Shop 36 — Working Neon Warehouse Filming Location in Van Nuys
Shop 36 is a working neon warehouse in Van Nuys, filled with illuminated roadside signage, sculptural props and the patina of active fabrication. Long concrete aisles cut through dense sign storage, while separate work areas, a retro lounge vignette and a broad service yard give productions several distinct looks within one industrial property.
Neon Warehouse And Camera Sightlines
The main warehouse is a deep, low-slung industrial hall with exposed beams, silver ceiling panels, surface-mounted ducts and red utility pipes. Its concrete floor is worn and stained rather than dressed, reinforcing the atmosphere of a functioning sign shop. Inventory crowds the edges, but the central route remains broad enough for full-length compositions, moving camera shots and layered views through multiple practical signs. Large illuminated pieces create their own architecture: a vertical liquor sign forms an arch over the aisle, while motel, hotel, café and casino graphics rise from freestanding bases. Palm trees, a dragon, stars, a cartoon face and multicolored tube walls produce saturated reflections across the floor and metallic ceiling. The warehouse reads immediately as a neon museum or eccentric collector’s workshop. That combination gives a music video vivid practical color and still photography multiple ready-made backgrounds without losing the authentic shop setting.
Fabrication Rooms And Shoot Lighting
Beyond the display aisles, the fabrication spaces shift to a cleaner working vocabulary. Steel storage racks, scarred timber benches, labeled parts drawers and loops of electrical cable establish an active craft environment. One open room has long assembly tables, hanging power leads, ladders and rolling equipment beneath exposed roof framing. The spacing between benches provides usable camera positions, although the tools and fixtures keep the frame convincingly busy. Natural light is strongest in this workshop, entering laterally through broad exterior windows and a glazed doorway to create brighter pools along the concrete. The enclosed neon warehouse is the more controlled option: daylight falls mainly near its exterior opening, while fluorescent ceiling fixtures and colored practicals carry the deeper aisles as the sun moves. A dressed lounge corner adds another controlled setup, with wicker seating, small tables, bar signage and an oversized illustrated figure beneath a dark industrial ceiling.
Production Access And Industrial Exterior
The exterior has a straightforward mid-century industrial character: a flat-roofed cream warehouse with long horizontal window bands, red infill panels and simple recessed entrances. A wide paved parking and service area wraps the building, with shipping containers and a forklift contributing a credible light-industrial backdrop. The open yard offers greater working distance than the interiors and clean sky exposure for broad daylight setups. Crews can approach across the paved lot and organize arrival or staging near the warehouse, with FilmLA coordinating permit needs for the shoot. Exterior access also connects the practical shop environment to the building’s plain street-facing elevation, allowing a production to move from colorful neon interiors to a restrained postwar industrial exterior without changing locations. The long driveway and uncluttered sections of pavement provide useful separation for equipment while preserving clear views toward the containers and loading-side walls.
