?

This actually makes Buddy a fair amount younger than Will Ferrell himself, who was 35 years old at the time of Elf's filming, and 36 when the movie was released to theaters.

What was the unscripted scene in Elf?

Some of Buddy's most iconic lines—"You smell like beef and cheese!" and "You sit on a throne of lies!"—were improvised by Ferrell in the moment. 16. The big fight scene between Buddy and the fake Santa, played by comedian Artie Lange, was filmed in one take because it took the art department weeks to decorate Gimbels.

Did James Caan really play the piano in Elf?

James Caan was a true delight. My favorite memory of him was shooting part of a montage for the end of Elf and he started playing piano — he played beautifully — I sang and he played and I was just astonished by his talent!

How much did Will Ferrell get paid for Elf?

Elf was Will Ferrell's second box office hit. He reportedly received a whopping salary of $17 million for that film alone, more on par with what his talents would dictate in the mid-2000s. He was allegedly offered $29 million to act in an Elf sequel, but couldn't get his heart into it, so he turned it down.

What replaced Gimbels in NYC?

The mall replaced the former flagship store of the Gimbels department store chain, which operated from 1910 to 1986. It opened in 1989 as a shopping center called A&S Plaza and was rebranded Manhattan Mall in 1995.

Is Gimbels a real store in New York?

The Gimbels New York City flagship store was located in the cluster of large department stores that surrounded Herald Square, in Midtown Manhattan. Designed by architect Daniel Burnham, the structure, which once offered 27 acres (110,000 m²) of sales space, has since been modernized and entirely revamped.

Is Gimbels in Elf real?

Gimbel's is a real-life store in New York City. It appears in the movie, Elf. Jovie and Buddy first meet there.

Where was Elf mostly filmed?

Filming. Principal photography began on December 9, 2002, and wrapped on March 7, 2003. Filming took place in New York City, as well as in Vancouver and at Riverview Hospital in Coquitlam, British Columbia. The film makes heavy use of forced perspective to exaggerate the size of Buddy compared to all the other elves.

Was Elf filmed in Rockefeller Center?

Rockefeller Center been featured in many films, including Home Alone 2: Lost in New York, where Kevin (Macaulay Culkin) is reunited with his mother at the end of the movie at the Christmas tree; Autumn in New York: Will (Richard Gere) & Charlotte (Winona Ryder) ice skate here; Elf: Jovie (Zooey Deschanel) drags Buddy ( ...

Was Elf filmed after 911?

There's also this: “Elf” was one of the first major films shot in New York City after 9/11. “It was a city in mourning,” Favreau told Rolling Stone in 2013.

Did Will Ferrell eat the gum in Elf?

So that actually was the fun part of doing the role. Was the sidewalk gum pre-cleaned for you? WF: No, we didn't have a big enough budget, so I actually had to eat old New York City gum. But it wasn't as bad as you would think, still relatively favorable.

Who else auditioned for Elf?

Jim Carrey was supposed to play Buddy the Elf.

Although Jim Carrey didn't end up in this film you probably recognise him as playing The Grinch. An actor called Chris Farley was also asked to play Buddy but the writer of Elf didn't think he was a good fit. It took years before they found the perfect Buddy.