In the first half of Twin Peaks Season 3 on Showtime, we are introduced to Rancho Rosa Estates, a nearly abandoned community located on the outskirts of Las Vegas. A welcome sign for the community was used as an establishing shot in several episodes. This film location for the sign spot, like many of the Las Vegas scenes, is found in Palmdale, California.
WHERE IS THE RANCHO ROSA ESTATES SIGN LOCATED?
The sign spot is located at one of the entrances to the community at the corner of Woodbank Way and Campbell Street. The coordinates for this location are 34°34’18.1″N 118°00’41.8″W.
This film location was one of the first from Season 3 that I located shortly after the episode aired. I shared the news on Twitter around midnight.
The establishing shot was only used in Parts 3, 5, and 6.
The sign scenes appear to be shot around January 14, 2016. While researching another article I found the images below from the short film by Jason S. titled “Tell It Martin.” It appears the crew is assembling a blank sign at this spot. The special effects company BUF then added a digital version of the sign to the white board.
You can read about how that sign was created in this article – Deconstructing the Rancho Rosa Estates sign.
For now, let’s take a look at the scenes where the sign appeared.
RANCHO ROSA ESTATES SIGN IN PART 3
The sign’s first appearance is in Part 3 just before we see Dougie Jones’ “love shack” and his encounter with Jade. I turned to Google Maps when I first discovered the location which preserved how it looked when the scene was filmed.
When I visited the location on Sept. 20, 2020, the area was still mostly undeveloped. Heavy smoke from a nearby fire hung in the air, casting an orangish-glow over the neighborhood.
Three years later, fellow Twin Peaks Blog author Vinnie Guidera stopped by the neighborhood to find houses in the spot where the sign was once located.
The sign returns as Jade gives Dougie a ride to the Silver Mustang Casino. I’d love to know who is pushing the shopping cart.
My gut says it’s one of the crew members making a brief cameo.
As Jade pulls out of the neighborhood, there is a close up shot of Dougie and her in the bright yellow Jeep.
RANCHO ROSA ESTATES SIGN IN PART 5
In Part 5, the only nighttime shot of the sign makes an appearance. This is just before Gene and Jake speak with Lorraine on the phone about Dougie Jones.
It’s this scene that first convinced me the sign wasn’t real. Why the solitary light? I’m guessing the special effects team darkened the daytime image of the sign and added that solitary light. If you look closely, there is no actual lamp on top of the sign. Plus, light doesn’t fall all the way to the ground.
This is similar to how BUF replaced “Commerce Casino” with “” and added a video wall on the building’s exterior. The magic of special effects!
Another daytime establishing shot, similar to Part 3, is seen in Part 5. The sign would have been located by the sloped sidewalk along Campbell Street.
RANCHO ROSA ESTATES SIGN IN PART 6
The final time we see the welcome sign is in Part 6 when the Coroner Van arrives to retrieve the burned bodies by Dougie Jones’ car.
