It comes as no surprise to anyone that Portland is a magnificently cool city with a deep and far-reaching tradition of art and expression. What many don’t know, however, is that a bevy of flicks that blessed the silver screen have been shot right here in Rip City. 

If you’ve been looking for a nice little theme for your movie nights — look no further than these five movies with scenes shot in Portland.

If you grew up in the 90s, you almost certainly had this VHS sitting on the movie shelf. A literal American classic, Free Willy used many Oregon locations to bring its mesmerizing and entertaining narrative to life. When it comes to the City of Roses, the Oaks Amusement Park was used as a filming location for many scenes featuring the movie’s fictional Northwest Adventure Park. 

Beyond Portland, other Oregon filming locations include Astoria and Cannon Beach, so why wouldn’t you want another excuse to make an excursion to these coastal beauties? And, a fun little tidbit for the current skaters, former skaters, and lifelong hesh law abiders, Free Willy features an early 90s incarnation of the Burnside skatepark. 

We’re bringing it back to the 2020s with this newer Nick Cage cult classic Pig. A fun movie rife with Portland locations for you to go take pictures in front of during a weekend. While some iconic Portland eateries showcased and referenced in the movie have sadly shuttered, such as Saucebox and Skyline Tavern, you can still hit the charming Helen Bernhard Bakery (which turned 100 years old in 2024 — WOOO!).

Look, we of course also have Drugstore Cowboy on this list, but I’d be remiss if I didn’t also include this Gus Van Sant banger. Mala Noche, directed by Portland icon and native Mr. Van Sant, depicts a late 80s Portland time capsule. There are so many spots in this movie, I truly think it’s better you just watch it than have me mundanely list out all of the locations.

Not going to lie, this would be a very weird (but also maybe kind of awesome?) double feature with Mala Noche. But, it’s a banger nonetheless — I mean, who doesn’t love a good musical virtuoso turned high school music teacher romp?

One of the main backdrops of the movie is the fictional John F. Kennedy High School (as you can see, the screenwriters sure dug deep into their creative subconscious for that one). The real school at which the movie was filmed is none other than Grant High School in the Grant Park neighborhood of Stumptown. 

There was a moment when I thought about not including it, but I mean, you really just have to, you know? Probably the most iconic Portland-filmed movie that will ever be created, Drugstore Cowboy is probably Gus Van Sant’s Magnum Opus (maybe the inspo for Mr. Holland’s Magnum Opus?). 

Rather than even attempting to regale you with locations, I am going to point you to this website created by an absolute maverick of a human being, which has a page detailing the filming locations of Drugstore Cowboy.