
The 1984 film Sixteen Candles starring Molly Ringwald and Anthony Michael Hall was filmed in several locations in Illinois. The film was set in the fictional Illinois town of Shermer, a suburb of Chicago. However, it was actually filmed in the Chicago suburbs of Evanston, Skokie, Northbrook, Highland Park, and Glencoe.
| Characteristics | Values |
|---|---|
| Setting | The fictional Illinois town of Shermer, a suburb of Chicago |
| Filming Locations | Evanston, Skokie, Highland Park, Northbrook, and Glencoe, Illinois |
| Specific Locations | Sammy Baker's house, Jake Ryan's house, the nerdy friends' house, Glencoe Union Church, Niles East High School, Niles North High School |
| Addresses | Sammy Baker's house: 3022 Payne Street, Evanston, IL Jake Ryan's house: 1407 Waverly Road, Highland Park, IL The nerdy friends' house: 1411 Sycamore Lane, Northbrook, IL Glencoe Union Church: 263 Park Street, Glencoe, IL Niles East High School: 7701 North Lincoln Avenue, Skokie, IL Niles North High School: Skokie, IL |
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What You'll Learn

The film's Chicago setting
The 1984 film Sixteen Candles was set in the fictional Illinois town of Shermer, a suburb of Chicago. However, the movie was shot in several real-life Chicago suburbs, including Evanston, Skokie, Highland Park, Northbrook, and Glencoe.
The Baker House, where the main character, Samantha Baker, lives with her family, is located in Evanston at 3022 Payne Street or 3050 Payne Street at the intersection of Payne and Central Park. Evanston was also the location for other iconic scenes, such as those featuring Jake Ryan's house, which can be found at 1407 Waverly Road.
Skokie, another Chicago suburb, was also a prominent filming location for Sixteen Candles. The exterior and interior school shots were filmed at the former Niles East High School, located at 7701 North Lincoln Avenue. The school has since been torn down and replaced by Oaktown Community College. Skokie's Village Hall on Oakton Street was also used for filming, specifically the scenes where Anthony Michael Hall drives a Rolls-Royce with Jake's girlfriend near the end of the film.
In addition to Evanston and Skokie, Highland Park served as a filming location for Sixteen Candles. The nerdy friends' house in the movie is located in Northbrook, a neighbouring village of Highland Park, at 1411 Sycamore Lane.
Glencoe, yet another Chicago suburb, is home to the Glencoe Union Church on Park Street, which was featured in the film. This location is notable for its proximity to Lake Michigan, which is referenced in the movie through a ghost story about a pine tree salesman who drowned in the lake.
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Evanston, Illinois locations
The 1984 film Sixteen Candles was filmed in several locations in Evanston, Illinois. The Baker House, where the film's protagonist, Samantha Baker, lived with her family, was located at 3022 Payne Street, Evanston, Illinois. The house is at the intersection of Payne and Central Park. The film was also shot at 3050 Payne Street, Evanston, Illinois.
The unnamed high school in the film, including the opening credits sequence, was filmed at Niles East High School, located at 7701 North Lincoln Avenue, Skokie, Illinois. The school has since been torn down and replaced by Oaktown Community College. However, both exterior and interior school shots were filmed at Niles East, including the auto shop scene.
Other Evanston, Illinois locations include Oakton Street, in front of Skokie's Village Hall, and further east near Kilbourn, where the scenes of Anthony Michael Hall (the geek) driving the Rolls with Jake's girlfriend were filmed.
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Highland Park, Illinois locations
The 1984 film Sixteen Candles was filmed in several locations in Highland Park, Illinois. The Chicago suburb stood in for the fictional town of Shermer, Illinois.
One notable Highland Park location is Jake Ryan's house, which can be found at 1407 Waverly Road. This address was also mentioned by a contributor to Fast Rewind, who recalled seeing the set being built when they were a child.
Another location in Highland Park is Oakton Street, where the scenes of Anthony Michael Hall driving a Rolls-Royce with Jake's girlfriend were filmed. These scenes were shot in front of Skokie's Village Hall and further east near Kilbourn.
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School scenes locations
The school scenes in Sixteen Candles were filmed at the now-defunct Niles East High School, located at 7701 North Lincoln Avenue in Skokie, Illinois. The school ceased operating in 1980 and has since been torn down, with the site now occupied by Oaktown Community College.
Both exterior and interior shots were filmed at Niles East, including the auto shop scene where Sam agrees to let the Geek pretend he has "bagged" her. The exterior school scenes were filmed on Niles Center Road, half a block north of Howard Street.
The film also utilised another school, Niles North High School, one of its sister schools, also located in Skokie. The school lunch line and cafeteria scenes were filmed inside Niles North, as well as the famous dance scene in the gym.
The unnamed high school in the film is set in the fictional Illinois town of Shermer, a suburb of Chicago. However, in reality, the movie was predominantly shot in the Chicago suburbs of Evanston, Skokie, and Highland Park, Illinois.
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Church scenes locations
The church scenes in Sixteen Candles were filmed at the Glencoe Union Church, located at 263 Park Avenue in Glencoe, Illinois. The film's story is set in Shermer, a fictional Illinois town and suburb of Chicago, but the movie was actually shot in the Chicago suburbs of Evanston, Skokie, and Highland Park, Illinois.
In the film, the family of the protagonist, Samantha "Sam" Baker, heads to church for the wedding of Sam's older sister, Ginny. Sam has a crush on Jake Ryan, a senior at her school, and Jake arrives at Sam's house, where he is told that Sam is getting married. At the church, after the wedding, Jake surprises Sam and invites her to his house. He gives her a birthday cake with 16 candles and they kiss.
Glencoe Union Church is also featured in another scene in the film, where the ghost of a pine tree salesman who drowned in Lake Michigan comes out of the lake and walks up to the cemetery.
The unnamed high school featured in the film is Niles East High School, located at 7701 North Lincoln Avenue in Skokie, Illinois. The school has since been torn down and replaced by Oaktown Community College.
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Frequently asked questions
The film Sixteen Candles is set in the fictional Illinois town of Shermer, a suburb of Chicago.
The film was shot in several suburbs of Chicago, Illinois, including Evanston, Skokie, Highland Park, Northbrook, and Glencoe.
The exterior and interior school shots were filmed at Niles East High School, located at 7701 North Lincoln Avenue in Skokie, Illinois. The school lunch line and cafeteria scenes were filmed inside Niles North High School, also in Skokie.
Samantha Baker's house is located at 3022 Payne Street in Evanston, Illinois.











































