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New York Film Locations


EZ TV icon
Published: 9.20.2024
Level 2   |   Time: 5:11
Accent: American

Jean, a New Yorker, talks about famous movie and TV locations in New York.


triangle Directions 목표 Direcciones Instruções


  1. READ the VOCABULARY + BACKGROUND

    It is important to read the vocabulary and background before you watch the video. This will improve your ability to understand the video. It will also help you understand how the new vocabulary is used naturally.

  2. WATCH the VIDEO

    The first time you watch the video, just try to understand the overall situation.

  3. ANSWER the QUESTIONS

    First, try to answer all the questions from memory. Then rewatch the video and try to answer the questions that you missed.

  4. WATCH and READ the SCRIPT

    Watch the video again while you read the script. Reading and listening at the same time will help you hear each individual word and improve your listening accuracy.

  5. DO the ACTIVITIES

    There are several different activities that focus on listening accuracy, pronunciation, vocabulary, grammar, and sentence structure.

  1. LEA el VOCABULARIO y ANTECEDENTES.

    Es importante leer el vocabulario y los antecedentes antes de ver el video. Esto mejorará su capacidad para comprender el video. También le ayudará a comprender cómo se usa el nuevo vocabulario de forma natural.

  2. VER el VIDEO

    La primera vez que vea el video, intente comprender la situación general.

  3. RESPONDE a las PREGUNTAS

    Primero intente responder todas las preguntas de memoria. Luego, vuelva a ver el video e intente responder las preguntas que se perdió.

  4. MIRAR Y LEER

    Mire el video nuevamente mientras lee el guión. Leer y escuchar al mismo tiempo lo ayudará a escuchar cada palabra individual y mejorará su precisión auditiva.

  5. HACER LAS ACTIVIDADES

    Hay una serie de actividades diferentes que se centran en la precisión auditiva, la pronunciación, el vocabulario, la gramática y la estructura de las oraciones.

  1. 어휘와 배경 읽기

    비디오를 보기 전에 어휘와 배경을 읽는 것이 중요합니다. 이렇게 하면 비디오를 이해하는 능력이 향상됩니다. 또한 새로운 어휘가 어떻게 자연스럽게 사용되는지 이해하는데 도움이됩니다.

  2. 비디오 보기

    비디오를 처음 볼 때 전체 상황을 이해하려고 노력하세요.

  3. 문제에 답하기

    먼저 모든 질문에 답을 해보세요. 그런 다음 비디오를 다시보고 놓친 질문에 답해보세요.

  4. 비디오 보면서 대본 읽기

    대본을 읽는 동안 비디오를 다시 보세요. 읽기와 듣기를 동시에 하면 각각의 단어를 듣고, 듣기 정확도를 향상시킬 수 있습니다.

  5. 액티비티 하기

    듣기 정확도, 발음, 어휘, 문법 및 문장 구조에 초점을 맞춘 다양한 액티비티가 있습니다.

  1. LER o VOCABULÁRIO + FUNDO

    É importante ler o vocabulário e o histórico antes de assistir ao vídeo. Isso melhorará sua capacidade de entender o vídeo. Também ajudará você a entender como o novo vocabulário é usado naturalmente.

  2. ASSISTA ao VÍDEO

    Na primeira vez que assistir ao vídeo, tente entender a situação geral.

  3. RESPONDA às PERGUNTAS

    Primeiro, tente responder todas as perguntas de memória. Em seguida, assista novamente ao vídeo e tente responder às perguntas que você errou.

  4. ASSISTA e LEIA o SCRIPT

    Assista ao vídeo novamente enquanto lê o roteiro. Ler e ouvir ao mesmo tempo ajudará você a ouvir cada palavra individualmente e a melhorar sua precisão auditiva.

  5. FAÇA as ATIVIDADES

    Existem várias atividades diferentes que se concentram na precisão auditiva, pronúncia, vocabulário, gramática e estrutura da frase.

triangle Vocabulary 어휘 Vocabulário Vocabulario


  • ☐ ☐ ☐ a movie fan [n] - a person who loves movies
  • ☐ ☐ ☐ a film buff [n] - a person who knows a lot about movies
  • ☐ ☐ ☐ gigantic [adj] - very big
  • ☐ ☐ ☐ a movie set [n] - the place where movies are filmed
  • ☐ ☐ ☐ iconic [adj] - very famous
  • ☐ ☐ ☐ an alley [n] - a narrow street between buildings [image] ESL Vocab - An alley
  • ☐ ☐ ☐ an alleyway [n] - a narrow street between buildings [image] ESL Vocab - An alley
  • ☐ ☐ ☐ rusty [adj] - covered with rust (old metal turning brown)
  • ☐ ☐ ☐ a fire escape [n] - metal stairs outside buildings for emergencies [image] ESL Vocab - A fireescape
  • ☐ ☐ ☐ graffiti [n] - art or writing drawn on walls, often illegally [image] ESL Vocab - Graffiti
  • ☐ ☐ ☐ hardly any [exp] - almost none
  • ☐ ☐ ☐ a blockbuster film [n] - a very successful and popular movie
  • ☐ ☐ ☐ a cop show [n] - a TV show about police
  • ☐ ☐ ☐ a borough [n] - a district or area within a city (i.e. Queens in NYC)
  • ☐ ☐ ☐ a movie scene [n] - a part of a movie
  • ☐ ☐ ☐ shoot down [phv] - make something fall by hitting it with a gun or weapon
  • ☐ ☐ ☐ the centerpiece [n] - the most important part
  • ☐ ☐ ☐ a World's Fair [n] - a large international exhibition
  • ☐ ☐ ☐ ultimate [adj] - the best
  • ☐ ☐ ☐ the Space Age [n] - the time when space exploration became important (1950s–1960s)
  • ☐ ☐ ☐ a sci-fi setting [n] - a location that looks futuristic (like science fiction)
  • ☐ ☐ ☐ recognizable [adj] - well-known, famous
  • ☐ ☐ ☐ a structure [n] - a building
  • ☐ ☐ ☐ an international icon [n] - something or someone that is famous around the world
  • ☐ ☐ ☐ star in [v] - be the main actor in a movie
  • ☐ ☐ ☐ an instant classic [n] - something that is immediately considered great
  • ☐ ☐ ☐ an ape [n] - a large primate [image] ESL Vocab - An Ape
  • ☐ ☐ ☐ cling [v] - hold on tightly
  • ☐ ☐ ☐ cinematic history [n] - the history of films and movies

[n] - noun,  [v] - verb,  [phv] - phrasal verb,  [adj] - adjective,  [exp] - expression



triangle Questions 문제 Questões Preguntas


  1. Courtland Alley is located in _______.
    Harlem
    Little Italy
    Chinatown
    Greenwich Village

  2. Dark, dirty alleys like Courtland Alley _______ common in New York.
    are
    are not

  3. Courtland Alley is famous because _______.
    of its beautiful graffiti
    it has so many fire escapes
    it is close to the Empire State Building
    it has been used in many films and TV shows

  4. According to Jean, Courtland Alley can be dangerous because of _______.
    construction
    graffiti
    filming
    crime

  5. Courtland Alley has been in _______ and _______.
    Friends
    NYPD Blue
    Breaking Bad
    Boardwalk Empire

  6. Jean _______ near Flushing Meadows Corona Park.
    lives
    used to live
    wants to live

  7. Scenes from _______ were shot at Flushing Meadows Corona Park.
    Crocodile Dundee
    Men in Black
    Spider-Man
    King Kong

  8. In that movie, _______ the park.
    a rocket is launched into space from
    two superheroes fight in
    two cars race through
    a UFO crashes in

  9. The Unisphere in Flushing Meadows Corona Park was built for _______.
    the opening ceremony of the Olympics
    a government space project
    the World's Fair
    a sci-fi movie

  10. The Empire State Building opened in _______.
    1931
    1933
    1940
    1948

  11. The movie _______ helped make the Empire State Building famous.
    Breakfast at Tiffany's
    The Godfather
    Spider-Man
    King Kong



triangle Grammar 문법 Gramática Gramática (pres. perfect/past simple)


Directions: Choose the best tense for each verb to complete each sentence.

  • I (am) from New York City, and I (am) a huge movie fan.
  • I (have lived) in New York all my life.
  • The Hollywood version of New York (is) full of dark, secret alleyways like this.
  • But in the real New York, there (are) hardly any alleyways at all.
  • So this one little alley (has appeared) in many blockbuster films.
  • The real Courtland Alley (is) perfectly safe.
  • Agent J and Agent K (shoot) down a huge UFO just over Flushing Meadows.
  • It (crashes) straight into the Unisphere, which (was) built as the centerpiece of the 1964 World's Fair.
  • The creators of Men in Black (were) able to use the Unisphere to create the perfect sci-fi setting.
  • Manhattan (is) still the most recognizable area in New York.
  • When it first (opened) in 1931, the Empire State Building (was) already world-famous.
  • In 1933, it (became) an international icon when it (starred) in the movie King Kong.
  • The image of a giant ape clinging to the top of the building (is) still one of the most famous in cinematic history.
  • New York (has appeared) in thousands of films.
  • People who (have never been) here feel like they (know) the place.


triangle Sentence Building 문장 만들기 Construção de sentença Construcción de oraciones


Directions: Write sentences about the video clip using the words given. You can change the word form or add words, but you cannot change the word order.
( ) = optional   [ ] = necessary

Instrucciones: Escriba oraciones sobre el videoclip usando las palabras dadas. Puede cambiar la forma de la palabra o agregar palabras, pero no puede cambiar el orden de las palabras.

Instrucciones: Escreva orações sobre o videoclipe usando as palavras-chave. Você pode alterar a forma da palavra ou adicionar palavras, mas não pode alterar a ordem das palavras.

지시 : 주어진 단어를 사용하여 비디오 클립에 대한 문장을 씁니다. 어형을 변경하거나 단어를 추가할 수 있지만 어순은 변경할 수 없습니다.



Sentence 1

Jean / Goto / think / new / York / city / ultimate / place / film / buff


Jean Goto thinks (that) New York City is the ultimate place for film buffs.



Sentence 2

Courtland / alley / appear / many / famous / film / and / TV / show


Courtland Alley has appeared in many famous films and TV shows.



Sentence 3

despite / dirty / portrayal / movie / Courtland / alley / actual / quite / safe / real / life


Despite its dirty portrayal in movies, Courtland Alley is actually quite safe in real life.



Sentence 4

flushing / meadows / corona / park / other / famous / movie / location / new / York


Flushing Meadows Corona Park is another famous movie location in New York.



Sentence 5

famous / final / scene / men / black / shoot / there


The famous final scene from Men in Black was shot there.



Sentence 6

location / perfect / sci-fi / movie / because / its / space / age / history


The location is perfect for sci-fi movies because of its Space Age history.



Sentence 7

empire / state / building / one / most / icon / landmark / new / York


The Empire State Building is one of the most iconic landmarks in New York.



Sentence 8

it / gain / international / fame / after / it / appear / king / Kong / 1933


It gained international fame after it appeared in King Kong in 1933.



Sentence 9

king / Kong / clinging / top / building / remain / one / most / endure / image / cinema / history


King Kong clinging to the top of the building remains one of the most enduring images in cinematic history.



Sentence 10

Jean / end / video / by / encourage / people / visit / new / York


Jean ends the video by encouraging people to visit New York.



triangle Listen & Repeat 듣고 따라하기 Ouça e repita Escuchar y repetir


Directions: Play the audio clip and try to repeat what you hear. Click "Show" to see the text.

Instrucciones: Reproduce el clip de audio e intenta repetir lo que escuchas. Haga clic en "Show" para ver el texto.

Instrucciones: Reproduzca el clip de audio e intente repetir lo que escucha. Haga clic en "Mostrar" para ver el texto.

지시 사항 : 오디오 클립을 재생하고 들리는 내용을 반복해 보십시오. 텍스트를 보려면 "Show" 를 클릭하십시오.


Clip 1

I've lived in New York all my life, and for a film buff like me, it must be the greatest place in the world.



Clip 2

Walking through the city is like walking through one gigantic movie set.



Clip 3

It might not look iconic, but it's probably the most famous alley in the world.



Clip 4

The Hollywood version of New York is full of dark, secret alleyways like this.



Clip 5

But in the real New York, there are hardly any alleyways at all.



Clip 6

Unlike in the movies, the real Courtland Alley is perfectly safe.



Clip 7

The most dangerous activity here is construction work.



Clip 8

I used to live near here, and it's still my favorite park in New York.



Clip 9

Agent J (Will Smith) and Agent K (Tommy Lee Jones) shoot down a huge UFO just over Flushing Meadows.



Clip 10

...which was built as the centerpiece of the 1964 World's Fair.



Clip 11

And the creators of Men in Black were able to use the Unisphere to create the perfect sci-fi setting.



Clip 12

Flushing Meadows might have the Space Age factor, but Manhattan is still the most recognizable area in New York.



Clip 13

When it first opened in 1931, the Empire State Building was already world-famous.



Clip 14

In 1933, it became an international icon when it starred in the movie King Kong.



Clip 15

The image of a giant ape clinging to the top of the building is still one of the most famous in cinematic history.



Clip 16

People who have never been here feel like they know the place.



Clip 17

You should come and see the city for yourself. It really is just like the movies.



triangle Discussion 논의 Questões de discussão Discusión


  1. What TV shows and movies does Jean mention in the video? Which ones have you seen?
  2. What other TV shows or movies do you know that were shot in New York? Which is your favorite?
  3. What are some famous TV shows or movies that are set in New York but not filmed there? (e.g. Friends) Which is your favorite?
  4. The Empire State Building became an international icon partly due to its role in the movie King Kong. What other landmarks or buildings around the world have a strong connection to a specific movie?
  5. Jean says that New York is "just like the movies." In what ways do you think the real New York differs from its cinematic portrayal? Can you think of some specific examples?
  6. What role do you think movies and TV play in tourism? What other countries or cities attract a lot of tourists because of the TV shows and movies shot there?
  7. What is the most iconic location in your city or country that has appeared in a movie?
  8. Have you visited any famous movie or TV locations? Did the locations live up to your expectations?

triangle Script 대본 Roteiro Texto


Hi. My name's Jean Goto. I'm from New York City, and I'm a huge movie fan.

I've lived in New York all my life, and for a film buff like me, it must be the greatest place in the world.

Walking through the city is like walking through one gigantic movie set. You can see famous movie locations wherever you go.

This is Courtland Alley in Chinatown. It might not look iconic, but it's probably the most famous alley in the world. The Hollywood version of New York is full of dark, secret alleyways like this.

You know the type: rusty fire escapes, graffiti on the walls, and trash on the ground.

But in the real New York, there are hardly any alleyways at all.

So this one little alley has appeared in many blockbuster films, like Crocodile Dundee, TV dramas like Boardwalk Empire, and of course, New York cop shows like NYPD Blue and Law and Order.

Unlike in the movies, the real Courtland Alley is perfectly safe. The most dangerous activity here is construction work.

This is Flushing Meadows Corona Park in the borough of Queens. I used to live near here, and it's still my favorite park in New York. And it's also the setting of one of my all-time favorite movie scenes: the climax from the first Men in Black.

In the film, Agent J (Will Smith) and Agent K (Tommy Lee Jones) shoot down a huge UFO just over Flushing Meadows. It crashes straight into this: the Unisphere, which was built as the centerpiece of the 1964 World's Fair.

The park became the ultimate symbol of the Space Age, and the creators of Men in Black were able to use the Unisphere to create the perfect sci-fi setting.

Flushing Meadows might have the Space Age factor, but Manhattan is still the most recognizable area in New York. And nowhere is as iconic as the Empire State Building.

When it first opened in 1931, the Empire State Building was already world-famous. It was the tallest structure in the world and symbolized the modern age.

In 1933, it became an international icon when it starred in the movie King Kong. The film was an instant classic. The image of a giant ape clinging to the top of the building is still one of the most famous in cinematic history.

In fact, this one building is almost as iconic as the city itself.

Almost, but not quite. New York has appeared in thousands of films. People who have never been here feel like they know the place. You should come and see the city for yourself. It really is just like the movies.