Maps of Movies

Escape from Alcatraz (1979)

Where Escape from Alcatraz says it takes place, and where it was really shot.

The prison is real and was restored for the shoot, but the chrysanthemum at the heart of the story is the film's own invention.

Scenes and places

Frank Morris arrives and meets Litmus in the dining hall (1960)

Morris, a burglar and escape artist, is transferred to Alcatraz in January 1960. In the dining hall he meets Litmus, an eccentric inmate who is fond of desserts and talks to him like an old hand.

Set in Alcatraz dining hall — The prison dining hall on Alcatraz Island, where newly arrived inmates first sit down. Google Maps · Apple Maps

The main building of the prison where the inmates eat, on the island's high ground.

Filmed at Alcatraz Island (Alcatraz Island, San Francisco, United States) — The prison island itself; the film restored the decaying prison for the shoot, and the exact buildings used are not named. Google Maps · Apple Maps

How to get there:

The warden's welcome (1960)

Morris is called to the warden, who lays out the rules and tells him no one has ever escaped from Alcatraz. Morris quietly pockets a nail clipper from the desk, a small theft that matters later.

Set in Warden's office, Alcatraz — The warden's office, where Morris is told how the prison works. Google Maps · Apple Maps

An office inside the prison where new inmates are told the rules.

Morris makes an enemy of Wolf (1960)

Wolf tries to claim Morris and gets beaten in the showers for it. Later Wolf comes at him with a knife in the yard, and both men are sent to solitary.

Set in Showers and prison yard, Alcatraz — The shower room and the exercise yard on Alcatraz Island. Google Maps · Apple Maps

The yard and showers where inmates are thrown together under heavy guard.

Doc's portrait of the warden (1960)

Doc, an old inmate, paints portraits and flowers. When the warden finds Doc's portrait of him, he strips Doc of his painting privileges, and the story's cruelty is out in the open.

Set in Prison cells and workshop, Alcatraz — The cell blocks and the prison workshop on Alcatraz Island. Google Maps · Apple Maps

Where inmates are allowed one small freedom: painting, if the warden allows it.

Morris starts to dig (1960)

Morris notices that the concrete around the grille in his cell is weak and can be chipped away. He draws Butts and the Anglins into a plan with dummy heads and a raft, and for months they dig through the cell walls with spoons.

Set in Morris's cell, Alcatraz — Morris's cell in the cell house, where he finds the weak concrete behind the grille. Google Maps · Apple Maps

The cell house, with tiers of small cells facing the island's damp sea air.

Filmed at Alcatraz cell house (Alcatraz Island, San Francisco, United States) — Alcatraz's cell house, the nearest sourced place; the film also recreated some interiors in a studio, so this room may not be where it was shot. Google Maps · Apple Maps

How to get there:

Over the roof at night (1960)

On the night of June 11, 1962, Morris and the Anglins carry their gear up through the cell block to the roof and slip past the searchlights. They drop into the yard, cross the barbed wire, and reach the shore to inflate the raft.

Set in Cell house roof, prison yard and shoreline, Alcatraz — The roof of the cell house, the yard and the island's edge. Google Maps · Apple Maps

The roof and fence line of a prison designed so that no one could walk to the water.

Filmed at Alcatraz Island (Alcatraz Island, San Francisco, United States) — The prison island itself; the film restored the decaying prison for the shoot, and the exact buildings used are not named. Google Maps · Apple Maps

How to get there:

Into the bay (1960)

The raft goes into the dark water of the bay. The crossing is shown at night and without a fixed place on the map.

Set in San Francisco Bay — The open water of San Francisco Bay between Alcatraz and the shore; no point on the map is sourced.

The water around the island is cold and fast, which is why the prison needed few walls.

The search on Angel Island (1960)

The next morning the guards find a dummy head in Morris's bunk, and the warden joins a search party on Angel Island. He insists the men's belongings prove they drowned.

Set in Angel Island — Angel Island in San Francisco Bay, the place Morris named as the raft's destination. Google Maps · Apple Maps

A forested island across the bay, away from the prison.

Characters

• Frank Morris — A burglar and escape artist transferred to Alcatraz in January 1960.
• The warden — The prison's warden, who tells Morris no one has ever escaped from Alcatraz.
• Doc — An elderly inmate who paints portraits and flowers.

Questions answered on the map

• Where in the film do the inmates plan their way out of Alcatraz?
• Which part of Alcatraz do Morris and the Anglins cross on the night of the escape?