The Location Managers Guild International (LMGI) is the largest organization of Location Managers and Location Scouts in the motion picture, television, commercial and print production industries. Their membership plays a vital role in the creativ
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LMGI COMPASS | Winter 2026 • 35 Humboldt, Refuge in the Redwoods Production pushed five to six hours north of Sacramento to find the refuge where Bob and Willa would hide out for 16 years. The lush forests of Humboldt County offered cover, and the town of Eureka delivered the mood and geography for the fictional town of Baktan Cross. "I want to say a chunk of the Pynchon book actually takes place up in Eureka," says Glaser. "And the area just had some great, really rich locations—most of which hadn't been seen on film before." "We had done a lot of reading about the lives of revolutionaries and, sort of, this counterculture existence," says Martin, "and so we knew that Eureka was a point of interest. So, we drove by the high school there and it has this impressive architecture. And then you start to see the pieces fitting, you know, driving around and seeing these houses that are enclosed in the woods, and you can't access them 'cause everybody has signs that say 'No trespassing! Violators will be shot!' And you're like, 'I think we're onto something. Let's come back here.'" Bob's house needed to be tucked away, private, yet plausible, as a long-term hideout, but also cinematically expressive enough to reveal the paranoia brewing inside him. The house represented the emotional bunker where a man tries to outrun the world by disappearing inside of it. Here he would idle his days by getting high, watching The Battle of Algiers on repeat, and raising his now teenaged daughter. The search narrowed to two houses, and when one emerged as the right spot, contracts were signed, neighbors were canvassed, and the residents were ready to move out. But Anderson decided to take one last scouting trip to show Leonardo and Chase "their house." "We were basically ready to go with that first house," Glaser says. "And then I get a text asking if the owner of the second house, Melissa, was home and I'm like, 'Why?' And they said, 'We're headed over there now. Leo and Chase didn't feel like the first place worked.'" What followed has already become unofficial folklore among the crew. "I called Melissa immediately and I go, 'Hey, do you mind if I come over?' And she's like, 'Uh, sure, I guess.' So I race over there and walk into her house," says Glaser, "and it's completely decked out for Christmas. She's got music on, she's been cooking for what looks like three days and she's like, 'So, what's up?'" Glaser knew the clock was ticking. Anderson and his cast were already on the way. "I just said I was in the neighborhood and wanted to drop by to say hello," he says. She offered him some tea and before he had a chance to say another word, there was a knock at the door. Glaser thought he was out of time, but it was actually one of Melissa's guests. "So now, she's there with her friend, I'm sitting there with my cup of tea and she's like, 'I heard that Leo is in town. And I was like, 'where'd you hear that?' and she goes, 'it's all over the internet!'" So, Glaser was sitting there, chatting nonchalantly, trying to get a "vibe check" on how Melissa and her friends might react when one of the biggest stars in the world would walk in the door. Meanwhile, Martin was texting him updates from the car. "10 min out." "5 min out." "So I'm talking to her and her friend, and then another one of her friends shows up, and I go, 'do you think Paul could come by one