Memoirs of a Movie-Loving Valley Boy:

Thom Vest
May 19
6 min read

Director Darren Stein's Guide to growing up in L.A.

Article By Darren Stein, Foreword by Thom Vest of LA Explained

*Director Darren Stein on the set of "Jawbreaker - 1999. (Photo Via Darren Stein)*

Before becoming a pop-culture icon with his candy-coated dark comedy Jawbreaker in 1999, Darren Stein was just a movie-obsessed kid growing up in the Valley. Surrounded by the neon glow of the Sherman Oaks Galleria and the gritty glamour of Hollywood, his love for cinema was shaped by local theaters and the pastel-clad Valley Girls who would later inspire the characters in his own work. His coming-of-age among LA’s most iconic landmarks set the stage for a career that would forever change the landscape of cult teen films.

Jawbreaker Movie Poster - Photo Courtesy Google / Tristar Pictures

From the moment Jawbreaker hit the big screen in 1999, Darren Stein secured his place as a defining voice in cult cinema. His candy-colored, wickedly sharp dark comedy turned the high school drama on its head, introducing audiences to the unforgettable world of Courtney Shayne and her killer posse. But long before he redefined the teen movie genre, Stein was just a Valley kid with a deep love for Hollywood’s cinematic magic.

In his guest article for the LA Explained blog, Memoirs of a Movie-Loving Valley Boy, Darren peels back the curtain on his coming-of-age in the Valley, a place immortalized in 80s teen flicks and neon-drenched mall culture. He takes us back to summer nights spent cruising down Ventura Boulevard, waiting in snaking lines for blockbusters at the Pacific 4, and brushing shoulders with movie stars at the local Hamburger Hamlet.

For Stein, it wasn’t just about watching movies—it was about living in them. Though Jawbreaker never explicitly names Los Angeles as its setting, the city's essence is unmistakably woven into the fabric of the film. Sharp-eyed cinephiles might catch a few familiar facades subtly appearing in some of its most iconic scenes—quiet tributes to the places that first ignited his love of storytelling. Stein’s vivid memories of growing up amidst LA's legendary theaters and cultural landmarks offer a glimpse into the real-life inspirations behind one of his most celebrated works. The pastel-soaked hallways and razor-sharp high school cliques of Jawbreaker are lifted directly from his own experiences, effectively transforming the directors own teenage nostalgia into what is arguably one of the most iconic teen films of its generation.

To celebrate his work and the lasting legacy of Jawbreaker, we’re thrilled to be co-hosting a special screening of the film this Saturday, May 24th, with Darren Stein & one of the films incredible leading ladies, Rebecca Gayheart Dane—at Skyline Cinema Club, our brand-new rooftop movie series at the historic Montalbán Theatre in Hollywood. In addition to the screening, you're invited to join us for an exclusive live panel and audience Q&A with Darren & Rebecca, hosted by LA Explained and recorded live for our upcoming podcast series! We’ll dive deep into the stories behind the film, explore the inspirations that brought Jawbreaker to life, and even share a few never-before-heard tales from the set.

Tickets are available now—[CLICK HERE TO GET YOURS!] Don’t miss your chance to experience Jawbreaker under the stars—and get an exclusive look inside the wild, candy-coated mind that brought this iconic cult classic to life!

Now, take a moment to explore Darren’s journey from Valley kid to cult filmmaker, and some rare BTS photos from his time on set in his guest article below. This is the story behind the story—one that could only be written in LA.

Take it away, Darren!

-Thom Vest | LA Explained

Memoirs of a Movie-Loving Valley Boy

By Darren Stein

In the Summer of 1987, I got my first speeding ticket driving my brother and his friends to the Sherman Oaks Galleria to see Spaceballs. Growing up in the Valley often elicits reactions of “Oh, like that movie Encino Man! Or - Nice! You’re a Valley Boy!”

I may be a boy from the Valley, but what really captured my imagination were the pastel-wearing Valley Girls frequenting the Galleria. Maxing out their parents plastic at Contempo Casuals, their totally tubular vernacular went on to influence teen movies of the 80s and beyond.

In fact, Courtney Shayne and her posse in my own film Jawbreaker were inspired by my friend’s 17-year-old sister who was kidnapped at the crack of dawn by her friends surprising her for her birthday.

*Rebecca Gayheart, Julie Benz, and Rose Mcgowan in the Iconic Trunk Scene from Jawbreaker. (Film Still Shot via Tristar Pictures.)*

Growing up in Encino at a time when films were being made about the valley was exciting for a movie-loving kid like myself. Having a Dad who worked at a film lab in Hollywood, I was well aware of the 20 minute drive from Encino to Hollywood (Everywhere in LA is 20 minutes.) As a teen, I was struck by how sleazy Hollywood was and embarrassed that tourists would travel from all over the world to see our broken, dilapidated walk of fame.

Mann's Chinese on Hollywood Blvd. - 1987. Photo by John A. Mozzer.

Little did the tourists know, the real glamour was in Encino, a mere 20 minutes on the 101 where they could find the Galleria, Tito Jackson himself coaching an Encino Little League team and Jane Fonda’s Workout Studio on Ventura Boulevard that attracted people like Madonna and Lesley Ann Warren.

Having a Dad who ran a film lab meant I knew what it meant to see a film on 70mm in Dolby Six Track versus a regular 35mm print.

"I poured over the massive movie ads in the Calendar section of the LA Times and knew the best places to see movies were the Grauman’s Chinese, The Egyptian or The Cinerama Dome in Hollywood and Mann’s National, Mann’s Village or the AVCO in Westwood - a college town teaming with young people."

Mann’s in Westwood - 1983. From the Westwood Village in the 70s and 80s FB group.

Westwood Village had an arcade, a Tower Records, a Hamburger Hamlet and an Ahhhs! Gift shop (a magnet for the gays and the girls).

I liked to get to the movie extra early to be one of the first people in line (the effect of seeing Riff Randall camp out for the Ramones in Rock n Roll High School). Having your parents drop you off early not only guaranteed a good seat, but, you got to experience the mounting excitement as the line snaked around the block.

The Bruin Theatre - 1980. Photo from the Westwood Village in the 70s and 80s FB group.

"It was always surreal to watch a movie at the Pacific 4 at the Galleria and then walk out of the theater into the mall where they shot the film you just saw - whether it be Chopping Mall, Fast Times at Ridgemont High, Valley Girl, Commando and Terminator 2. "

Film Still Shots Featuring The Galleria | From Chopping Mall (Left) , Fast Times at Ridgemont High(Middle) , and Valley Girl (Right)

It’s important to point out that the exterior of the mall in Fast Times at Ridgemont High was the Third Street Promenade in Santa Monica while the interior was The Galleria. It should be noted that ‘The Galleria’ will always refer to the Sherman Oaks Galleria and not the Glendale Galleria. No shade to the Glendale Galleria, but it doesn’t have the cultural caché or cinema pedigree that the. Galleria has. Ironically, the Glendale Galleria still exists in its original, indoor form while the Sherman Oaks Galleria has become an abomination of office buildings, a gym, a Cheesecake Factory and a multiplex…. At least the movie-going experience still lives on there.

*Pacific Theatre on Hollywood Blvd. - 1983. Photo from the Cinema Treasures website.*

The sleazy single screens of Hollywood Boulevard were also an exciting place to see films in the 80s. I convinced my punk rock cousin Debbie to buy me a ticket to The Texas Chainsaw Massacre 2 when I was 15 at the Vogue theater - a dingy single screen and the perfect place to see Tobe Hooper’s gonzo mashup of gallows humor and gore.

The Pacific Theater had a large house on the main floor but it was the three narrow second floor theaters with seating stacked in a vertigo-inducing vertical incline that I remember most.

The theater’s second story remains closed due to structural damage from the 1994 Northridge earthquake. The two neon radio towers that used to broadcast from the theater still remain as part of the Hollywood Boulevard skyline.

I traversed the worlds of Hollywood, Westwood and the Valley as a kid, but it was my all-boys prep school in North Hollywood - now Harvard-Westlake - that also happened to be the location of several iconic film moments.

Shooting is no longer allowed at the prep school, but it will forever be immortalized in the classroom scene with Molly Ringwald in Pretty in Pink (most of that film was shot at John Marshall High School in Silverlake).

The Prom sequence in Valley Girl featuring Josie Cotton performing ‘Johnny, Are you Queer’ was shot at the high school’s gym.

And last, the 1984 exploitation classic Angel known for the tagline “High School Honor Student By Day. Hollywood Hooker by Night” was shot in the school’s hallowed halls. I can’t help wonder if this last cinematic masterwork is why filming is no longer allowed on campus.

If only.