This week LOL, starring Miley Cyrus and Demi Moore, has finally hit theaters after being shot in Michigan back in the summer of 2010.
The movie focuses on Lola (Cyrus) and her friends as they navigate the peer pressures of high school romance and friendship, while at the same time dodging their sometimes overbearing and technologically bewildered parents.
Though the movie was set in Chicago, it was primarily filmed in several locations around Michigan including Pontiac, Dearborn and Detroit.
The producers felt that Detroit was an interesting city for the shoot. “It’s a city undergoing great transition and we were shooting in Downtown Detroit, as opposed to Ann Arbor or any of the sort of cushy suburbs. So we were all sort of together on this island, the island in Downtown, Detroit,” producer Stacey Sher said.
The producers chose to set LOL in Chicago because “Chicago is a very sophisticated city and it’s very typical of United States,” says Michael Shamberg of Double Feature Films. Sher added that Chicago, “is a completely cosmopolitan American city without being rarified.”
As for Cyrus and Moore, being on “the island of Downtown Detroit” allowed them to become immersed in their roles as mother and daughter.
“Both mother and daughter are each on their own path of self discovery, Demi explained about their characters. “For the daughter (Lola), it’s her first time really discovering love. And for Anne, in an odd way it’s her first time as well. Even though she’s been married and has kids, she’s having to rediscover herself and love. That’s something that we haven’t really seen on film.”
For Miley Cyrus, the film was an opportunity to bond with Demi, who not only became a mentor, but a second mom to the young star. “I’ve always had a really good relationship with my mom,” Miley said. “But it’s good when you can also have another woman in your life that you can go to and talk to, as well—one that is like a mother figure, but also just a friend with no expectations. And you can just say whatever like. That’s what Demi and Lisa are for me. On random days I’ll get a text from Demi when I may be down. And I’ll get a text like, ‘Your second mom loves you.’ And that’ll just turn your day around.”
For more information about LOL or to find a theater near you, visit https://www.lol-themovie.com/.
